The 1 + 1 = 1 and 1 + 1 = 3 Integration Formulas in Mixed Methods Research: A Poem Promoting Peaceful and Productive Co-Existence

Abstract

In their editorial published in the International Journal of Multiple Research Approaches, Archibald and Onwuegbuzie (2020) called for the inclusion of poetic representation in mixed methods research. With this in mind, in this editorial, I provide a poetic representation that synthesizes my thoughts regarding the recent formal emergence of two integration formulas, namely, the 1 + 1 = 3 integration approach (Fetters & Freshwater, 2015) and the 1 + 1 = 1 integration approach (Onwuegbuzie, 2017; Onwuegbuzie & Hitchcock, 2019). In this editorial, I present only a poem, with no further commentary, in order to ensure that this poem takes center stage. This poem represents an integration of found poetry (Prendergast, 2006) and research poetry (Faulkner, 2009). Found poetry involves the creation of poems by selecting and (re-)arranging existing text from research works, emphasizing themes or ideas present in the source text in order to create new meaning. In contrast, research poetry involves integrating academic research and scholarly content into poetic compositions in order to present the concept of integration in mixed methods research in a creative, accessible, understandable, and engaging manner through poetry. This poem, which also can be classified as a literature-voiced poem (i.e., stemming from literature; Prendergast, 2009), represents a quatrain (Chisholm, 2014)—specifically, a poem with four-line stanzas that involve a traditional rhyme wherein the end of every pair of lines within each stanza rhymes (i.e., an AABB rhyme scheme, wherein each letter indicates which lines rhyme). These stanzas do not have a common metric, with the number of feet per line varying—hopefully, yielding what Lahman et al. (2011) referred to as “good enough research poetry” (p. 894) that is characteristic of novice research poets like me. I hope you find the research poem meaningful.