What is Mixed Methods Research

Summary

In this educational video, John Creswell from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln introduces mixed methods research, a field he's contributed to for 25 years. Creswell explains that mixed methods research combines qualitative and quantitative data to provide a more comprehensive understanding of social science, education, and health science problems. He outlines four key features of mixed methods research: collecting and analyzing both types of data rigorously, integrating the data, and often framing the research within a broader context such as an experiment or theory. Creswell clarifies misconceptions about mixed methods and discusses various research designs, including convergent, explanatory sequential, and exploratory sequential designs, emphasizing the importance of a rigorous approach.

Takeaways

• 📚 Mixed methods research combines both qualitative and quantitative data to provide a more comprehensive understanding of research problems.
• 🌟 John Creswell, a leading figure in mixed methods research, has co-founded the Journal of Mixed Methods Research and has extensive experience in the field.
• 🎓 Mixed methods research is particularly relevant in social sciences, education, and health sciences, where both stories and statistics are crucial for evidence.
• 📈 The approach is exemplified in various contexts like documentaries, sports analysis, and media reports, where personal stories and numerical data are presented together.
• 🔍 Mixed methods research involves collecting and analyzing both types of data using rigorous methods, ensuring the research is both systematic and in-depth.
• 🧐 Qualitative data provides detailed, context-rich insights from participants, while quantitative data offers efficiency and the ability to generalize findings to larger populations.
• 🔬 Rigor in mixed methods research is achieved through careful design, data collection, and analysis, with both quantitative and qualitative methods requiring different yet thorough approaches.
• 🔄 Integration of qualitative and quantitative data is a core aspect of mixed methods research, with different designs like convergent, explanatory sequential, and exploratory sequential being used.
• 🌐 Advanced mixed methods designs can incorporate broader frameworks such as experiments, theories, or community-based participatory research to enhance the study's context and impact.
• 📊 The choice of mixed methods design depends on the research question and the desired depth of understanding, with each design offering unique strengths and applications.

Q & A

What is mixed methods research?

Mixed methods research is an approach that combines both qualitative and quantitative data to provide a more comprehensive understanding of a research problem. It involves collecting and analyzing data from both sources using rigorous methods and then integrating the findings.

Why is mixed methods research important in the social sciences?

Mixed methods research is important in the social sciences because it allows researchers to gain a more complete understanding of social phenomena by combining the depth of qualitative data with the breadth and generalizability of quantitative data.

Can you provide an example of mixed methods research from the transcript?

An example given in the transcript is Al Gore's documentary 'An Inconvenient Truth', which combines personal stories with statistical data to convey the message about global warming more effectively.

What are the four key features of mixed methods research mentioned in the transcript?

The four key features of mixed methods research mentioned are: 1) Collecting and analyzing both qualitative and quantitative data, 2) Using rigorous procedures in data collection and analysis, 3) Integrating the two forms of data, and 4) Often framing these designs within a larger perspective such as an experiment, theory, or community-based participatory research approach.

How does mixed methods research differ from multimethod research?

Mixed methods research differs from multimethod research in that it involves the integration of qualitative and quantitative data, whereas multimethod research might involve gathering multiple forms of either qualitative or quantitative data separately without necessarily integrating them.

What is an example of a convergent design in mixed methods research?

A convergent design in mixed methods research involves collecting and analyzing both quantitative and qualitative data simultaneously and then merging the data to compare and corroborate the findings from both databases.

What is an explanatory sequential design and how is it used in mixed methods research?

An explanatory sequential design starts with quantitative data collection and analysis, followed by a qualitative phase to interpret and elaborate on the initial quantitative findings, providing a deeper understanding of the results.

Can you explain the exploratory sequential design mentioned in the transcript?

An exploratory sequential design begins with qualitative data collection to explore and understand a phenomenon, followed by a quantitative phase to test or measure the concepts or theories that emerged from the initial qualitative phase.

What are some of the advantages of using quantitative data in research?

Quantitative data offers advantages such as efficiency in studying large numbers of people across wide geographic areas, the ability to examine relationships among variables, and control for bias. It also provides numerical data that can be statistically analyzed for patterns and trends.

What are some of the advantages of using qualitative data in research?

Qualitative data allows researchers to hear detailed voices of participants, understand their experiences, and capture the context in which phenomena occur. It is more realistic as it builds perspectives from the views of participants, offering rich, in-depth insights.

