This chapter presents various considerations researchers undertook to conduct a quantitative study on low-income students using a national data set. Specifically, it describes how a critical quantitative scholar approaches guiding frameworks, variable operationalization, analytic techniques, and result interpretation. Results inform how…

The author provides a framework to help scholars in the field of higher education to be critical. Additionally, the author reflects and comments on the chapters included in this special volume. Finally, this chapter ends with a discussion of the opportunities and challenges of critical quantitative inquiry.

The author discusses the importance of critical quantitative research for studies of immigrant students, a large and growing group, whose higher education experience is crucial to the future of the United States. The author outlines some of the distinctions to be made among immigrant students and recommends areas of future inquiry.

This chapter briefly traces the development of the concept of critical quantitative inquiry, provides an expanded conceptualization of the tasks of critical quantitative research, offers theoretical explanation and justification for critical research using quantitative methods, and previews the work of quantitative criticalists presented in this…

This chapter uses a critical quantitative approach to study models and measures of civic engagement for Latina/o college students. The chapter describes the importance of a critical quantitative approach to study civic engagement of Latina/o college students, then uses Hurtado et al.'s (Hurtado, S., 2012) model to examine the civic engagement…

A supportive campus culture is critical to institutionalizing civic engagement and instilling the principles of active citizenship. This chapter explores a model that quantitatively measures the impact of the campus environment on civic engagement outcomes.

Multilevel modeling offers researchers a rich array of tools that can be used for a variety of purposes, such as analyzing specific institutional issues, looking for macro-level trends, and helping to shape and inform educational policy. One of the more complex multilevel modeling tools available to institutional researchers is cross-classified…

Multilevel modeling (MLM), also referred to as hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) or mixed models, provides a powerful analytical framework through which to study colleges and universities and their impact on students. Due to the natural hierarchical structure of data obtained from students or faculty in colleges and universities, MLM offers many…

Understanding the suitability of multilevel modeling in the context of institutional research (IR) may ease the doubts of some IR professionals. However, the need for training on how to conduct and report multilevel modeling analysis remains. A major roadblock hindering the proliferation of multilevel modeling in IR is the perception that…

This article is designed to give the reader a conceptual, nontechnical overview of estimation and model fit issues in multilevel modeling (MLM). The process of MLM generally involves fitting a series of multilevel models that increase in complexity. When conducting multilevel analyses, it is important to balance the need for complexity and the…

Multilevel modeling provides several advantages over traditional ordinary least squares regression analysis; however, reporting results to stakeholders can be challenging. This article suggests some strategies for presenting complex, multilevel data and statistical results to institutional and higher education decision makers. The article is…

Although the notion is certainly cliched, baseball often serves as an excellent metaphor for life. Some of the methodologies currently being used to measure, evaluate, manage, and even play baseball may serve as references for ways that higher education may be measured, evaluated, managed, and played. This chapter proposes and presents…

In this article, the authors discuss the utility of combining quantitative and qualitative methods in conducting intersectional analyses. First, they discuss some of the paradigmatic underpinnings of qualitative and quantitative research, and how these methods can be used in intersectional analyses. They then consider how paradigmatic pragmatism…

This article describes a mixed-methods approach to integrating the methodological tools of social network analysis and qualitative research to explore intersectionality as it pertains to faculty experiences in institutional contexts. These research strategies, employed at the individual and aggregate levels, can be useful tools as institutions aim…

In this article, the authors demonstrate how researchers can integrate qualitative and quantitative methods to gain a deeper understanding of the prevalence and nature of cultural taxation among black professors. In doing so, they show how the impact of cultural taxation on the experiences of black faculty in the academy is best captured using…