The Use of Mixed-Methods When Analysing Work Components in Police Investigation

Abstract

The aim of this study was to statistically investigate the use of mixed-methods by examining open-ended interviews and closed-ended survey instruments, and their ability to generate convergent results on the same sample. The use of mixed-methods was studied by applying a general measurement of work, the Organizational Climate Measurement (OCM), on the context of police investigation. Open-ended interviews were conducted with informants from the Norwegian police. The interviews were top down coded on the OCM components and standardized. OCM surveys were sent to the interviewed participants, and the results were standardized to match the standardization of interviews. Correlations between the results from the two data collections were weak and insignificant, but correlations were found inaccurate as a measure of convergence. Paired t-tests on the interview and survey means of the 17 OCM components showed that the two measurements converged on 13 components and diverged on four. These results show that interviews can be a viable framework for the measurement of work, and show that open-ended interview and survey results can converge. The procedure in this study could therefore provide scholars and practitioners with a validation tool for both interview and survey studies on specific work contexts.