Why is rigor important in mixed methods research?

Rigor in mixed methods research is important to ensure the scientific validity and reliability of the study. It involves careful design, systematic data collection, and rigorous analysis to ensure that the integration of qualitative and quantitative data is meaningful and justifiable.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Introduction to Mixed Methods Research

John Crestwell introduces himself as a professor from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, specializing in educational psychology. He has extensive experience in mixed methods research, having co-founded the Journal of Mixed Methods Research and authored textbooks on the subject. The video aims to provide a basic understanding of mixed methods research, which combines both qualitative and quantitative data to gain a more comprehensive view of research problems. Crestwell emphasizes the importance of using a mix of stories and statistics, drawing examples from documentaries, sports, and media reports that utilize both narrative and numerical data.

05:01

🚫 Misconceptions about Mixed Methods Research

Crestwell clarifies common misconceptions about mixed methods research, noting that it is not merely using the term without following rigorous research procedures. It is more than just having both types of data available or collecting and analyzing them separately. He distinguishes mixed methods research from multimethod research, which involves gathering multiple forms of either qualitative or quantitative data. The paragraph emphasizes the need for a structured approach that combines different forms of data in a meaningful way.

10:01

🔍 The Process of Mixed Methods Research

The paragraph delves into the process of conducting mixed methods research, which involves collecting and analyzing both qualitative and quantitative data using rigorous methods. Crestwell discusses the different assumptions and methods associated with each type of data, highlighting the distinct advantages and limitations of both. Quantitative data is often predetermined and analyzed statistically, while qualitative data involves open-ended questions and thematic analysis. The paragraph also touches on the importance of design, sampling, and data collection methods in ensuring the rigor of mixed methods research.

15:01

🔗 Integrating Qualitative and Quantitative Data

Crestwell explains the importance of integrating qualitative and quantitative data in mixed methods research, which is a key aspect that distinguishes it from other research approaches. He outlines different design models, including convergent, explanatory sequential, and exploratory sequential designs, each with a specific approach to data collection and integration. The paragraph also mentions advanced designs that can be used to further enhance the research by incorporating theories or community-based participatory research frameworks. The goal of integration is to achieve a more holistic understanding of the research problem by combining the insights from both types of data.

📖 Conclusion and Future Outlook

In the final paragraph, Crestwell concludes the presentation by summarizing the key features of mixed methods research: collecting and analyzing both qualitative and quantitative data, using rigorous procedures, integrating the data, and often framing the research within a larger perspective such as an experiment or a theory. He expresses his anticipation for further discussions on mixed methods research, inviting viewers to engage more deeply with the topic in the future.

Keywords

💡Mixed Methods Research

Mixed Methods Research refers to a research approach that combines both quantitative and qualitative data to provide a more comprehensive understanding of a research problem. In the video, John Crestwell explains that this approach is not just about using both types of data but involves a rigorous methodology that includes collecting, analyzing, and integrating both forms of data. The video emphasizes the importance of mixed methods in social sciences, education, and health sciences, highlighting how it can lead to a more complete understanding than either quantitative or qualitative research alone.

💡Quantitative Data

Quantitative data in research consists of numerical values that can be statistically analyzed to identify patterns, trends, or relationships. In the video, Crestwell discusses how quantitative data is often predetermined by the researcher, collected through instruments like surveys or tests, and then analyzed using statistical methods. The video contrasts this with qualitative data, noting that quantitative data can be efficient for studying large groups but may lack the depth and context provided by qualitative methods.

💡Qualitative Data

Qualitative data encompasses non-numerical information that provides insights into the why and how behind observed phenomena. In the context of the video, qualitative data is collected through open-ended questions, interviews, observations, and document analysis. It helps to understand the experiences and perspectives of individuals in their natural settings. Crestwell points out that while qualitative data can offer rich, detailed insights, it is often limited to smaller samples and is highly interpretive, relying on the researcher's analysis to uncover themes and patterns.

💡Convergent Design

A convergent design in mixed methods research involves collecting and analyzing both quantitative and qualitative data simultaneously and then merging the results to compare and validate findings. Crestwell uses this term to illustrate how the two types of data can be brought together to provide a more robust understanding of the research question. The video mentions this design as one of the ways to integrate data, where the results from both databases are expected to converge and support each other.

