1. Exploring Mixed Methods Approaches to Arts-Informed Research: A Systematic Literature Review
Cherie D. Edwards , Doctoral Candidate, Educational Research and Evaluation, Virginia Tech
Dr. Elizabeth G. Creamer Professor, Educational Research and Evaluation, Virginia Tech

2. Arts-Informed Methods

3. Arts-Informed Research
Arts-informed research is the systematic use of art making as method to examine social phenomena (McNiff, 2007).

4. Commonly Used Arts-Informed Methods
Photo Elicitation
Participant Drawings
Researcher Art Work
Portraiture

5. Arts-Informed Research
Arts-informed research has become an increasingly popular method utilized in educational research, health studies, marketing, and various other fields of study.
Although the use of art-informed research methods has grown, the integration of arts-informed methods in mixed methods studies are rare.

6. The Study

7. Purpose Statement
The purpose of this study is to conduct a systematic literature review examining the use arts-informed methods in empirical mix methods studies. In addition, this study aims to contribute to the literature on mixed methods approaches to arts-informed research.

8. Research Questions
How are arts-informed methods in mixed methods studies analyzed and integrated with quantitative strands?
What is the value added in using arts-informed methods in mixed methods studies?

9. Methods

10. Literature Search
Literature searches were conducted in Google Scholar, EBSCO, and Virginia Tech Summons databases.
An additional search was conducted on the reference lists of articles collected through the database search.
11 articles were assessed for quality. Of those 11 articles, 8 articles were chosen for inclusion in the study.

11. Analysis Articles were coded for the following:
Arts-Informed Method Used in Study
Participant Group
Discipline of Study
Quantitative Strand
Mixed Methods Design
Additional Qualitative Phase
Integration Level
Stated Value Added
Articles were coded for the following:
Arts-Informed Method Used in Study
Participant Group
Discipline of Study
Quantitative Strand
Mixed Methods Design
Additional Qualitative Phase
Integration Level
Stated Value Added

12. Emerging Trends

13. Quantitative Strands
In all studies reviewed quantitative strands were limited to:
Likert Type Scales
Frequency Counts
In 75% of the studies reviewed mixing between quantitative strands and arts-informed strands occurred in the analysis stage and inference making stage.
Two studies used the themes that emerged from the arts-informed stages to inform their quantitative methods.
All studies prioritized qualitative strands or arts- informed strands. Quantitative strands were used to confirm and or quantify the emerging themes from the qualitative and or arts-informed stages.

14. Arts-Informed Strands
87% of the studies reviewed used photo elicitation or participant drawings as the arts-informed method.
All of the studies employed a qualitative method to inform or support the emerging themes from the arts informed methods.

15. Value Added Through Arts-Informed Method
Enhances ability to communicate with audiences outside of academia
Brings the research alive for policy makers
Provides more complex insight into phenomenon
Enables participants to connect to conscious and unconscious images related to the phenomenon.

16. Tentative Conclusions

17. Tentative Conclusions
The fields of Health Studies and Education have produced a majority of empirical studies employing arts-informed approaches to mixed methods research
When discussing value added of mixed methods approaches to arts-informed research, researchers tend to focus on the value add by arts-informed methods rather than the value added through a mixed methods approach
More studies are needed in order to adequately examine the value and potential of mixed methods approaches to arts-informed research.

18. References
Aita, V. A., Lydiatt, W. M., & Gilbert, M. A. (2010). Portraits of care: Medical research through portraiture. Medical Humanities, 36(1), Bridle-Fitzpatrick, S. (2015). Food deserts or food swamps?: A mixed-methods study of local food environments in a mexican city. Social Science & Medicine (1982), 142, Harper, D. (2002). Talking about pictures: A case for photo elicitation. Visual studies, 17(1), King, G., Gibson, B. E., Mistry, B., Pinto, M., Goh, F., Teachman, G., & Thompson, L. (2014). An integrated methods study of the experiences of youth with severe disabilities in leisure activity settings: The importance of belonging, fun, and control and choice. Disability & Rehabilitation, 36(19), McNiff, S. (2007). Art-based research. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers. O'Connell, R. (2013). The use of visual methods with children in a mixed methods study of family food practices. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 16(1), Rule, A. C., & Harrell, M. H. (2006). Symbolic drawings reveal changes in preservice teacher mathematics attitudes after a mathematics methods course. School Science and Mathematics, 106(6), doi: /j tb17913.x Shannon-Baker, P. (2015). “But I wanted to appear happy”: How using arts-informed and mixed methods approaches complicate qualitatively driven research on culture shock. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 14(2),