Comparison of Research Designs Writing Assignment

Comparison of Research Designs
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Comparing Research Designs
This discussion post has identified two research designs that can be used in investigating various issues that are found in the criminal justice field. The discussion has also elaborated how the various research designs work and how they can be used in evaluating the various matters found in criminal justice. I will discuss how the mixed research design method and the experimental design and then come up with two different topics for each of the research designs.
Mixed Research Design Approach
Mixed model research design commonly use the qualitative or quantitative data that is obtained based on a variety of assumptions. This means that each of the research design methods works under a different concept of reality and therefore there are many assumptions that exist about a given concept CITATION Jen07 \l 1033 (Jennifer, 2007). The mixed research design is used when one wants to validate or corroborate the results that have been obtained from the other research methods. The method can also be used to inform another method. Under this situation, it is used when there is little knowledge about the topic and therefore it is very necessary to learn about the variables that you are going to study through qualitative research method CITATION Jen07 \l 1033 (Jennifer, 2007). You will then need to study the variables that you have just obtained using quantitative research method. In the use of Mixed Research Design, a researcher can come up with new theory and then test it unlike when a researcher is using the experimental research design.
There are benefits of using the mixed model research design. The method provides strengths that can offset the weaknesses of using quantitative research and qualitative research methods. Quantitative research is weak in understanding the context or setting of the people something that qualitative approach makes up for CITATION ABr06 \l 1033 (Bryman, 2006). On the other side, qualitative research is deficient due to the potential of biased interpretations that are made by the researcher and it is very difficult in generalizing the findings to a whole group. Quantitative approach lacks this weakness and therefore by using mixed research method, the strengths of each approach make up for the weaknesses of the other. This is one of the benefits of using the method as compared to using the experimental research design.
A limitation of the research design is that it is very complex and takes a long period ...