A Malaysian Study of Mixed Methods: An Example of Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Methods

This book consists of ten chapters, focusing on how to combine quantitative with qualitative methods in a research project. The approach of combining both methods is called ‘Triangulation’. In the social sciences, triangulation is often used in combining several research methods to study one subject. However, it is not in itself a method in the same way as a quantitative or qualitative approach with a specific paradigm. Triangulation is a plan, structure and investigation strategy deployed to obtain answers to problems identified at an earlier stage, and is widely used by researchers due to its capability in cross-checking the validity of findings and its minimal risk of bias. This book details the triangulation approach through its use in a real research project. Although, there are a number of books which discuss general research guidelines and methods, there is a notable lack of such books in social sciences which provide an example of integrating quantitative and qualitative methods in one research project. As such, the contents of this book will be useful to students, academicians and practitioners conducting research work.

About the Author :
Ruhizal Roosli is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Housing, Building and Planning at the Universiti Sains Malaysia, having received a BSc in Housing, Building and Planning and an MSc in Housing Studies from the same institution. He received his PhD in Housing Studies from Northumbria University, UK, and his Advanced Diploma in Peace Operations and Crisis Management from the Institute for International Political Studies, Milan, Italy. His research focuses on how people have produced, are producing, and will produce better settlements in normal and emergency situations, and he has published extensively in the areas of disaster and development.Phil O'Keefe is an Emeritus Professor of Economic Development and Environmental Management at Northumbria University, UK. He graduated in Geography from Newcastle University and completed his doctorate at the School of Oriental and African Studies, UK. Since his first teaching post in 1973, he has worked at various universities and international institutions, including the University of Khartoum, the Disaster Research Unit at Bradford University, UK, the Graduate School of Geography at Clark University, USA, and the Beijer Institute at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, which has since become the Stockholm Environment Institute.