Introduction

‘Mixed methods research is the type of research in which a researcher or team of researchers combines elements of qualitative and quantitative research approaches (e.g. use of qualitative and quantitative viewpoints, data collection, analysis, inference techniques) for the broad purposes of breadth and depth of understanding and corroboration’ (Johnson et al. 2007, p. 123).

Mixed methods research is gaining popularity in social sciences because it combines the strengths of both quantitative and qualitative research to address the complex social problems, which neither qualitative nor quantitative approaches on their own can properly address, while their combined use provides an expanded understanding of research problems (Creswell, 2009, p. 188). So, a mixed methods design is characterized by the combination of at least one qualitative and one quantitative research component (Schoonenboom & Johnson, 2017, p. 108).