I am investigating quality of life in parents of children receiving speech and language therapy. I am using a mixed methods inductive approach and I am wondering if it's important/possible to begin with a theoretical framework or if theory direction will become apparent once I have analysed my data?
Because inductive approaches are usually associated with qualitative methods and deductive approaches with quantitative methods, it would help to know more about you are combining the two in your mixed methods.
If it helps my design is sequential explanatory, I am confused about how to propose a theoretical framework for both qual and quant,
Thanks so much,
Keira.
Normally, by conducting inductive research, you may end either by describing the concepts of your research or building a framework where the concepts interact with each other (conceptual model). You may consider using a theoretical lens to consolidate your model.
In mixed methods research, the emphasis is usually on design, rather than trying to create a theoretical framework at the level of the methods you are using. So, for a sequential explanatory design (QUAN --> qual), you would usually begin with a deductive framework to test hypotheses in the quantitative portion of your project, and then shift to an inductive approach to help understand those results in the qualitative portion of your project.
In my mixed methods research model, I moved from QUAL -> quant and used an inductive approach to derive a conceptual model from the qualitative arm of my study. This was then used to adjust the theoretical framework to fit the study. From here, a questionnaire was derived to move in a quantitative direction and matched for integration with the results to be discussed in the quantitative arm. This would be an example of a sequential exploratory design. The work is still ongoing, but the direction might be worth looking into.
However, for the purpose of the research proposal, you'd need to have a theoretical framework to begin working on. A good literature review should help with that.
I am only a beginner in the field of mixed methods and qualitative research. I'm still learning and navigating my route based on the information I gather from time to time; so take my suggestion with a little grain of salt.
Regards,
Dr. Lekshmi R Suresh
Lekshmi R Suresh Thanks for your answer. I'm following the same route - Sequential Exploratory Design. Just a concern: The conceptual framework looks simple as compared to deductive conceptual frameworks used in quant dominant studies. Is it due to exploratory nature of research?
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