PurposeThe purpose of this paper is first, to discuss the theoretical assumptions, qualities, problems and myopia of the dominating quantitative and qualitative approaches; second, to describe the methodological lessons that the authors learned while conducting a series of longitudinal studies on the use and usefulness of a specialized balanced scorecard; and third, to encourage researchers to actually use multiple methods and sources of data to address the very many accounting phenomena that are not fully understood.Design/methodology/approachThis paper is an opinion piece based on the authors' experience conducting a series of longitudinal mixed method studies.FindingsThe authors suggest that in many studies, using a mixed method approach provides the best opportunity for addressing research questions.Originality/valueThis paper provides encouragement to those who may wish to bridge the authors' ideological gaps and to those who are actively trying to do so.
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