Developing mixed methods research in sport and exercise psychology: potential contributions of a critical realist perspective

Abstract

Notwithstanding diverse opinions and debates about mixing methods, mixed methods research (MMR) is increasingly being used in sport and exercise psychology. In this paper, we describe MMR trends within leading sport and exercise psychology journals and explore critical realism as a possible underpinning framework for conducting MMR. Our meta-study of recent empirical mixed methods studies published in 2017-2019 indicates that eight (36%) of the 22 MMR studies explicitly stated a paradigmatic position (five drew on pragmatism, two switched paradigms between qualitative and quantitative elements of the study, and one was situated in relativist-interpretivism). The remaining 14 (64%) studies did not report their underpinning research philosophical assumptions. Evaluating the merits and limitations of these positions against critical realist assumptions suggests that several paradigmatic disagreements are potentially reconcilable. These include (a) maintaining that ontological and epistemological concerns are important for methodological integrity of a mixed methods study; (b) switching between paradigms in the same study is problematic; and (c) refuting the qualitative-quantitative incommensurability thesis, therefore allowing mixed methods research without compromising philosophical coherence. From a critical realist position, we suggest that both quantitative and qualitative designs are justifiable in a mixed methods study because (1) they help corroborate, refine, or refute plausible explanations of phenomena (epistemological), but (2) with different methodologies utilised to perform different tasks in the same research design related to different psycho-social system features (ontological). We call for a collaborative engagement by researchers across paradigmatic positions to work towards the advancement of methodological pluralism in our research community.

From athletic talent development to dual career development? A case study in a Finnish high performance sports environment

“…According to the Bhaskar (1989) the world has three overlapping levels: empirical level (i.e., observed experiences and events); actual level (i.e., unobserved but occurring experiences); and real level (i.e., unobservable causal powers). Critical realism is especially relevant when studying emergent psychological processes in a particular socio-cultural context (Ryba et al, 2016(Ryba et al, , 2020, and complex phenomena such as organisational culture (Maxwell, 2017). Furthermore, Wiltshire (2018) stated that critical realism has the potential to produce impactful research (i.e., positive influence on the public policy or culture) by directing researchers to focus on explaining the enduring social relations that produce real-world problems.…”

Meta-Study

“…The first meta-study in SEP was conducted by Tamminen and Holt (2010) who analysed qualitative studies to explore adolescent sport participants' stressor appraisals and coping in sport. After that, more meta-studies appeared in 2016 and focused on mental toughness development (Anthony et al, 2016) and athletic identity (Ronkainen et al, 2016a(Ronkainen et al, , 2016b, to be then followed by more studies in the next few years (Drew et al, 2019;Holt et al, 2017;McHugh et al, 2019;Ryba et al, 2020). The emergence of meta-studies in SEP is likely linked to the expansion and diversification of the qualitative research landscape in the discipline and debates around paradigms, methodologies, and quality of qualitative research (e.g.…”

“…On the other hand, some studies in SEP have had a more limited focus on reinterpreting findings of the primary studies or building a new framework (e.g. Massey & Williams, 2020;Ronkainen et al 2016a), or no focus on this analytic stage at all (Ryba et al, 2020). These studies have centred the attention on how paradigmatic debates, theorising and the use of qualitative methodologies have evolved.…”

“…These studies have centred the attention on how paradigmatic debates, theorising and the use of qualitative methodologies have evolved. As an example of meta-study that did not involve meta-data-analysis at all, Ryba et al (2020) examined how mixed methods research had been conducted in SEP. Their aim was to understand how researchers had positioned their mixed-methods investigations (for example, in pragmatism, interpretivism or realism), the degree of integration of quantitative and qualitative elements of the study, and how validity had been addressed. Meta-study has been also used outside of SEP in a similar way to explore how qualitative researchers use analytic pluralism, where the findings of the studies was not researchers' central interest (Clarke et al, 2015).…”

Walking football initiation and maintenance in older adults: a mixed-methods investigation

“…Within sport and exercise psychology, mixed methods research has increasingly been used in the past two decades (Moran et al, 2011;Ryba et al, 2020). Mixed methods has been criticised by some researchers for competing philosophical assumptions (Moran et al, 2011;Sparkes, 2015), but its strength is in providing balanced evidence and greater understanding of the phenomenon.…”