The mixed-method UX research is not a new methodology. But it is just a blending of existing qualitative and quantitative research practices, with a framework of what kind of research method is needed or can be preferred, on a certain phase of product development. And It also paves the way for Qualitative Insights and Quantitative insights to support each other to find unbiased, complete and informed answers for the overall research question.
Questions Answered by Research methods across any field!
1. What users say/think?
2. Why users do it?
3. How many & many users do the certain activity?
4. What users do?
Traditional Research Methodologies.
Traditionally Industries mostly used market research methods(quantitative) to support their design and strategy decisions. But in the last few decades, qualitative research has found its own place in Industry. But Still many organizations struggle to strike the perfect balance between Quantitative and qualitative research.
UX Research Approach at a different phase of product development!
The Research questions vary according to the different phases of the product development.
DISCOVER: We basically do foundational research in this phase to help product strategy. By doing quantitative and qualitative research, we can understand the needs, goals, preferences, motivations, behaviours of different persons in the population sample. Operationalization of qualitative concepts and grouping, sampling of quantitative data plays a major role here to give True Insights.
DESIGN: In this phase, we do research to validate the design decisions. It will be mostly qualitative. Like by showing wireframes, design prototype, MVP to users and collecting their opinions for validation & enhancing the existing design system. Methods like survey & desirability studies that collect quantitative data can be also used here.
DELIVERED: In this phase, the product will be used by its target users. So the team can get user activity data. and create insights from it. Here it will be more quantitative. For attitudinal Insights, we can use methods like usability testing which will collect qualitative data.
Operationalization means turning abstract concepts into measurable observations. Although some concepts, like height or age, are easily measured, others, like spirituality or anxiety, are not. Through operationalization, you can systematically collect data on processes and phenomena that aren't directly observable.
How Attitudnal Insights of User Can be collected?
How Behavioural Insights of User Can be collected?
Other research methods in which both quantitative and qualitative data can be collected!
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