Mixed Methods

Since I am presenting today on chapter one from On the Case, I will focus on chapter 10 from Research Methods in my blog post to avoid redundancy.  This chapter is on Mixed Methods Procedures, and blending quantitative and qualitative research in a project or paper comes with its own special rules and guidelines. 

Since the mixed methods approach is fairly new to the realm of research design, a mixed methods proposal needs to contain both explanation for why the approach was chosen as well as justification for using the method.  Creswell suggests offering examples of past mixed methods studies to lend the method credibility.  He provides a Checklist of Questions for Designing a Mixed Methods Procedure in Table 10.1 (p 205).  Creswell also advises researchers on how to procedures for planning a mixed methods approach, taking such things into consideration as how much time the researcher has to gather research and how the two types of research might be combined.

The graphs in this chapter showing the different methods to incorporate qualitative and quantitative research were much easier to understand than the examples in  chapter eight (at least for me).  Although the ways that he suggests combining the two types of research into on cohesive project seem like they would subconsciously come out while drafting a research project, whether sequential or concurrent, it is helpful to see the different methods broken down into easily understood flow charts (p 209-210).

Creswell also offers advice on how to choose a strategy for drafting a mixed methods project, once again mentioning the importance of time for data collection.  Having a well organized research plan seems detrimental to the success of a mixed methods researcher, or any researcher for that matter.  When dealing with large amounts of data, time is of the essence.

Different research strategies call for different procedures for analyzing data, and fortunately Creswell tips for doing so for a variety of mixed methods approaches.  And, like all research projects, the data collected for mixed methods projects needs to be validated.  Creswell advises readers to look at the specific validation methods for quantitative and qualitative research in chapters eight and nine respectively since a mixed methods approach includes both.

Although Creswell does provide a few examples of different "strategies of inquiry" I wish he would have included more.  The examples provide clarity in what can be a very confusing process for drafting a proposal.  Mixed methods blends the difficulty of writing a quantitative research paper with the difficulty of writing a qualitative research paper to create a new type of research paper that adds its own special difficulties.  I think that about sums it up.