Extending the mixed methods research (MMR) notation system

Abstract: The mixed methods research (MMR) movement has been developing significantly in the last ten years and has gained in popularity and utility across many disciplines and fields. Most notably within the fields of social and behavioural sciences, health and nursing, medicine, education, sociology, evaluation and psychology. As a result there has been a growth in studies which analyse the use of mixed methods across disciplines which has been termed prevalence rates studies. Attention to the use of MMR in business and management fields has also been slowly increasing with several prevalence rates studies emerging (Cameron 2009, 2010, 2011; Hanson and Grimmer 2005; Hurmerinta-Nummela 2006; Molina-Azorin 2008, 2009). The nomenclature of the movement has slowly developed with such terms as “inference transferability”, “meta-inferences”, “data integration”, “levels of integration” and the “quantisation” of qualitative data emerging as unique to the language system of the mixed methods movement. The MMR movement adopted Morse’s (1991) notation system very early and the unique visual depiction of MMR has also become a key feature of mixed methods research. This paper has focused on aspects of methodology not yet catered for in the MMR notation system adopted by the MMR movement. This includes data sources, sample size, data collection instruments and data analysis. The resulting extended notation system can be utilised for the documenting methodological choices and procedures, reporting research by explicitly addressing aspects of rigour, and quality; and the good reporting of mixed methods research.