Critical mixed methods research: Learning from experience

Original title: Critical mixed methods research- Learning from experience

Date: May 15, 2017

Speakers:
Dr. Janet Parsons (PhD, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael’s Hospital)
Dr. Daniel Grace (PhD, Social and Behavioural Health Sciences, Dalla Lana School of Public Health)
Dr. Andrea Daley (PhD, Faculty of Social Work, York University)

Abstract: This panel will address the question of whether critical qualitative approaches are compatible with mixed methods approaches, from the perspective of three critical qualitative health researchers who also use mixed methods approaches in their work. Dr. Janet Parsons will open with some critical reflections on what it means to do mixed methods ‘well’, how difficult this is in practice (particularly in an applied health research setting) and how rarely mixed methods research fulfills its promise of transcending paradigmatic divides – particularly in light of social structural constraints on researchers. Dr. Daniel Grace will follow with an example from his mixed methods research in the area of sexual health, drawing particular attention to what mixed methods researchers can learn from the experiences of our research participants with the various data collection methods we utilize. Finally, Dr. Andrea Daley will describe the decisions and processes associated with a recent study about the home care experiences of sexual and gender minority people, highlighting the extent to which the paradigmatic assumptions underlying this mixed methods project align with the ethics of social justice promotion. Together, and in dialogue with the audience, we aim to elucidate both the challenges and the potential of mixed methods research as approached through a critical qualitative lens