Research seeking to understand and improve social conditions for marginalized youth would benefit from merging complex mixed methods research designs emphasizing multilevel data and participatory social justice principles. We contribute to mixed methods research by introducing a novel framework that accomplishes this task and by illustrating its real-world application via PhotoStories, a multistage study aimed at understanding youths’ community-based experiences and emotional well-being. During the project’s three phases (preparation, training, and dissemination) we obtained and integrated quantitative and qualitative data at multiple ecological levels. Additionally, we examined youth perceptions about their participation, an important outcome given our focus on participatory social justice. We also provide lessons learned and recommendations for investigators seeking to use a similar approach for youth-focused research.

寻求理解和改善边缘化青年社会条件的研究将受益于融合强调多层次数据和参与性社会正义原则的复杂混合方法研究设计。我们通过引入一个完成这项任务的新颖框架，并通过PhotoStories说明其在现实世界中的应用，为混合方法研究做出贡献。PhotoStories 是一项旨在了解年轻人基于社区的经历和情感健康的多阶段研究。在该项目的三个阶段（准备、培训和传播）中，我们获得并整合了多个生态层面的定量和定性数据。此外，我们还研究了年轻人对其参与的看法，鉴于我们关注参与性社会正义，这是一个重要的结果。我们还为寻求使用类似方法进行以青年为中心的研究的研究人员提供经验教训和建议。