Question

What are the core goals of each of the research designs (fixed, flexible, mixed method), and in what way are they the same and in what way do they differ?

Answer 1

A research design is a systematic plan to study a scientific problem. The design of a study defines the study type (descriptive, correlational, semi-experimental, experimental, review, meta-analytic) and sub-type (e.g., descriptive-longitudinal case study), research question, hypotheses, independent and dependent variables, experimental design, and, if applicable, data collection methods and a statistical analysis plan. Research design is the framework that has been created to seek answers to research questions

Fixed studies result in measured variables or numbers that can be statistically analyzed on instruments; reported in a fixed format that consist of the introduction, literature, and theory, methods, results, and discussion (Miller & Cameron, 2011). Fixed designs provide a description of numeric trends constructed on the population sample that the researcher interprets based on data comparisons (Creswell, 2014). Fixed research approaches can be indicated based on the researchers’ intent to measure, clarify and conduct tests related to their theories (Pozniak, 2015). People must have their behaviors quantified for quantitative research designs versus qualitative design description of behaviors (Alasuutari, 2010). Qualitative non-empirical studies versus quantitative empirical studies continue to grow in social research because quantitative research structure is ridged

Flexible research approach is best utilized for studies concerning real-life personal experiences and situations (Cozby & Bates, 2012). Leedy and Ormrod (2013) state that researchers who are seeking to find hard or complex answers without fast results should use a Flexible study to find their problem answer(s). Qualitative studies can be used by researchers in the future to determine Flexible results (Leedy & Ormrod, 2013). Creswell (2014) states that Flexible research involves developing procedures and questions; data collection from each participant's setting; inductive data analysis; built on one or more specific to wide-ranging themes; and data interpretation. The final Flexible written report structure is flexible

Fixed versus Flexible research.

In fixed designs, the design of the study is fixed before the main stage of data collection takes place. Fixed designs are normally theory-driven; otherwise, it is impossible to know in advance which variables need to be controlled and measured. Often, these variables are measured quantitatively. Flexible designs allow for more freedom during the data collection process. One reason for using a flexible research design can be that the variable of interest is not quantitatively measurable, such as culture. In other cases, the theory might not be available before one starts the research. An example of flexible research designs is Grounded theory research which is a systematic research process that works to develop "a process, and action or an interaction about a substantive topic"

Mixed methods research is a methodology for conducting research that involves collecting, analyzing and integrating quantitative (e.g., experiments, surveys) and qualitative (e.g., focus groups, interviews) research. “Mixed methods purpose statements contain the overall intent of the study, information about both the quantitative and qualitative strands of the study, and a rationale of incorporating both strands to study the research problem. These statements need to be identified early, in the introduction, and they provide major signposts for the reader to understand the quantitative and qualitative parts of a study”