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Warwick Q-Step Centre

Term 1 Week 9

The mixed-methods approach

In recent decades more and more methods have become integrated into the mainstream of political science (most recently, for example, formal modeling and (natural) experiments). We generally divide these individual methods into two large categories: qualitative and quantitative methods. After decades of strict separation, we are seeing a growing movement that calls for the integration of the two in a so-called mixed-methods approach. But what does a mixed-method strategy mean and what are the advantages and disadvantages of this approach?

Methodological readings Additional readings
  • [1] Johnson, R, A. Onwuegbuzie and L. Turner (2007) Toward a Definition of Mixed Method Research, Journal of Mixed Methods Research 1(2): 112-133.
  • [2] Mahoney, J. and G. Goertz (2006) A Tale of Two Cultures: Contrasting Quantitative and Qualitative Research, Political Analysis 14(3): 227-249.

[1] [2] Journal available as e-journal through library. Simply copy-paste the title of the article into the article search function of the 'encore'-platform.
  • [1] Wong, J. and V. Tseng (2008) Political socialisation in immigrant families: Challenging top-down parental socialisation models, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 34(1): 151-168.
  • [2] Freyburg, T. (2014) Transgovernmental Networks as an Apprenticeship in Democracy? Socialization into Democratic Governance through Cross‐national Activities, International Studies Quarterly, online first.

[1] Journal available as e-journal through library. Simply copy-paste the title of the article into the article search function of the 'encore'-platform.

[2] Article is forthcoming and can be downloaded here (PDF Document).

Recommended readings

  • [1] Lieberman, E. (2005) Nested Analysis as a Mixed-Method Strategy for Comparative Research, American Political Science Review 99(3): 435-452.
  • [2] Rohlfing, I. (2008) What You See and What You Get: Pitfalls and Principles Of Nested Analysis in Comparative Research, Comparative Political Studies 41(11): 1492-1514.

  • Small, Mario Luis. "How to conduct a mixed methods study: Recent trends in a rapidly growing literature." Sociology 37.1 (2011): 57.

[1] [2] Journal available as e-journal through library. Simply copy-paste the title of the article into the article search function of the 'encore'-platform.

Weekly Reading

Introduction
Term 1 Week 2
Term 1 Week 3
Term 1 Week 4
Term 1 Week 5
Term 1 Week 7
Term 1 Week 8
Term 1 Week 9
Term 1 Week 10