American Behavioral Scientist

We advance the idea that with the commitment to the intentional engagement of multiple sources of data or analytical procedures to explore complex problems as its core defining feature, the field of mixed methods may now be at a point that we can consider it as an inquiry logic that has the potential to spawn the construction of new methodologies. The special issue invites further conversation that builds on the challenge of mixing at the methodological level.

Phenomenography is a methodological paradigm, which emphasizes personal conceptions as a necessary construct to understand the relationship between the physical events that people experience and the personal meanings that they derive from those experiences. This perspective provides a useful framework for mixed methodology research, because its ontology provides both equal legitimacy to objective and subjective phenomena and an integrated paradigm within which one can jointly engage quantitative and qualitative methods. We examine several instances of mixed methods research from the literature that utilize a phenomenographic perspective and identify implications for further development of mixed research strategies.

Case study has a tradition of collecting multiple forms of data—qualitative and quantitative—to gain a more complete understanding of the case. Case study integrates well with mixed methods, which seeks a more complete understanding through the integration of qualitative and quantitative research. We identify and characterize “mixed methods–case study designs” as mixed methods studies with a nested case study and “case study–mixed methods designs” as case studies with nested mixed methods. Based on a review of published research integrating mixed methods and case study designs, we describe key methodological features and discuss four exemplar interdisciplinary studies.

The potential for mixed method approaches to offer a creative way to generate theory about human behavior in a complex social world has been observed but rarely executed in a way that is reflexive about either the procedures or its contribution. The analysis reported illustrates the untapped potential for the development of classic grounded theory with mixed method research approaches involving the evaluation of educational and health-related interventions. The analysis contributes to the literature by proposing a model that conceptualizes a fully integrated mixed method approach to grounded theory and introduces ideas about the potential for integration to occur at multiple stages in the research process. Discordant data can contribute to the development of more creative and nuanced theoretical models.

Mixed methods researchers are increasingly utilizing visual methods, including portraiture, symbolic drawing, and photo-elicitation. Such methods have been used to capture that which is not observable, communicate experiences that are difficult to verbalize, and promote participants’ self-awareness. Challenges to this approach, however, include limited grounding in the literature, appropriate training, and ethical concerns. After establishing a typology for visual methods, we discuss these affordances and challenges to using this approach in mixed methods studies. We analyze three example studies that utilize different visual approaches to identify their unique and important contributions. We conclude with several key considerations for researchers.

Integrating the arts with mixed methods research (MMR) presents untapped potential for innovative methodological approaches. Arts and MMR integration exists on a continuum, ranging from low-level (e.g., communicating about MMR using art) to high-level integration (e.g., interweaving arts-based and MMR approaches), and myriad art forms are available to facilitate concept formation, data collection, analysis, and representation. Given that a primary objective of the arts and MMR respectively is to explore and understand the complex social world, arts–MMR integration has potential to enable insights not possible through the use of either approach in isolation, and to present new opportunities for transformative social change. In this article, we explore such potentials and intersections philosophically and methodologically by way of four case examples framed by the newly conceptualized Art-MMR Integration Continuum, which ranges from communicative, data source, analytic, and conceptual integration.

Mixed methods research has the capacity to intersect with other approaches, such as action research, by adding a solid methodological foundation and creating an integrated approach for addressing complex practical problems. Conceptual, philosophical, and procedural similarities between mixed methods and action research make integration possible and justifiable. Combining the two approaches can produce more scientifically sound and transferable results by synergistically integrating qualitative stakeholder engagement with quantitative outcomes to inform action/intervention planning, implementation, evaluation, and monitoring. We describe similarities between the two approaches, discuss advantages of applying mixed methods in action research, and illustrate applications using a methodological framework that captures their synergistic combination. Using this framework, we describe how two studies employed mixed methods in various phases of the action research cycle.

In this article, a 13-step model is presented that researchers can follow in designing their own multimethodology research. A distinction is made between mixed methodology research, which contains two or more separate research strands, each designed according to a different methodology, and merged methodology research, in which a researcher creates a new methodology by combining elements from existing methodologies. First, the building blocks of our multimethodology approach are described, namely, research questions, methodologies, remote research purposes, immediate research purposes, research purpose types, scope, research strands, purpose of mixing, purpose of merging, and mixed and merged methodologies. Next, the 13-step model is presented, in which the building blocks are brought together in a coherent framework. The 13-step model is demonstrated using two real-life examples from research practice.