Plenary 1:
Date&Time:  Sep. 15, 2019 (Sun) 13:30-14:30
Room: Auditorium 

"Embracing Complexity through Integrative Thinking in Mixed Methods Research"

 Cheryl Poth, PhD
 Past President of MMIRA
 Professor, University of Alberta, Canada

Along with increased recognition of conditions of complexity in our mixed methods research come demands for guiding practices for integrative thinking with complexity. This is because while our traditional (i.e., established) practices work well under some conditions, others require some rethinking when faced with greater complexity. Integrative thinking with complexity helps researchers see new possibilities to respond and transform their mixed methods research practices to be more complexity-sensitive. The theoretical underpinnings of such transformations are informed by the principles of complexity science. Thus, this talk will describe some of the practice dilemmas that emerge under conditions of increased complexity, describe how the four principles of complexity guide my interactions as a mixed methods researcher, and introduce six guiding adaptive practices for managing more complex conditions. I will conclude with a look to the future with some predictions of advances that might help us embrace complexity in our mixed methods research.

*Simultaneous translation will be provided.


[Brief Biography] Cheryl Poth, Ph.D. is a Professor and faculty member in the Centre for Research and Applied Measurement and Evaluation in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. In this role, she has developed and teaches graduate courses in research design and mixed methods research. Dr. Poth has an adjunct appointment in the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry and serves as the methodologist on several cross-disciplinary research teams. Her specific research interests include enhancing mixed methods research and teaching quality and collaborative research teams in the fields of education and the health sciences. She is an advisory board member of the International Institute of Qualitative Methodology and served as fourth president of the Mixed Methods International Research Association. She serves as associate editor of the Journal of Mixed Methods Research (Sage) and editorial board member of the International Journal of Qualitative Methodology (Sage) and Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation (Canadian Evaluation Society). She co-authored the 4th edition of Qualitative Inquiry & Research Design (2017, Sage) with John Creswell and was conferred the Sage Author Cornerstone Award and 2018 McGuffey Longevity Award from the Textbook & Academic Authors Association. Her work and thinking about complexity culminated in the recently published book Innovation in Mixed Methods Research: Guiding Practices for Integrative Thinking with Complexity (2018, Sage). Her next Mixed Methods Research book is under preparation!

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