Mixed methods immigrant mental health research in Canada: a systematic review.

Canada is home to a growing immigrant population. However, immigrant mental health declines over time following arrival in Canada. Canada's Mental Health Strategy emphasizes the importance of research that gathers information from multiple sources of knowledge to identify the mental health challenges faced by diverse immigrant populations. Mixed methods research (MMR) is well suited for this task. However, a dearth of research exists on the application of MMR to the study of immigrant mental health. A systematic review of the published MMR literature in Canadian immigrant mental health was carried out. Overall, existing MMR studies failed to incorporate correct mixed methods terminology and fully integrate the quantitative and qualitative components of the research. A checklist of important elements to include in MMR studies is offered.