The use of mixed methods research in the field of behavioural sciences

By Olatz Lopez-Fernandez, José F. Molina-Azorín. 2011

90 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Mixed methods research involves the combined use of quantitative and qualitative methods in the same research study, and it is becoming increasingly important in several scientific areas. The aim of this paper is to review and compare through a mixed methods multiple-case study the application of this methodology in three reputable behavioural science journals: the Journal of Organizational Behavior, Addictive Behaviors and Psicothema. A quantitative analysis was carried out to review all the papers published in these journals during the period 2003–2008 and classify them into two blocks: theoretical and empirical, with the latter being further subdivided into three subtypes (quantitative, qualitative and mixed). A qualitative analysis determined the main characteristics of the mixed methods studies identified, in order to describe in more detail the ways in which the two methods are combined based on their purpose, priority, implementation and research design. From the journals selected, a total of 1,958 articles were analysed, the majority of which corresponded to empirical studies, with only a small number referring to research that used mixed methods. Nonetheless, mixed methods research does appear in all the behavioural science journals studied within the period selected, showing a range of designs, where the sequential equal weight mixed methods research design seems to stand out.

Subfields: General Health Professions, Management Information Systems, Management Science and Operations Research

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/968f95294bd4f17731e9ebe5ded3e4076777b858

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In General Health Professions

1. Brigid C. Raughley
2. J. Ponterotto
3. Jaya Mathew

In Management Information Systems

1. Brigid C. Raughley
2. J. Ponterotto
3. Jaya Mathew

In Management Science and Operations Research

1. Brigid C. Raughley
2. J. Ponterotto
3. Jaya Mathew

Citations in the corpus

• The Value of Mixed Methods Designs to Social Justice Research in Counseling and Psychology (2013, methodology): “Finally, an analysis of 1,745 empirical articles published from 2002-2008 in three behavioral services journals found only 1.8% to rely on mixed methods designs (Lopez-Fernandez & Molina-Azorin, 2011).”