MIS - 5th chapter- Mixed methods and Design science

• The Science of Design
• Design science vs. routine design

Design Science

A research paradigm in which a designer answers questions relevant to human problems via the creation of innovative artefacts. And thereby contributing new scientific evidence to the body of knowledge.

Mixed methods

• they are about using multiple different methods to study the phenomena, collect data, analyze data, interpret data etc.
  • combining qualitative and quantitative methods within one study to get better picture of what, how much and also why and how of the research
• all methods are based in one starting Research question and they all finish in meta-inference
  • meta-inference is the overall conclusion drawn from integrating conclusions from all methods used
    • do they complement each other, contradict, or converge (they strengthen each other)
• types:
  • sequential mixed method design
  • conversion mixed method design
  • parallel mixed method desing
  • integration mixed method desing

Strengths

• qualitative data (words, pictures, narrative) adds meaning to quantitative results, and vice versa - numbers add precision to qualitative findings
• the research benefits from the individual strengths of different methods
• easier to both generate and rigorously test a theory within one study
• can answer a broader and more complete range of research questions
• provides stronger evidence through convergence and corroboration of findings
• increases the generalizability of results

Weaknesses

• difficult for a single researcher to carry out both approaches, especially concurrently
• the researcher must learn multiple methods and how to mix them appropriately
• methodological purists argue one should always work within a single paradigm
• more resource-intensive and time-consuming than single-method research
• some methodological details are still debated (paradigm mixing, how to analyze quantitative data qualitatively, interpreting conflicting results)
• can be difficult to publish due to requiring more space