Gelo Omar, Braakmann Diana, Benetka Gerhard
Department of Psychotherapeutic Sciences, Sigmund Freud University-Vienna, Schnirchgasse 9a, 1030 Vienna, Austria.
Integr Psychol Behav Sci. 2008 Sep;42(3):266-90. doi: 10.1007/s12124-008-9078-3. Epub 2008 Sep 16.
Psychology has been a highly quantitative field since its conception as a science. However, a qualitative approach to psychological research has gained increasing importance in the last decades, and an enduring debate between quantitative and qualitative approaches has arisen. The recently developed Mixed Methods Research (MMR) addresses this debate by aiming to integrate quantitative and qualitative approaches. This article outlines and discusses quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods research approaches with specific reference to their (1) philosophical foundations (i.e. basic sets of beliefs that ground inquiry), (2) methodological assumptions (i.e. principles and formal conditions which guide scientific investigation), and (3) research methods (i.e. concrete procedures for data collection, analysis and interpretation). We conclude that MMR may reasonably overcome the limitation of purely quantitative and purely qualitative approaches at each of these levels, providing a fruitful context for a more comprehensive psychological research.
自心理学作为一门科学诞生以来，它一直是一个高度量化的领域。然而，在过去几十年里，定性研究方法在心理学研究中变得越来越重要，并且在定量和定性研究方法之间引发了一场持久的争论。最近发展起来的混合方法研究（MMR）旨在整合定量和定性研究方法，从而解决了这场争论。本文概述并讨论了定量、定性和混合方法研究方法，并特别提及它们的（1）哲学基础（即指导探究的基本信念集）、（2）方法论假设（即指导科学研究的原则和形式条件）以及（3）研究方法（即数据收集、分析和解释的具体程序）。我们得出结论，混合方法研究可能会合理地克服纯粹定量和纯粹定性研究方法在上述每个层面的局限性，为更全面的心理学研究提供一个富有成果的背景。
