The Introduction of a Qualitative Perspective in Advanced Psychological Research Training: Narrative of a Mixed Methods Doctoral Dissertation

The first mixed methods dissertation in the Department of Psychology in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Fordham University is described. In research on pre-kindergarten through 3rd-grade school programs, the interplay of quantitative hypothesis testing and qualitative discovery was used to gain knowledge of how different educational outcomes are achieved. A narrative addresses such contemporary disciplinary issues as the growing interest in qualitative research methods; the effort to employ holistic, contextually sensitive investigations of complex social problems; and the need in graduate training to facilitate the learning of and an identity formation that includes multiple methods. This study highlights the value of dissertation research for learning qualitative methods and melding multiple methods into a unified research identity and stresses graduate students' need for coursework on qualitative research methodology and philosophy of science. The pragmatic approach (Fishman, 1999) is suggested as one methodological framework capable of successfully synthesizing multiple methods.