Workshops
As part of the #MMIRA2026 Global Conference, we are pleased to offer a series of optional, paid extracurricular workshops designed to deepen participants’ engagement with mixed methods research. These 2-hour workshops will be held on Day 1 (morning) and Day 4 (afternoon) of the conference and are tailored to meet the needs of novice, emerging, and advanced researchers.
Facilitated by internationally recognised MMR scholars, the sessions will cover various topics from foundational technical skills and research designs to advanced data analysis and integration strategies and innovations in MMR and inter-methodology mixing. Specific software and more technical workshops will also be included. Whether you’re just beginning your journey or seeking to refine your expertise, these workshops offer a unique opportunity for hands-on learning, critical reflection, and professional development in an intimate, interactive setting.
See details below, more workshops coming soon.
WORKSHOP 1
Teaching of Mixed Methods Research: Centring Integration in Instructional Design
24th August 2026
10:30am – 12:30pm
Facilitator:
Professor Cheryl Poth,
University of Alberta, Canada
$50 AUD
Description
Designing and teaching high-quality mixed methods training requires thoughtful, intentional pedagogical choices that illuminate how integration functions conceptually, procedurally, analytically, and interpretively across the research process. Yet practical guidance for how instructors can design courses that scaffold the development of integration-specific skills for learners remains scarce. This workshop will guide participants through eight essential instructional decisions that underpin rigorous, engaging, and developmental mixed methods learning.
The session begins by examining why centring integration is foundational to high-impact mixed methods teaching. Participants will consider how treating integration as both a methodological principle and a pedagogical anchor strengthens learners’ conceptual grounding, enhances their ability to plan and justify mixed methods designs, and builds the persuasive clarity needed for strong advocacy and credible study proposals. Facilitated discussion will help clarify the value of making integration explicit throughout course design and instruction.
The workshop then introduces eight instructional decisions that shape effective mixed methods learning including defining course purposes and learning outcomes, sequencing topics and content, selecting examples and perspectives, designing active learning strategies for different delivery formats, structuring assessments with instruction, scaffolding reflection and positionality, supporting individualized pathways, and aligning course logistics with learner priorities. By working through these decisions in a systematic and guided manner, participants will gain clarity about the impact of their instructional choices within the mixed methods research learning context.
Workshop Objectives & Activities
- Clarify why centring integration is essential for designing high-impact mixed methods training
- Examine the central roles for integration across the research process and how to make it visible in teaching.
- Discuss eight instructional decisions shaping effective mixed methods learning including defining course purposes and learning outcomes, sequencing topics and content, selecting examples and perspectives, designing active learning strategies for different delivery formats, structuring assessments with instruction, scaffolding reflection and positionality, supporting individualized pathways, and aligning course logistics with learner priorities
- Analyze examples of mixed methods learning outcomes, topical and instructional sequences, and assessments.
- Identify strategies for tailoring instruction to diverse learner backgrounds, needs, and motivations.
- Engage in collaborative discussions in small and large groups to inform the design of mixed methods courses
Who would benefit from attending
- Academics new to teaching mixed methods: provides an entry point into course design offering a practical framework organized around eight essential instructional decisions.
- Experienced instructors: creates an opportunity to deepen and refine their teaching practice.
- Graduate supervisors: speaks to broader institutional priorities supporting stronger student research proposals and strengthening research training.
WORKSHOP 2
The Continuing Evolution of Mixed Methods Designs
24th August 2026
10:30am – 12:30pm
Facilitators:
Professor John W. Creswell,
University of Michigan, USA
Dr Mariko H. Creswell,
Kwansei Gaukin University, Japan
$50 AUD
Description
The workshop on “The Continuing Evolution of Mixed Methods Designs” will begin with a focus on the historical development of mixed methods research designs, highlighting initial design-types and moving into present-day design thinking. In addition, it will advance recent design discussions about the new “intersected” (or hybrid) designs that combine “core” mixed methods designs with methodologies, approaches or processes, and theories. Then the discussion will focus on issues surrounding “intersected” designs, such as the use of qualitative methodologies, the notation in parent-child discussions, a typology of designs, and new types emerging in the literature.
Finally, the workshop will feature a mixed methods empirical study that presents an “intersected” design and uses a rigorous qualitative methodology, the Trajectory Equifinality Approach (TEA) from Japan. Time will be available for participants to share mixed methods designs being used in their projects, and comment on the value of “intersected” designs as an emerging model in mixed methods research.
