The Extent to Which Mixed Methods Research Combine Quantitative and Qualitative Design

Introduction

Mixed research method has been defined as a type of research design where the researcher combines the qualitative research approaches with quantitative research techniques, language, concepts, approaches, and methods in single research (Berman, 2017; Schoonenboom & Johnson, 2017). There are various ways in which mixed research design takes a quantitative design and a qualitative design and putting them together. Quantitative research design utilizes statistical analysis, data collection, prediction, explanation, hypothesis testing, confirmation, and hypothesis testing to explore a particular phenomenon. On the other hand, qualitative research methods which employ qualitative analysis, the researcher as the primary method of data collection, hypothesis generation, exploration, discovery, and induction. However, unlike both qualitative and quantitative research approaches, mixed research methods collect multiple data utilizing a mixture of qualitative and quantitative research techniques with the aim of attaining complementary strengths of the two methods and nonoverlapping weaknesses.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Types of Research Questions Addressed by Mixed Methods Research

Mixed methods research questions are primarily concerned with unknown aspects of phenomena and are addressed with numerical and narrative data (Collins & O'cathain, 2009). It has also been reported that research questions addressed by mixed methods can be separated into qualitative and quantitative questions, followed by mixed research questions which serve as a combination of the qualitative and quantitative questions.

Advantage and Disadvantage of Mixed Methods Research

One of the strengths of mixed research methods is that it can provide the strengths of both the quantitative and the qualitative research methods (Baran & Jones, 2016; Watkins & Gioia, 2015). For instance, because it incorporates quantitative research approaches such as the use of probability sampling techniques in enrolling participants to the study (Mellinger & Hanson, 2017; Miksza & Elpus, 2018; Rubin & Babbie, 2016), mixed research approach can yield generalizable findings. Generalizability of findings or external validity implies that results obtained from a particular sample can be applied to other populations or settings. Additionally, because of incorporating quantitative research techniques, mixed research design can be relatively quick to carry out.

One of the disadvantages of mixed research method design is that it can be complicated for a single researcher to carry out both qualitative and quantitative method research designs concurrently as it is expected in mixed method research approach (Information Resources Management Association, 2015; McKim, 2017; Venkatesh, Brown, & Sullivan, 2016)). In such cases, it is likely that a team of researchers will be needed to complete research. Consequently, it can be concluded that mixed research methods are more expensive to carry out that both the qualitative and quantitative research designs. Therefore, its usage is limited to researchers who are financially endowed or those who have received funding from organizations. It can thus be said that this research design cannot be applied by most of the researchers.

The Justification for Mixed Methods Research

I believe that mixed methods research design is an appropriate method for investigating different public health research topics because of some reasons. First, a mixed method research design is the most appropriate means of addressing research questions that neither qualitative or quantitative research methods could address alone (Shorten & Smith, 2017). For instance, in a study aimed at examining the factors linked to lung cancer, both qualitative and quantitative research techniques can be used to explore factors associated with cancer. In such cases, mixed methods research design is the most appropriate design because it incorporates qualitative and quantitative aspects hence enabling the researchers to have an in-depth examination of the phenomenon.

Secondly, mixed method research design is useful in public health practice when a researcher needs to have a better understanding of contradictions or connections between quantitative or qualitative data (Wisdom & Creswell, 2013). For example, if quantitative research method shows that patients' gender is statistically significantly linked to lung cancer while qualitative research design shows no gender differences in lung cancer, mixed research method design can help address the contradiction. Thirdly, the combination of both qualitative and quantitative methods provides a scientific base for practice (Bressan et al., 2017).

It has also been reported that because mixed method research designs combine both quantitative and qualitative data in a single research study, it enables healthcare professionals to explore complex phenomena in detail (Halcomb & Hickman, 2015). For instance, when examining the factors associated with self-efficacy in patients' management of diabetes, a researcher can use a self-reported instrument or questionnaire to collect the quantitative data. However, more knowledge of the phenomenon can be attained by utilizing qualitative data collection methods such as interviews. This means that combining the two approaches is useful in strengthening the depth and breadth of understanding a healthcare phenomenon (Doorenbos, 2014).

Other justifications for utilizing mixed research methodology include the ability to address a research question from multiple perspectives thus ensuring that there are fewer or o gaps in the information gathered from the participants (Ingham-Broomfield, 2016). It has also been established to limit pre-existing assumptions from the researcher thus strengthening the inferences. Because of this, mixed methods research design provides all the information required (Ingham-Broomfield, 2016).

References

Baran, M., & Jones, J. (Eds.). (2016). Mixed methods research for improved scientific study. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference, An Imprint of IGI Global.

Berman, E. (2017). An exploratory sequential mixed methods approach to understanding researchers' data management practices at uvm: integrated findings to develop research data services. Journal of EScience Librarianship, 6(1), e1104. https://doi.org/10.7191/jeslib.2017.1104

Bressan, V., Bagnasco, A., Aleo, G., Timmins, F., Barisone, M., Bianchi, M., ... Sasso, L. (2017). Mixed-methods research in nursing - a critical review. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 26(19-20), 2878-2890. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.13631

Collins, K. M., & O'cathain, A. (2009). Introduction: Ten points about mixed methods research to be considered by the novice researcher. International Journal of Multiple Research Approaches, 3(1), 2-7. https://doi.org/10.5172/mra.455.3.1.2

Doorenbos, A. Z. (2014). Mixed methods in nursing research: an overview and practical examples. Kango Kenkyu. The Japanese Journal of Nursing Research, 47(3), 207-217.

Halcomb, E., & Hickman, L. (2015). Mixed methods research. Nursing Standard, 29(32), 41-47. https://doi.org/10.7748/ns.29.32.41.e8858

Information Resources Management Association (Ed.). (2015). Research methods: concepts, methodologies, tools, and applications. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference, an imprint of IGI global.

Ingham-Broomfield, R. (2016). A nurses' guide to mixed methods research. Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, The, 33(4), 46-52.

McKim, C. A. (2017). The value of mixed methods research: a mixed methods study. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 11(2), 202-222. https://doi.org/10.1177/1558689815607096

Mellinger, C. D., & Hanson, T. A. (2017). Quantitative research methods in translation and interpreting studies. Retrieved from http://www.myilibrary.com?id=950195

Miksza, P., & Elpus, K. (2018). Design and analysis for quantitative research in music education. Oxford New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Rubin, A., & Babbie, E. R. (2016). Essential research methods for social work. Retrieved from http://www.r2library.com/Resource/Title/1305101685

Schoonenboom, J., & Johnson, R. B. (2017). How to construct a mixed methods research design. KZfSS Kolner Zeitschrift Fur Soziologie Und Sozialpsychologie, 69(2), 107-131. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11577-017-0454-1

Shorten, A., & Smith, J. (2017). Mixed methods research: expanding the evidence base. Evidence Based Nursing, 20(3), 74-75. https://doi.org/10.1136/eb-2017-102699

Venkatesh, V., Brown, S., & Sullivan, Y. (2016). Guidelines for conducting mixed-methods research: an extension and illustration. Journal of the Association for Information Systems, 17(7), 435-494. https://doi.org/10.17705/1jais.00433

Watkins, D., & Gioia, D. (2015). Mixed methods research. New York: Oxford University Press.