Why integrate methods?

The need for theories of knowledge and models of causal account in integrative research or the implications of thesis XI on Feuerbach for social research

Dave Byrne, University of Durham and Wendy Olsen, University of Manchester

RMP Project page

Slides

Meshing Quantitative and Qualitative Methods in Family Research

Jennifer Mason and Vanessa May
University of Leeds, Institute for the Social Sciences

When, why and how to combine and integrate qualitative and quantitative research methods

Tony Coxon, University of Edinburgh

If qualitative data are to be integrated with (rather than simply supplement or vie with) quantitative data, as much attention needs to be paid to the data-collection process as to the data analysis. This is turn has consequences for the storage and retrieval of data. These assertions will be illustrated by reference to two contrasting projects:

one on occupational cognition and one on sexual behaviour of gay men.

Go to www.sigmadiaries.com for more information.

Full paper           Slides

Using quantitative methods as exploratory techniques in qualitative research projects

Richard Bell, University of Melbourne

In many qualitative data analyses there is a point where the raw data is classified into categories. While quantitative methods are traditionally associated with the testing of hypotheses, there are some lesser known (but fairly widely available) quantitative methods that can also be used at this point in qualitative analyses to generate hypotheses about relationships among the categories or between the categories and respondents that can be further examined in the raw data. These techniques can also be used to link categorized qualitative data to other quantitative data.

Slides

A workshop demonstrating these methods will be run on Saturday at 11am.

Following a thread – an approach to integrating multi-method data sets?

Jo Moran-Ellis, Victoria Alexander, Ann Cronin, Mary Dickinson, Jane Fielding, Hilary Thomas, J. Sleney

Department of Sociology, University of Surrey

RMP Project page

There is a long-standing interest in sociological research in the idea of using more than one method to investigate a research question or topic in order to gain better understandings and insights and even senses of what is 'the truth' of the matter. The notion of 'knowing more' through different approaches has been variously captured in ideas about triangulation, multi-methods, integration, combining methods, complementarity and mixing methods. Our research has been structured to make visible the intellectual and practical work involved in integrating different methods and different methodological approaches to studying. To do this, we have been conducting five small investigations into the topic of 'vulnerability', exploring how this concept differs when viewed through a variety of epistemological lenses (quantitative, qualitative and visual) and across a range of populations (whole households, people living alone, and people who are homeless). In this workshop we will present a selection of cross-method data and focus on one element in the research process - the analysis stage - to examine and debate the question of 'what can we claim to know following integrating data, and what hesitations about knowing must persist?'