💡Explanatory Sequential Design

An explanatory sequential design is a mixed methods approach where quantitative data is collected and analyzed first, followed by qualitative data collection to further explain or interpret the initial findings. Crestwell mentions this design as being particularly popular in the social sciences and health sciences. The video uses this concept to show how qualitative data can be used to provide depth to the results obtained from quantitative analysis.

💡Exploratory Sequential Design

An exploratory sequential design begins with qualitative data collection to explore and understand a phenomenon deeply, followed by quantitative data collection to test or extend the findings on a larger scale. Crestwell discusses this design as a way to use qualitative insights to inform the development of new instruments or to explore areas where existing quantitative measures may be lacking. This design is highlighted in the video as a method to enrich quantitative research with preliminary qualitative exploration.

💡Rigorous Procedures

Rigorous procedures in research refer to the use of systematic and thorough methods to ensure the validity and reliability of the study. Crestwell emphasizes the importance of rigor in both quantitative and qualitative research within the mixed methods framework. The video explains that rigor involves careful design, data collection, and analysis, and it is crucial for giving mixed methods research a strong scientific foundation.

💡Data Integration

Data integration in mixed methods research is the process of combining qualitative and quantitative data to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the research problem. Crestwell discusses various designs for integrating data, such as convergent, explanatory sequential, and exploratory sequential designs. The video stresses that integration is a key feature of mixed methods research, as it allows for a more holistic view that includes both the numbers and the narratives.

💡Research Design

Research design in the context of the video refers to the overall plan and structure of the research, including the choice of methods, data collection, and analysis procedures. Crestwell explains that mixed methods research involves a thoughtful design that incorporates both quantitative and qualitative elements. The video outlines different types of research designs, such as experiments, surveys, ethnographies, and case studies, which can be used within a mixed methods approach to address research questions effectively.

💡Community-Based Participatory Research

Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) is a framework for conducting research that actively involves the community in all aspects of the research process. Crestwell mentions CBPR as an example of a broader perspective that can be used to frame mixed methods research. The video highlights how CBPR can be particularly effective in health sciences and social sciences, as it ensures that research is relevant and responsive to the community's needs and perspectives.

Highlights

Introduction to mixed methods research by John Creswell from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln.

Mixed methods research combines both qualitative and quantitative data for a more comprehensive understanding.

Examples of mixed methods in documentaries like Al Gore's 'An Inconvenient Truth'.

The importance of combining stories and statistics in sports analysis, as illustrated by Shane Battier's basketball career.

Media portrayal of events like Hurricane Sandy using a mix of personal stories and statistical data.

Definition of mixed methods research as an emerging approach in social and health sciences.

Four key features of mixed methods research: collecting and analyzing both qualitative and quantitative data.

The necessity of rigorous approaches in collecting and analyzing data.

The integration of qualitative and quantitative data as a critical aspect of mixed methods research.

Differentiating mixed methods research from simply using both types of data without integration.

The advantages of quantitative research in studying large populations and controlling for bias.

The strengths of qualitative research in providing detailed voices and understanding experiences.

The importance of rigorous methods in both quantitative and qualitative research for scientific validity.

Convergent design in mixed methods research, where both types of data are collected and analyzed separately before integration.

Explanatory sequential design, starting with quantitative data followed by qualitative to interpret results.

Exploratory sequential design, beginning with qualitative data to guide subsequent quantitative research.

Advanced mixed methods designs that incorporate theories or community-based participatory research frameworks.

Conclusion and invitation for further exploration of mixed methods research.

