Despite a growing interest in longitudinal mixed methods research, the literature offers few examples of complex designs. To evaluate a communication-based technology to address social isolation and loneliness in later life, we conducted two long-term studies in aged-care homes. We used a longitudinal convergent mixed methods design and a cross-disciplinary approach that employed techniques from social and computer sciences to ensure a comprehensive evaluation. While cross-disciplinary mixed methods research is also growing, a discussion of its methodological practices, challenges, and strategies is still scarce. This article contributes to mixed methods research by providing lessons learned on how cross-disciplinary mixed studies can be designed and integrated from collection to interpretation, particularly when combining convergent and longitudinal approaches. We also show the value of “design-in-action”—that is, the refinement and adjustment of techniques throughout research, as methods “talk to each other.”

尽管人们对纵向混合方法的研究越来越感兴趣，但文献中很少提供复杂设计的例子。为了评估基于通信的技术来解决晚年生活中的社会孤立和孤独感，我们在养老院中进行了两项长期研究。我们使用了纵向收敛混合方法设计和跨学科方法，该方法采用了来自社会和计算机科学的技术来确保进行全面评估。尽管跨学科混合方法的研究也在不断发展，但对其方法的实践，挑战和策略的讨论仍然很少。本文通过提供有关如何设计和整合从收集到解释的跨学科混合研究的经验教训，为混合方法研究做出了贡献，特别是在融合收敛和纵向方法时。我们还展示了“行动中设计”的价值，即在整个研究过程中对技术的改进和调整，即方法之间的相互交流。