The word pragmatism is derived from the Greek “pragma” Greek word pragma meaning action, from which the words ‘practice’ and ‘practical’ come

In Wikipedia, Pragmatism is an American philosophical tradition centered on the linking of practice and theory It describes a process where theory is extracted from practice, and applied back to practice to form what is called intelligent practice

Mixed methods research is a research design with philosophical assumptions as well as methods of inquiry

There are many ways in which different research methods can be combined in social research Multi-method studies Multi-method studies use different methods of data collection and analysis within a single research paradigm

For example you might conduct a qualitative study in which you observe as a participant and also interview people

Or in a quantitative study you might carry out an attitude survey of students and also collect information from computer records about the frequency of ‘hits’ in the use of web-based course materials

Though regression-discontinuity is strong in internal validity and can parallel other non-equivalent designs in terms of validity threats, interpretation of results might be difficult

Outcomes might be the result of combined effects of factors that are not exactly related to the program

Triangulation Tests the consistency of findings obtained through different instruments.

Complementarities clarify and illustrate results from one method with the use of another method.

Development results from one method shape subsequent methods or steps in the research process.

Initiation stimulates new research questions or challenges results obtained through one method.

Expansion provides richness and detail to the study exploring specific features of each method.

Multi-method designs Use more than one method but restricted to methods selected from within one worldview  Multi-method quantitative studies  Multi-method qualitative studies

Mixed methods designs Use and mix both qualitative and quantitative data and methods  Mixed method studies  Mixed model studies

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