Research Audits: Two Examples of an Underutilized Strategy to Ensure Trustworthy Qualitative/Mixed-Methods Studies (Poster 18)

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 2
  In Poster Session: Benefits of Technology in Facilitating Mixed and Multimethod Research (San Diego)

Abstract

Even in mixed methods designs in which quantitative findings often triangulate qualitative results, qualitative methods are suspect. The problem: in qualitative data collection, the researcher is the primary (and, often, the only) "research instrument"; consequently, intersubjective agreement, a traditional expectation in social science research, cannot be determined. Qualitative methodologists, however, do discuss one method for estimating intersubjective agreement: the research audit. Unfortunately, this technique is a bit cumbersome and has not been extensively used in educational research. The purpose of this paper is to describe two studies that employed audits for different targeted purposes. Other educational researchers should be able to use these audits as models for increasing the level of intersubjective agreement in their qualitative and/or mixed-methods studies.

Authors

• Robert B. Donmoyer, University of San Diego

• Jennifer Amanda Jones, University of Florida

• Richard Stakelum, ORLYTICS, LLC