Transcripts

hello this is John crestwell I'm

speaking to you from the University of

Nebraska at

Lincoln in the United States I am in the

department of educational

psychology and I'm going to talk a

little bit today about what is mixed

methods research this will just be a

short video

presentation I've been working in the

field of mixed methods research for

almost 25

years I co-founded uh the Journal of

mixed methods research we've established

a research office here I've written

textbooks on mixed methods research and

I've been teaching it for almost uh 20

years now so I'm just going to kind of

run through some of the basic ideas of

uh Four Points about what mixed methods

research is and hopefully you'll find

this informative and educational and

learn a little bit about mixed methods

research the thing is we might start

with the broader question of what kind

of evidence do we use to study the

problems today in the social sciences

and education and the Health

Sciences I think we can draw some Clues

from looking at recent documentaries

take for example Al Gore's documentary

and Inconvenient Truth and this is a

documentary of of course about global

warming but when you look at this

documentary it's a mixed methods

documentary

because Al Gore combines both of stories

as well as statistical trends for

example he shows some pictures of how

the glaciers have changed over time and

talks about that story of change over

the years and then in the next slide

he's he's showing us some some graphs

some pictures of how these changes have

occurred we can find it also in the

sporting world today when we look at the

evidence for example there is this

well-known basketball player in the

United States Shane batier he was uh in

seven as a seventh grader the fourth

best in the nation he graduated uh from

high school he considered the best he

went on to a very illustrious college

career

now when he went into the professional

basketball realm and people began

looking at his statistics on how he

performed he didn't score many points

points he didn't really snag many

rebounds he stole few balls he really

dished out few assists but yet his team

was

winning but then when they started

bringing in qualitative information such

as looking at how he uh blocked the

opponent's Vision how he looked at

whether the the players drove left or

right whether he talked to teammates and

how he talked to teammates we get the

quality evidence that begins to

supplement or augment the statistical

evidence to have a greater understanding

of Shane's potential we see this too in

everyday events that are portrayed in

the media such as the stories about

Hurricane Sandy in New York City where

we get the the passionate uh tragic

stories of individuals who've Lost

Property and some of lost lives and

those are then presented alongside the

uh newscast that show the statistics

about Hurricane Sandy and give us the

numeric information so again we have

stories and numbers being portrayed in

the media this leads to mixed methods

research which in the simplest way of

thinking about it is just simply putting

together the stories of people's lives

as well as the the numbers the

statistics of what occurs it's an

emerging mixed methods uh approach in

the Social and Health Sciences it

combines both these statistical Trends

and the stories people have developed a

complete methodology around this concept

the whole idea is that combining both

statistics as well as the stories gives

us a more complete understanding of our

research problem than just one by

itself so I want to go through now four

key features that really illustrate to

me what mix meth this is all about first

of all it's collecting and analyzing

both qualitative and quantitative

data using rigorous approaches in

collecting those

methods combining the two forms of data

and then perhaps framing it within a

broader framework and what I'm going to

do now is take each one of these four

points and I'm going to break them down

and talk about them

specifically it's helpful too at the

beginning to think about what mixed

methods is not because there's a lot of

uh commentary out there about what mixed

methods is what it is

not here are some of my thoughts about

what it's not it's it's not simply just

using the name mix methods without the

more rigorous

procedure in research methodology people

do that they drop in the terms such as

grounded Theory but they really don't

have the rigorous procedures behind

it it's more than just having both

quantitative and qualitative data

available and it's also more than

just Gathering both forms of data and

analyzing them separately without

bringing them

together also it's not just Gathering

multiple forms of qualitative data or

multiple forms of quantitative data

there's a term for that in the

literature called multimethod research

so now let me go through these four

points first of all what does it mean to

collect and analyze both qualitative and

quantitative

data we need to view data as part of a

larger picture of doing research it's

the type of information We Gather and

analyze to answer our questions it's

inframed within larger questions and

framed within larger philosophical

assumptions of doing research so my

focus is going to be on how we treat

that data how we combine it and

integrate it in mixed methods research

but we need to recognize it as part of a

larger approach to doing research it's

just one step in the

process now when you gather quantitative

data and qualitative data there are

certain different assumptions that are

operating two different forms of

gathering evidence quantitative data is

usually predetermined by the researcher

it's based on instruments We Gather

those instruments measuring performance

attitudes

observations we then do statistical

analysis and we make an inter

interpretation qualitative has a

different type of methods going on it's

an emerging methods where we don't

necessarily start with a predetermined

instrument we ask very open-ended

questions we often conduct interviews

observations we look at documents we

might look at email messages we might

listen to sounds the array of

qualitative methods uh that are

collected data that's collected is very

Broad then we take that information and

