This research was built around the self-reported experiences and knowledge of the participants; therefore, this research must be based on a constructivist worldview (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011). Within this study, the participants were considered to be subject matter experts, not only in relation to the subject matter that they teach, but also as experts in the experiences they have lived in teaching, and through their transitions to the role of teacher. Multiple realities and stories should be revealed, as each participant’s lived experience will be somewhat different. As described by Creswell (2003), the goal of research based on
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constructivism is to “rely as much as possible on the participants’ views of the situation being studied” (p. 8).
The theoretical lens was the social science lens of observation, but with a philosophy of Appreciative Inquiry (AI) informing it (Cooperrider & Whitney, 1999). Appreciative Inquiry, simply stated, looks for the best of what is, and attempts to build on strengths for further
improvement in organizations rather than presenting a problem to be solved. Constructivism and AI can easily work together, given that AI’s first principle is the constructivist principle. This principle was explained by Coghlan, Preskill, and Tzavaras Catsambas (2003) as “related to the notion that multiple realities exist based on perceptions and shared understandings” (p. 9). Coghlan et al. (2003) described AI as a highly participatory form of inquiry, emphasizing social constructivism. While this study did not follow the full process of AI as envisioned by
Cooperrider and Whitney (1999), the research was guided by the spirit of AI in looking for positive experiences rather than problems to be solved, and in respecting the viewpoint of the participants.
Denzin and Lincoln (2005) defined constructivism’s underlying foundations as: “a relativist ontology (there are multiple realities), a subjectivist epistemology (knower and respondent co-create understandings), and a naturalistic (in the natural world) set of
methodological procedures” (p. 24). Creswell and Plano Clark (2011) similarly set out aspects of constructivism, but format them as guidance for researcher practice:
Ontology – the researcher will provide quotes to illustrate the different perspectives of the participants.
Epistemology – the researcher will work closely with the participants, and visit them on site. Axiology – biased, but with the expectation that the researcher will actively present and
acknowledge biases and interpretations.
Methodology – an inductive approach, as the research will begin with the participants’ views and build patterns or generalizations from these views. Creswell (2003) termed this process “theory generation” (p. 6).
Rhetoric – an informal, literary style should be used. This guidance was followed within this study.
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While constructivism was the appropriate choice for the model intended in this research, it is most often associated with qualitative research rather than mixed methods, which was the path chosen for this study. Choosing the mixed methods approach to research in this instance represented an attempt to create a balance between the perceived greater certainty offered by quantitative approaches, and the benefits of qualitative methods to provide a richer text
describing participants’ experiences. Schwandt (1996) argued that positivism’s promise of firm foundations for knowledge through strictly quantitative research methods has proven
unattainable, particularly in the social sciences and humanities. “The decision to engage in the act of deliberation through conversation is a moral and political commitment to a community of interpreters” (Schwandt, 1996, p. 66). This statement fit well with the present research project, which aimed to give voice to practitioners of postsecondary vocational education in an
egalitarian manner.
Other authors, reflecting an acceptance of qualitative research methods, nevertheless have questioned aspects of the approach. Cheu-Jey (2012) raised the question of constructivist
research’s internal consistency, asking whether authors intended that one reality should be
constructed by the researcher out of many individual ones presented through research, or whether reality as a concept is left to the individual participants to define. Within the present research project, the perspective taken is that a reality can be constructed based on the commonalities found within the individual experiences of the participants, and generalizations made (Creswell, 2003; Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011). Through interpretation of the multiple perspectives of participants, conclusions with predictive value in similar situations can be created, and to a limited extent, theory generated from these common representations for reality.
Onwuegbuzie (2012) redefined the mixed approach by changing the name from mixed
methods research to mixed research, emphasizing that not only the methods, or specific
strategies, are drawn from both quantitative and qualitative traditions, but the methodology or broad approach to research is also drawn from both traditions. Drawing on Tashakkori and Teddlie (2010), Onwuegbuzie (2012) called for a “humanistic methodology” (p. 206) similar to the learning style of infants, where information of all kinds, both quantitative and qualitative, is used as available to learn about the world around oneself. Onwuegbuzie’s (2012) encouragement to use all forms of information available to the research is linked to the concept of pragmatism.
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While constructivism was the foundation of this research project, the approach also mixed in a measure of pragmatism, or “what works” (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011, p. 43). Creswell (2003) advised the researcher to base the research approach on the research problem: quantitative if seeking to identify influencing factors or best predictors of an outcome; qualitative if “a concept or phenomenon needs to be understood because little research has been done on it” (p. 22).
