Triangulation

What is Triangulation? 

Triangulation is comparing data across multiple sources.

Triangulation facilitates validation across your research study, testing the consistency of your findings obtained from different resources (questionnaires, interviews, literature, videos, web 2.0 interaction - blogs, Skype). 

When I commence module 3, I will be triangulating across data that I receive from focus groups, one-to-one interviews and literature. After 4 weeks of data collection, 4 weeks of data analysis, I will spend the rest of the module writing my final inquiry and creating my artefact. The artefact will be a creative and non-written representation of my learning process over the final module. 

Carvalho and White (1997) propose four reasons for undertaking triangulation:

• Enriching: The outputs of different informal and formal instruments add value to each other by explaining  different aspects of an issue
• Refuting: Where one set of options disproves a hypothesis generated by another set of options.
• Confirming: Where one set of options confirms a hypothesis generated by another set of options
• Explaining: Where one set of options sheds light on unexpected findings derived from another set of options.

Below is a simple video to watch: 

References: 

Carvalho, S. and White, H. (1997). Combining the quantitative and qualitative approaches to poverty measurement and analysis: The practice and the potential. World Bank Technical Paper 366. Washington, D.C.: World Bank 

B2Bwhiteboard (2019) What is Triangulation in Qualitative Research? Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGTA2jgcNI4 (Accessed 27 April 2020).