Workshop Outcomes
The audience will leave this workshop with:
- A better understanding of the evolution of mixed methods designs
- A update on recent thinking about mixed methods designs
- An introduction to “intersected” designs and current issues surrounding these designs
- An introduction to an “intersected” mixed methods design from an international university in Japan using a qualitative approach popular in Japan:
Who would benefit from attending
This workshop is for both new and experienced researchers, this workshop will provide a detailed examination of mixed methods research designs. It will start with the early designs, move into current thinking, and probe “new” designs such as the “intersected” designs combining mixed methods core designs with methodologies, approaches or processes, and theories. It will address several current issues with these new “intersected” designs, and it will provide a practical example of an “intersected” design based on a rigorous mixed methods 4-stage model and a qualitative application called the “Trajectory Equifinality Approach” from Japan. Workshop attendees can also share their mixed methods designs in current projects
WORKSHOP 3
The AI Shift in Research: Understanding Artificial Intelligence as Both Lens and Laboratory
24th August 2026
10:30am – 12:30pm
Facilitator:
Dr Farveh Farivar,
Curtin University, Australia
$50 AUD
Description
This workshop explores the growing role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in strengthening and reimagining mixed-methods research. As AI technologies become increasingly embedded in society, they offer researchers new ways to collect, analyse, and connect qualitative and quantitative data. In this session, we examine AI not only as a phenomenon worth studying, shaping work, communication, decision-making, and everyday life, but also as a practical set of tools that can enhance the rigour, depth, and integration of mixed methods designs.
We will discuss how AI can support each stage of the research process. On the qualitative side, tools such as natural language processing, automated transcription, pattern extraction, and sentiment analysis can help researchers handle larger datasets, identify themes more efficiently, and generate deeper insights without replacing human interpretation. On the quantitative side, machine learning and computer vision methods can uncover complex patterns, improve predictive accuracy, and expand the types of data researchers can work with. Importantly, the workshop will highlight how these techniques can be combined to create stronger mixed-methods frameworks, where qualitative insights inform quantitative modelling, and quantitative results guide deeper qualitative exploration.
Workshop Objectives & Activities
- Show how AI can be both something we study and a practical tool we use in research.
- Discuss key trends in AI research, such as ethics, trust, automation, creativity, and decision-making.
- Demonstrate how AI tools, like machine learning, NLP, and computer vision, can help collect, analyse, and interpret qualitative and quantitative data.
- Share examples of current or planned studies that explore AI as a social, organisational, or technological issue.
- Outline the main challenges and opportunities of using AI in research, including bias, transparency, reproducibility, and human-AI collaboration.
- Provide a space for researchers to connect, share ideas, start collaborations, and explore funding or publication opportunities in AI-enhanced research.
Who would benefit from attending
This workshop is designed for attendees across all career stages, PhD candidates, early-career researchers, and established academics who are interested in exploring the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in management research.
It will be particularly relevant for:
- Researchers examining AI as a topic within fields such as strategy, human resource management, innovation, technology, and organisational behaviour
- Academics interested in using AI tools to support and enhance research processes, including data collection, analysis, and writing
- Educators and supervisors seeking to guide students in the ethical and effective use of AI in academic work
- Methodologists and members of the Research Methods SIG who are interested in evolving and inclusive research approaches
- Scholars curious about the opportunities, limitations, and ethics of AI integration in the research lifecycle
No prior experience with AI tools is required, just an openness to explore their potential and engage in critical discussion.
WORKSHOP 4
Making Complexity Visible: Using Systems Diagrams to Plan Integrative Mixed Methods Designs
27th August 2026
2:00pm – 4:00pm
Facilitators:
Professor Cheryl Poth,
University of Alberta, Canada
Dr Emma Bullock,
Sam Houston University, USA
$50 AUD
Description
Mixed methods research is most powerful when intentionally designed to address the complexity of realworld problems. Yet designing for meaningful integration is challenging without strategies that help researchers recognize and account for the multiple, interacting complexities shaping the study. This workshop introduces a practical planning approach that uses systems diagrams to make complexity visible and guide integration decisions from the earliest stages of mixed methods design.
We use a what–where–who–how framework to guide the use of a systems diagram to clarify the research problem or phenomena under study (what), understand the influential contextual landscape (where), identify key stakeholders and relationships (who), and describe integration procedures and strategies aligned with system dynamics (how). This structured yet flexible framework guides researchers’ planning decisions to be more representative of the study complexities.
Workshop Objectives & Activities
- Introduce a practical MMR planning approach that uses systems diagrams to make study complexity visible and guide integration decisions from the earliest design stages.
- Apply a what–where–who–how framework to clarify what research problems or phenomena under study, where the problem takes place, who the problem involves, and how integration procedures can be planned to align with system dynamics.
- Learn system diagramming techniques through examples across various disciplines to illustrate how system boundaries and contextual layers shape mixed methods feasibility, focus, and integration opportunities.