The approach of freely mixing qualitative and quantitative methodologies and methods was also supported by Johnson and Onwuegbuzie (2004), who suggested “epistemological and methodological pluralism” (p. 15) in educational studies in the pursuit of more effective research. The current research aimed to identify influences and make limited predictions regarding effective teaching practice through the use of quantitative tools; and, to create further understanding of an under-researched phenomenon, that of trades teaching, by using qualitative methods. Throughout both methods, the research was imbued with a constructivist, appreciative view.
3.2.3 Constructivism in Mixed Methods Research
Frels and Onwuegbuzie (2013) posited that constructivism, while most often associated with qualitative research, can be a basis for mixed research, as well. They argued that analysis of data from research based on a constructivist paradigm can be used in all forms of qualitative analysis, and can be used in quantitative analysis for descriptive statistics, and some inferential statistics for internal statistical generalization, but not to the extent of external statistical
generalization. Frels and Onwuegbuzie (2013) defined internal statistical generalizations as making generalizations, judgments, inferences, or predictions on data obtained from one or more representative or elite participants, such as key informants, subsample members, or politically important cases, of the sample from which the participant(s) was selected. In the current study, the sample did not meet the threshold of being randomized or representative, as needed to support external statistical generalization; however, it was designed to meet the requirements, as defined by Frels and Onwuegbuzie (2013), to support internal statistical generalizations for the population from which the sample was drawn, that of trades teachers in Western Canadian postsecondary institutions.
Use of a constructivist paradigm for research that includes both quantitative and
qualitative forms of analysis would, in the words of Frels and Onwuegbuzie (2013), constitute a
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qualitative, constructivist, stance “and also believes that the addition of quantitative data and analysis would address in more detail the research question(s)” (Frels & Onwuegbuzie, 2013, p. 187). This is the model I chose to use in the current study: a constructivist worldview to inform all aspects of the research, creating a qualitative dominance, but using both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection and analysis to provide depth of understanding and support for a limited level of inference and predictive value.
3.2.4 Mixed Methods in Education and Business Studies
The present research project was situated within educational studies, but was also connected to management studies as it looked to inform human resources functions of
recruitment and retention. Qualitative and mixed methods research are well established within education (Collins, Onwuegbuzie, & Sutton, 2006), but less established in business and management studies. Lopez-Fernandez and Molina-Azorin (2011) looked at the prevalence of mixed methods research, and found approximately 30% of educational research was of this type, but in interdisciplinary (education, psychology, and management) journals only 9.2 % of
research articles had a mixed method research approach (p. 278). Quantitative research
dominated in educational management journals, versus qualitative in education-focused journals (Lopez-Fernandez & Molina-Azorin, 2011).
Cameron and Molina-Azorin (2011) reviewed business research, and commented that the term mixed methods was not used as a keyword in main methodological journals in the field, but suggested that mixed methods may be more common than scanning for the words would suggest. Molina-Azorin (2011) provided an analysis of research methods in business and management studies, based on a review of more than 1,300 articles, that showed quantitative as the dominant method used, while mixed methods was the least used of the four types identified. The value of mixed methods research in business studies was supported, however, as Cameron and Molina- Azorin (2011) argued that this research approach held value, particularly in human resource management studies, “when investigating sensitive issues in organizational research” (p. 286). Currall and Towler (2003) also suggested a move toward mixed methods research in
management studies, away from strictly quantitative research.
These findings are in keeping with the historic view of research in both psychology and organizational psychology in North America. An emphasis on positivist, empirical research stems from the early 1900s when business research was dominated by Taylor’s (1911) scientific
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management and Gilbreth’s (1914) time-motion studies of work processes. A change in direction
in psychological research has been traced to 1998 when a more positive view of human
behaviour developed in Positive Organizational Behaviour (POB) theory (Peterson & Seligman, 2003). Certainly, theories of positive human behaviour in business studies predate this time; however, organizational psychology and management studies have clearly lagged behind education in the path toward qualitative and mixed method studies, rather than strictly quantitative research.
As the present study sought to provide suggestions regarding human resource management functions, as well as explore the lived experiences of an understudied group, a mixed methods approach appeared most appropriate. The quantitative portion of the study was designed to provide the type of evidence most often accepted within management studies and organizational psychology (Cameron & Molina-Azorin, 2011), while also utilizing the strengths of qualitative research methods to enhance understanding of the lived experience of the group and mirroring the acceptance of this type of research within educational studies (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005).
3.3 Method