we analyze it I say we analyze text or

image data and we build up a picture of

what themes or patterns emerge from

talking to people so I see the methods

for quantitative and qualitative being

very different and having distinct

features now now both methods have

advantages take quantitative research

for example it's really useful for

studying large numbers of people AC

across a wide geographic area it's a

very efficient method of data collection

we can start looking at the relationship

among Concepts or variables we can even

look at whether something causes

something cause and

effect uh we can control for bias

carefully you know and people tend to

like numbers but we also know there's a

downside to quantitative research it

tends to be impersonal dry we really

don't hear the words and particip s

often we don't go out to the actual

setting where things are occurring it's

largely driven by the

research now qualitative research has

some distinct advantages too we can hear

those detailed voices of people we can

understand their experiences and their

actual settings where things are

occurring your whole idea and

qualitative is to build the perspective

up from the views of

participants not from the researchers

perspective so it's more realistic and

people like

stories some of his limitations well

it's it often draws on small sampal so

we can't really apply it across a large

number of

people uh it's also highly

interpretive uh and it also relies on

the researchers interpretation to make

sense of these stories that individuals

provide so next method secondly is

rigorous what what constitutes a

rigorous quantitative study and a

rigorous qualitative study we need to

attend to different perspectives about

design such as uh using a design

procedure in quantitative this would

mean an experiment or correlation or

survey whereas in qualita it might mean

using a design such as ethnography a

gred theory phenomenal olical study we

also need to attend to how we collect

the data from sites permissions a

systematic or a purposeful

sampling an adequate n or number of

people that we study we need to have

multiple forms of data collection we

need to go through a rigorous procedure

of analysis of the information whether

it's a statistical analysis such as

descriptive inferential using

statistical packages or on the

qualitative side whether it's using a

soft qualitative software package and

then building from the codes to the

themes to the to the larger perspectives

so we need some rigorous methods when we

do mixed methods research that gives it

more of a

scientific uh

form third and this is maybe one of the

most important and one of the most

confusing parts of mix methods research

we need to integrate these two forms of

data we need to bring the qualitative

and the quantitative

together now there are some designs out

there in the mix methods field that have

emerged and these have developed over

maybe the last 20

years the first one we call a convergent

design basically what we're going to do

here is we're going to collect

quantitative data analyze it and at the

same time we're going to collect

qualitative data and analyze it so the

quantitative might be a survey the

qualitative might be an open IND

interview with some people we're going

to gather these two databases and then

we're actually going to merge the data

bring it together and basically we're

going to compare the results to see when

we ask people questions and talk to them

as in qualitative and we gather

information on instruments whether the

results from these two

databases uh merge and are are

comparable that's a convergent design

the next is an explanatory sequential

design it's a very very popular one in

the social sciences and Health Sciences

we're going to start by collecting

quantitative data analyzing it and then

from those results we're then going to

build in a second qualitative phase

where we follow up so the whole idea in

in this design is to interpret the

quantitative results using the

qualitative

data now we can reverse this and we have

an exploratory design where we're going

to start not quantitatively but we're

going to start

qualitatively so we start with the

qualitative data collection we explore

and come up with findings we then use

those findings to then follow up with a

quantitative phase for example we might

use qualitative findings to develop a

new instrument because there aren't

existing instruments out there to

measure the a certain uh Phenomenon with

a population so this is a good design

for that so I call it qualitative

exploration then leading to a

quantitative

test now there's one more step we can

move Beyond these three basic designs to

more what we call Advanced

designs So within a basic design we can

add to it think about a basic design

that we're then going to surround it

with a more advanced design we're going

to put some more features into it for

example we might do an experiment within

which a ENT design is used we might do a

case study we might use a theoretical

model social change model for example or

we might use a social science theory

model one of the popular approaches here

is to do an experiment and within that

to use a convergent basic design Where

We Gather both quantitative and

qualitative data and bring them together

another one would be to use a social

science theory that surrounds an

explanatory sequential design so the

theory that kind of guides the entire

study it provides a framework for which

we then start quantitatively and follow

up

qualitatively another popular one that's

emerging is is a community- based

participatory research that's a

framework for engaging the community and

getting them involved in decisions

throughout the research process we might

use that in an exploratory sequential

design

so those are four of the basic ideas of

what mix methods research is it's

collecting and analyzing qualitative and

quantitative data using rigorous

procedures combining or integrating both

forms of data and then framing often

framing uh these designs within a larger

perspective such as an experiment a

theory or a community participatory

research approach

thanks for your time we look forward to

hearing more about mix methods from you

in the

future