- Construct an initial systems diagram based on participants’ own research problems (or provided ideas) to identify key stakeholders and influences to the phenomenon under study.
- Use system diagrams to inform integrative design decisions, including articulating the rationale for MMR, aligning qualitative and quantitative research procedures, selecting integration strategies.
- Engage in structured peer dialogue and reflection to surface assumptions, refine diagrams, compare approaches and adapt the framework to diverse research and community contexts.
Who would benefit from attending
- Those new to MMR:the workshop offers a practical entry point into using systems diagrams to make complexity visible and guide integration-focused planning from the earliest stages of study design
- Experienced MM researchers:workshop provides an opportunity for developing new integrative design practices that visualize contextual boundaries, identify stakeholder relationships, and align integration procedures with system dynamics.
- Graduate supervisors & mentors: the framework and activities support stronger student proposal development, helping emerging researchers articulate the rationale for mixed methods, identify integration opportunities, and justify design decisions in alignment with institutional and funding expectations.
WORKSHOP 5
Critical Dialectical Pluralism in Action: Applying a Meta-Transformative Multidimensional Metaparadigm and Metaphilosophy to Mixed Methods Research
27th August 2026
2:00pm – 4:00pm
Facilitator:
Professor Anthony Onwuegbuzie,
University of Johannesburg and
University of South Africa,
South Africa
$50 AUD
Description
Bringing together mixed methods researchers from around the world allows for a collaborative, globally engaged learning environment to share experiences, compare diagramming approaches, and explore innovative ways to integrate systems thinking into mixed methods research. This interactive and praxis-oriented workshop, led by Professor Anthony J. Onwuegbuzie, introduces participants to Critical Dialectical Pluralism (CDP) as a meta-transformative paradigm—a multidimensional metaparadigm and metaphilosophy that equips researchers to pursue quality, integration, justice, and complexity across all phases of the mixed methods research process. CDP extends beyond theoretical reflection to provide a living, evolving meta-framework that meaningfully integrates diverse paradigms, methodologies, and values through dialectical reasoning and philosophical inclusiveness.
Drawing from Professor Onwuegbuzie’s forthcoming book, the session centres the following 10 CDP 2.0 metaphilosophies, organized within the CLEAR STEPS meta-framework:
- Cultural
- Life
- Environmental
- Academic
- Research
- Spiritual
- Theoretical
- Ethical
- Political
- Societal
Each metaphilosophy functions as a guiding lens that informs, interrogates, and enhances research decisions across every stage of the mixed methods research process—from conceptualization, planning, and design to data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, legitimation, and dissemination. Rather than prescribing a single path, CDP promotes dialectical integration, allowing researchers to navigate tensions among paradigms and to honor pluralist perspectives in diverse contexts.
Ultimately, this workshop positions CDP as a meta-transformative, multidimensional metaparadigm and metaphilosophy—one that empowers scholars to conduct research that is methodologically rigorous, integrative, inclusive, deeply pluralistic, ethically grounded, and socially impactful. In an era of global complexity and methodological fragmentation, CDP offers a coherent yet adaptable framework for cultivating pluralistic scholarship and for enacting principled inquiry in the service of a more just world. As such, it provides a timely and empowering path for researchers seeking to engage in philosophically grounded, context-responsive, and transformative mixed methods research.
Workshop Objectives & Activities
- Introduce participants to Critical Dialectical Pluralism (CDP 2.0) as a meta-transformative, multidimensional metaparadigm and metaphilosophy
- Present and apply the 10 CLEAR STEPS metaphilosophies across all stages of the mixed methods research process
- Facilitate reflexive and dialogic activities to help researchers align axiological, ontological, and epistemological commitments
- Demonstrate how CDP supports methodological and paradigmatic integration in complex, justice-oriented inquiries
- Engage participants with case-based applications and illustrative research scenarios
- Provide tools to enhance integration, legitimation, and ethical intentionality in mixed methods research
- Support researchers in cultivating contextually responsive and culturally situated inquiry practices
- Encourage participants to reimagine mixed methods research as a moral, political, and socially impactful act
Who would benefit from attending
Designed for graduate students, early-career researchers, and experienced scholars and researchers alike, and applicable across disciplines, this workshop will guide participants to undertake the following:
- Reflect critically on their axiological and ontological commitments
- Apply the CLEAR STEPS metaphilosophies to enhance complexity, quality, and justice
- Engage with complexity through multidimensional legitimation
- Address cultural, political, and ethical dimensions of research in diverse contexts
- Reimagine mixed methods research as a moral, dialogic, and transformative act
- Develop research agendas that are context-sensitive and meta-inclusive
- Position themselves as engaged, ethically grounded, and pluralist knowledge producers