CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY
3.4 STUDY APPROACH AND DESIGN
The study followed a mixed method research approach. A Mixed Method Research (MMR) is the class of research where the researcher combines quantitative and qualitative research techniques, methods into a single study or set of related studies (Creswell, 2015). This method was found to be appropriate to collect data that can be used to develop a training programme for educators as the quantitative results were explained through qualitative method techniques. A mixed methods research approach is commonly used in the social and health sciences, where researchers collect, analyse and integrate both quantitative and qualitative data in a single study in order to address their research questions and provide a better understanding of a research problem (Creswell, 2013). The mixed method approach relates numbers to personal experiences.
This study used a sequential explanatory design for the mixed method research. This is a design in which the intent is to first collect quantitative data, followed by the collection of qualitative data which will help to explain the quantitative data in more depth (Creswell, 2015). The design is based on a systemic approach for evaluation, focusing on the mechanisms, context and outcomes of the quantitative data analysis followed by a qualitative data analysis, adjusted to our own African context. The MMR design is used where a qualitative data set plays a supportive, secondary role in a study, following a set of quantitative data (Pommier et al., 2010).
37 Figure 3.2: Study design
The study was conducted in different phases, namely: Phase 1: Situation analysis and conceptual framework development; Phase 2: Development of a training programme;
Phase 3: Development of guidelines for implementation of the training Programme;
and, Phase 4: Implementation and evaluation of the training programme.
Phase 1: Situation analysis and conceptual framework development
This phase concerns the data on health, environmental risk factors and the school ethos as well as key constructs of EHM among High School learners in Mankweng Circuit is described.
• Method
In this design, the researcher first collected and analysed the quantitative (numeric) data. The qualitative (text) data was collected and analysed second in the sequence and helped explain, or elaborate on the quantitative results that were first obtained.
The second, qualitative part, built on the first quantitative part and the two parts were connected in the intermediate stage of the study.
The rationale for this approach is that the quantitative data and their subsequent analysis provided a general understanding of the research problem. The qualitative data and the analysis refined and explained those statistical results obtained by exploring the participant’s views in more depth (Creswell, 2013). Both data sets were integrated. The subjects sampled were able to inform important facets and perspectives related to the phenomenon being studied.
Quantitative data collection and analysis
Qualitative data collection and analysis
38 Integration refers to the stage or stages in the research process where the mixing of the quantitative and qualitative methods occurs (Creswell, 2014). The integration was applied at three stages: at the beginning phase of the study while formulating the purpose, the next phase introduced both quantitative and qualitative research questions (Creswell, 2014) and at the interpretation stage, by integrating the quantitative and qualitative findings (Creswell, 2014). In addition, in the mixed- methods sequential designs, the quantitative and qualitative phases are connected in the intermediate stage, when the results of the data analysis in the first phase of the study inform or guide the data collection in the second phase. In the sequential explanatory design, the researcher connected the two phases, while selecting the participants for the qualitative follow-up analysis based on the quantitative results from the first phase (Creswell, 2014). Another connecting point was the development of the qualitative data collection protocols, grounded in the results from the first, quantitative, phase, to investigate those results in more depth through collecting and analysing the qualitative data in the second phase of the study.
In this study, the quantitative and qualitative phases were connected during the intermediate stage in the research process, while selecting the participants for the qualitative studies from those who responded to the survey in the first quantitative phase, based on their active involvement in school governance (students’
representatives). The second connecting point included developing the interview questions for the qualitative data collection based on the results of the regression analysis of risk variables and the factor loadings in the principal component analysis of school climate/ethos in the first, quantitative phase. Subsequently, the interview protocol was developed, the content of which was grounded in the quantitative results from the first phase.
Because the goal of the second qualitative phase was to explain and elaborate on the results from the first quantitative phase of the study, the researcher intended to understand why certain predictor variables contributed differently to the risks faced by high school learners in the Mankweng Circuit.
The quantitative and qualitative approaches were mixed together at the study design stage by introducing both quantitative and qualitative research questions and integrated the results from the quantitative and qualitative phases during the interpretation of the outcomes of the entire study.
39 The study results were then discussed in detail by grouping the findings to the corresponding quantitative and qualitative research sub-questions related to each of the explored factors affecting learner’s risk behaviour, with particular focus on alcohol use and school climate factors. The discussion was augmented by data from in-depth interviews of key-informants, while at the same time citing related literature, reflecting both quantitative and qualitative published studies on the topic. Thus, combining the quantitative and qualitative findings helped explain the results of the statistical tests, which underscored the elaborating purpose for a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design (Creswell, 2014).