Deck 9: Mixed-Methods Designs

Question 1

Cory conducted a survey of his third grade students' interest in historical fiction.He found his results raised more questions and decided to better understand his students' position by interviewing them.What word best describes this type of mixed-methods study?

A)conclusive
B)emergent
C)pre-planned
D)ill-conceived

Answer 1

emergent

Question 2

What are the general advantages of conducting a mixed-methods study,rather than two or more different studies,to address a single research question?

Answer 2

Mixed-methods research fully addresses a research problem and its subproblems by utilizing both qualitative and quantitative data.Quantitative and qualitative data,especially when analyzed together,can compensate each other weaknesses and fill in gaps that otherwise might remain open.Qualitative data often provide insights about cause-and-effect relationships and form a hypothesis that will be tested with quantitative methodology.A researcher can make a more convincing case for particular conclusions if both qualitative and quantitative data lead to those conclusions.In addition,qualitative findings may reveal the meaning of quantitative data.

Question 3

Rodrigo wanted to investigate students' feeling about reading for pleasure.First,he interviewed students and then he used insights from the interviews to construct a survey to collect quantitative data.Which design has Rodrigo employed?

A)Convergent
B)Embedded
C)Exploratory
D)Explanatory

Answer 3

Exploratory

Question 4

A study that relies primarily on quantitative data and uses qualitative data to follow up is considered an example of which approach to mixed methods design?

A)Multiphase iterative
B)Embedded
C)Exploratory
D)Explanatory

Question 5

By definition,mixed-methods research designs

A)include both relationship questions and difference questions in the same study.
B)include both descriptive and inferential statistics in the analysis.
C)include both quantitative and qualitative data.
D)include a number of quantitative measures of student performance.

Question 6

The QUAN-qual model of mixed methods design is also known as

A)triangulation.
B)interpretation.
C)exploratory.
D)explanatory.

Question 7

In general,when should a mixed methodologist conduct a literature review?

A)At the beginning of the research process
B)After data collection
C)At the conclusion of the research process
D)After collecting quantitative data

Question 8

Kasey was interested in studying the attitudes and opinions toward healthcare innovation in her community.She purposefully sought the opinions of a diverse group of people,including those with extreme opinions.What type of sampling did Kasey likely engage in?

A)purposive sampling
B)probability sampling
C)random sampling
D)convenience sampling

Question 9

Which of the following scenarios best illustrates a multiphase iterative design?

A)A city has a typical voter turnout of 40% and so decides to implement a program to "get out the vote." First,they interview 38 voting-age adults about their voting practice.Then,six weeks before the local election,they begin an advertising campaign in the local media,community services,and neighborhoods.After the election,they see that voter turnout remained at 40%.They conduct more interviews to find out why,and ask in particular about people's response to the advertising campaign.They then begin planning a new campaign for the next election.
B)A researcher is interested in how low-income families budget each month,identifying and balancing necessities with items that might be considered luxuries.She begins by conducting a small focus group,asking open-ended questions about budgeting and letting the group take the topic wherever they choose.From their responses,she develops a more extensive set of interview questions and conducts a series of individual interviews over a six-month period.After analyzing the data,she develops a detailed survey,which she administers to a large sample of families,asking them to fill it out every other month for a year.
C)A team of medical researchers wants to understand why parents do not consistently take their children to the hospital for evaluation after falling and hitting their heads during play or sports.They conduct a two-phase study in which 283 parents first complete a 26-item survey regarding their parenting practices,medical knowledge of head injury and concussion,and medical histories.The team analyzes the survey results and formulates a set of focused interview questions,then calls a subset of the original sample and invites them to participate in a 2-hour interview.
D)A sociologist is interested in whether the increase of gender-nontraditional characters on television affects the way people think about laws on equal treatment.He contacts a sample of 16 individuals in his community who are active in civil rights organizations and conducts four focus groups to identify target television shows and key questions to ask in a second phase of his study.He then does a qualitative content analysis of the targeted television shows and uses that analysis to develop a set of interview questions.He then contacts a random sample of individuals across the country and invites them to participate in the interview via computer.

Question 10

Mixed-methods researchers should ask themselves,"Are the quantitative and qualitative data equally relevant to the same or related topics and research question(s)?" This question is most useful to help the researcher evaluate:

A)the validity of the study.
B)the purpose of the study.
C)the type of analysis to be used in the study.
D)the conclusions drawn as a result of the study.

Question 11

Dorothy has been collecting both quantitative and qualitative data in parallel.She wanted to ensure triangulation with the hope that analyses of both data sets lead to similar conclusions about the phenomenon under investigation.Which design has Dorothy employed?

A)Convergent
B)Embedded
C)Multiphase iterative
D)Explanatory

Question 12

Of the following,which best illustrates an example of a mixed-methods study?

A)Jenka conducts interviews and observations in her study of transitional students.
B)Vanda conducts observations and supplements her findings with class grades.
C)Micky looks at percentages of successful transitions from the district and class grades.
D)Svec interviews both parents and their children regarding transition.

Question 13

Shenny has been collecting quantitative and qualitative data within the same time frame.Each data set aims to address related but different research questions.Which design has Shenny employed?

A)Convergent
B)Embedded
C)Multiphase iterative
D)Explanatory

Question 14

Sharon wanted to investigate student perceptions of homework.First,she distributed a survey to students and their parents and collected quantitative data.Second,she interviewed a few participants to gain insights on their survey responses.Which design has Sharon employed?

A)Convergent
B)Embedded
C)Exploratory
D)Explanatory

Question 15

When compared to quantitative and qualitative research respectively,mixed-methods research tends to be

A)much easier.
B)more complex.
C)less time consuming.
D)less rigorous.

Question 16

Which action best describes the final activity in any mixed methods study?

A)conducting a thorough literature review
B)calculating statistics from the quantitative data
C)analyze and interpret all data
D)refining the research question to match the data collected

Question 17

Del is conducting research that involves a questionnaire about an individual's HIV diagnosis.His participants can reasonably expect that they cannot be attached to their responses unless

A)Del plans to use pseudonyms.
B)Del explicitly told them otherwise during the informed consent process.
C)Del does not mention their names when publishing his results.
D)Del determines that no harm will be done in linking participants to responses.

Question 18

Tacita is interested in how teachers' classroom management practices change over time.She conducts observations of 8 teachers' classrooms over the course of five years.She interviews the teachers and follows up with counts of referral data,disciplinary notes in children's files,and number of notes home per teacher per year.This study can be described as a:

A)QUAN-QUAL study
B)QUAN-qual study
C)QUAL-quan study
D)Quantitative study

Question 19

Mixed-methods research that has more than one phase usually employs which type of sampling method?

A)stratified random
B)purposive
C)probability
D)systematic