The perfect combination-a textbook and a reader by John W. Creswell and Vicki Plano Clark-available for only $76.95 as a bundle
Designing and Conducting Mixed Methods Research combines the latest thinking about mixed methods research designs with practical, step-by-step guidelines for the decisions that must be made in designing a mixed methods research study. "Mixed methods research" is defined as a procedure for collecting, analyzing, and mixing both quantitative and qualitative data in a single case study or series of studies and is becoming more common in studies across the social, behavioral, and health sciences as well as education. The Mixed Methods Reader is divided into two parts: Part I Methodological Selections and Part II Exemplar Research Studies. Part I includes a collection of 14 foundational writings from the mixed methods research literature. These readings convey the overall development and evolution of mixed methods research and address essential topics for researchers new to the field of mixed methods research. These topics include its foundations; design types; implementation issues such as sampling, data analysis, and validity; rhetorical devices for reporting mixed methods studies; and critiques about the current thinking in the field. Part II includes 9 exemplar mixed methods research studies drawn from a range of disciplines and international scholars. The studies were intentionally selected to illustrate four major types of mixed methods designs. As with the methodological chapters, the editors organize the exemplar research studies so that the reader can see a natural progression of the different approaches to conducting mixed methods research.
I used this book as the backbone to explain the theoretical framework of my doctoral research experimental design. It is comprehensive, well-written, and, as of the end of 2017, up-to-date. Although I used many sources (book and journal articles), this book was the most important to explain why I did what I did and why. This book could be used to teach a course on mixed-methods design or as a reference book, as I used it, to explore options before choosing the most appropriate method for your research questions, context, and resources.
I read the updated version with Plano-Clark and really appreciated it. It has so many diagrams, tables, and examples for students to easily translate to their own work. It wasn't full of jargon, it wasn't repetitive, and it wasn't elitist. Realizing that's so rare as I type this...
Some nice light reading. ;) Almost forgot to log this as I read it during work hours. But realistically, it IS quite readable for a text.
Creswell and Plano Clark are some of the key scholars in mixed methods research, and this was a very useful book for mixed methods research. It breaks down the key types of mixed methods studies as we understand them now (convergent, explanatory sequential, exploratory sequential; with their sub-types), complex mixed methods types, the background of the field, and how to run mixed methods studies from writing a research question to evaluating mixed methods studies.
Recommended to anyone who does mixed methods research. My context: I'm a research coordinator in academic health research who writes a lot of papers.
I really just skimmed this, but I took detailed notes on all the important parts and read the summaries for all the chapters so I'm counting it, dammit.
This was actually a pretty well written text--repetitive enough for the 'tough stuff' to sink in but not so much that you wanted to scream. It also had an index, glossary, appendices and all the other good book parts that too many books are lacking these days. I may actually have to spring for a copy of my own instead of using a library copy.
Although a good chunk of the discussion is irrelevant for non-university research, I still find this book to be immensely helpful in thinking through research design, particularly at the proposal stage.
This is a good beginning look at mixed methods research. The writing style is relaxed and descriptive, and the information was valuable. It goes step by step through various approaches and ways to organize mixed methods research projects.
This is a great book for people going into research for your doctoral education! Or for anyone wanting to conduct legitimate research projects for write-ups in journals.