RES 8911 Methodology A4

3

Assignment Three: Assignment 3 – Mixed Methods

RES 8911

Quantitative Research Design

Nova Southeastern University

April 5, 2020

Assignment 3 – Mixed Methods

Research Questions

The researcher is investigating to determine the stress levels of parents who have children diagnosed with autism. The stress levels are compared before and after children are diagnosed with autism. The study will employ a mixed-methods approach. The study will, therefore, be conducted in two phases. The first phase will be the quantitative research and the second phase will be the qualitative research. The following are the quantitative and qualitative research questions. 

Quantitative research question: What are the stress levels of parents before and after their children are diagnosed with autism?

Qualitative research question: How do the stress levels impact parents who have children with autism disorder?

Research design

The study will utilize a mixed methods research design. This a procedure that involves the collection, analysis and “mixing” of both qualitative and quantitative data at a particular stage of the research process within a single study, to comprehend a research problem more completely (Creswell, 2002). The rationale behind “mixing” is that neither qualitative nor quantitative techniques are sufficient by themselves to capture full details and trends of the situation being examined. When they are combined, qualitative and quantitative methods. Quantitative and qualitative methods are compatible. Thus, both text and numerical data, gathered concurrently or sequentially, can help better comprehend the research problem.

This study will utilize one of the most popular mixed methods designs that are mainly used in educational research. Sequential explanatory mixed methods research design will, therefore, be utilized and it will consist of two distinct phases (Creswell, 2003). The priority in this particular design is given to the qualitative method. This is because qualitative research represents the major aspect of data collection and analysis in the research study, focusing on in-depth explanations of quantitative findings by exploring maximal variation cases. The qualitative and quantitative methods are integrated at the start of the qualitative phase while selecting the research participants and developing the interview questions based on the outcomes of the statistical tests. The findings of the two phases will finally be integrated during the discussion of the findings of the whole research study.

Quantitative research design

The research study will take a quantitative approach since it consists of variables that will be measured with numbers and analyzed using various statistical techniques to find out the levels of stress among parents before and after their children have been diagnosed with autism. During the first phase of the study, the first activity will be to collect quantitative, numeric, data. A web-based survey will be used to collect the data. After data collection, the collected primary data will be subjected to a discriminant function analysis. Quantitative data and results will provide a general picture of the research problem.

Qualitative research 

The research study will also take a qualitative approach. This particular approach will give clear, precise and testable expression to qualitative ideas. During the second phase of the study, a qualitative approach will be used to collect text data. The data will be gathered through individual semi-structured interviews, elicitation materials and documents to help explain the difference in stress levels among parents before and after their children have been diagnosed with autism. Qualitative data and its analysis will refine and explain the statistical findings (quantitative results) by exploring the views of research participants in an in-depth manner.

The visual diagram below is the proposed mixed method design visual model. It shows the procedures for the sequential explanatory mixed methods design of this particular study. 

Qualitative data collection

Quantitative data analysis

Quantitative data collection

Selection of cases

Qualitative data analysis

Interpretation of the entire analysis

The table below shows the procedure to be undertaken and the products at each stage of the study.

Stage	Procedure	Products
Quantitative data collection	Cross-sectional web-based survey	Numeric (quantitative)data
Quantitative data analysis	Screening of data Factor analysis Discriminant function analysis	Descriptive statistics Factor loadings Standardized discriminant function coefficients, frequencies and Eigen values
Selection of cases	Purposefully selecting the research participants using stratified sampling technique	Cases (n=55)
Qualitative data collection	Individual in-depth telephone semi-structured interviews with 55 participants Documents	Text data (interview transcripts) Image data (photographs)
Qualitative data analysis	Coding and thematic analysis	Codes and themes
Interpretation of the entire analysis	Explanation of the meaning of quantitative findings and interpretation	Discussion of the findings and recommendations for future studies

Strengths of a mixed-method approach

There are various strengths of a mixed method. The findings are easy to explain and report. It can also be useful when unexpected results arise from a prior study. This particular approach also can assist in generalizing, to a certain degree, qualitative results. The mixed-method approach is also helpful in designing and validating a certain data collection instrument. It can position research in a transformative framework because it compares quantitative and qualitative data. Mixed methods are also useful in understanding contradictions between qualitative findings and quantitative results.

The approach also reflects the respondent’s point of view since it allows studying research participants and ensuring that research findings are founded on the experiences of participants. It also fosters scholarly interaction by adding breadth to multidisciplinary team research by encouraging the interaction of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods scholars. Mixed methods have great flexibility and are adaptable to many research designs, such as observational studies and randomized trials, to elucidate more information than can be obtained in only quantitative research. Rich and comprehensive data is likely to be collected. Mixed methods also mirror the way individuals naturally collect information by integrating quantitative and qualitative data.

Limitations of a mixed-method approach

Mixed methods might pose some challenges. Firstly, there is a high likelihood of an increase in the complexity of analysis and evaluations. Mixed methods studies are complex to plan and execute. It, therefore, requires careful planning to describe all aspects of the study. It might also be difficult to integrate qualitative and quantitative data during analysis.

Secondly, mixed methods depend on a multidisciplinary team of researchers. Different approaches are likely to emerge to an investigation as well as different writing styles. There are also many other anticipated challenges of a team approach to mixed methods research. For instance, it is difficult to find qualitative researchers who are also comfortable analyzing quantitative data and vice versa. Each method must also adhere to its set standards for rigor. It will, therefore, be challenging to ensure the appropriate quality of each component of mixed methods. For instance, the quantitative analysis approach requires a much larger sample size to obtain statistical significance than do qualitative analysis, which requires meeting objectives of saturation (not uncovering new information from conducting more interviews) and relevance.

Thirdly, a mixed-methods approach requires a lot of resources. This is because they are labor-intensive and require increased resources and time. Multiple types of data are being collected and analyzed. Multiple steps are also involved in mixed methods hence time-consuming.

Fourthly, there may be challenges associated with pages and wording. Page and word limitations might affect the publication of mixed methods studies in scholarly journals in which word limitations call for creative ways to publish the material. The quality of the publication is also affected by wording and page limitations since some content can be left out. 

Lastly, some analytic and interpretive issues are associated with mixed methods research approach. Issues might arise during data analysis and interpretation. For instance, when the researchers combine both qualitative and quantitative data, the results might be conflicting or contradictory. Making interpretations based on integrated results might also be challenging because of the unequal emphasis placed on each dataset by the researchers, the validity or accuracy of each dataset, and whether philosophies related to qualitative and quantitative research can or should be combined. 

References

Charles, C. M. & Mertler, C. A. (2002). Introduction to educational research (4th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.

Creswell, J. W. (1998). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five traditions. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Creswell, J. W. (2002). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative approaches to research. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill/Pearson Education.

Creswell, J. W. (2003). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Creswell, J. W., Goodchild, L. F., & Turner, P. P. (1996). Integrated qualitative and quantitative research: Epistemology, history, and designs. In Higher Education: Handbook of Theory and Research, 11, pp. 90-136. New York, NY: Agathon Press.