Description

PRACTICE NOTE: Using debriefing interviews to promote authenticity and transparency in mixed research

KATHLEEN M T COLLINS, ANTHONY J ONWUEGBUZIE*, R BURKE JOHNSON+ AND REBECCA K FRELS!

Department of Curriculum and Instruction, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, USA;

*Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, USA;

+University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA;

!Lamar University, Beaumont, TX, USA

Abstract

Our goal in this editorial is to promote transparency in mixed research by detailing how to conduct debriefing interviews throughout the research process to document the degree that quality criteria are designed and implemented. First, we examine the role of transparency in establishing credibility of findings and conclusions. We provide a rationale for using debriefing interviews to elevate transparency in mixed research. Second, we discuss the process of peer debriefing in the context of qualitative studies because it is this context that formed the catalyst for developing a debriefing interview protocol. Third, we apply in the context of mixing approaches, five authenticity criteria (Guba & Lincoln, 1989) developed in accordance with a constructivist tradition. We present a debriefing interview technique accompanied by example interview questions to document the degree that researchers have met, in practice, these five quality criteria and other quality criteria such as philosophical clarity and incorporation of multiple standpoints. We conclude by discussing the process and benefits of debriefing interviews in mixed research studies.

Keywords: debriefing interviews, interviewing the interviewer, authenticity criteria, transparency, mixed research, mixed methods research