Application of mixed-methods research in clinical practice

ABSTRACT

Nursing is a discipline that traditionally considers the whole person and, following this mandate, nursing research is also considered to have a holistic perspective. Yet research methods demanded that the researcher focus on some part of the person­to quantitatively measure some biological, psychological, or social aspect of the persons, or to qualitatively describe an experience within the context of the family, work or illness. Mixed-methods design overcomes this imitations, and expands the scope of the research considerably, for now nurses can do both. We can both measure and describe the experience in the same project.