The Palimpsest as an Arts-Based Integration Strategy for Mixed Methods Research
by Peggy Shannon-Baker


As mixed methods are increasingly used to address complex problems and contexts, researchers need methods to explore those complexities. Arts-based integration strategies offer one opportunity to address this need. The purpose of this article is to introduce the palimpsest as an arts-based integration strategy for mixed methods researchers. Palimpsest refers to layering multiple “texts” (words, numbers, visuals, etc.) on top of one another. Palimpsests can be found in architecture, visual computer programming, literature, urban planning, public health, and education. Grounded in dialectics, arts-based research, and integration approaches to mixed methods research, I introduce the palimpsest as a: metaphor, braiding and layering integration strategy, and transformation integration strategy. I offer several considerations, asking: who creates the palimpsest and the impact its creation might have, how the palimpsest will be made including whether it needs to be easily “read” for analysis and/or to or only: for analysis or interpretation, and how it may influence the meta-inferences derived from a mixed methods research study.