In the

social sciences Social science (often rendered in the plural as the social sciences) is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of society, societies and the Social relation, relationships among members within those societies. The term was former ...

, triangulation refers to the application and combination of several

research methods Research is creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge. It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to ...

in the study of the same phenomenon. By combining multiple observers, theories, methods, and

empirical Empirical evidence is evidence obtained through sense experience or experimental procedure. It is of central importance to the sciences and plays a role in various other fields, like epistemology and law. There is no general agreement on how t ...

materials, researchers hope to overcome the weakness or intrinsic

biases Bias is a disproportionate weight ''in favor of'' or ''against'' an idea or thing, usually in a way that is inaccurate, closed-minded, prejudicial, or unfair. Biases can be innate or learned. People may develop biases for or against an individ ...

and the problems that come from single method, single-observer, and single-theory studies. It is popularly used in

sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

. "The concept of triangulation is borrowed from

navigational Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...

and

land surveying Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the land, terrestrial Plane (mathematics), two-dimensional or Three-dimensional space#In Euclidean geometry, three-dimensional positions of Point (geom ...

techniques that determine a single point in space with the convergence of measurements taken from two other distinct points." Triangulation can be used in both quantitative and qualitative studies as an alternative to traditional criteria like reliability and validity.

Purpose

The purpose of triangulation in qualitative research is to increase the credibility and validity of the results. Several scholars have aimed to define triangulation throughout the years. *Cohen and Manion (2000) define triangulation as an "attempt to map out, or explain more fully, the richness and complexity of

human behavior Human behavior is the potential and expressed capacity (Energy (psychological), mentally, Physical activity, physically, and Social action, socially) of human individuals or groups to respond to internal and external Stimulation, stimuli throu ...

by studying it from more than one standpoint." *Altrichter et al. (2008) contend that triangulation "gives a more detailed and balanced picture of the situation." *According to O'Donoghue and Punch (2003), triangulation is a "method of cross-checking data from multiple sources to search for regularities in the research data."

Types

Denzin (2006) identified four basic types of triangulation:Denzin, N. (2006). ''Sociological Methods: A Sourcebook.'' Aldine Transaction. . (5th edition). *''Data triangulation:'' involves time, space, and persons.Uses multiple sources of data that all have a similar focus. *''Investigator triangulation:'' involves multiple researchers in an investigation. *''Theory triangulation:'' involves using more than one theoretical scheme in the interpretation of the phenomenon. *''Methodological triangulation:'' involves using more than one method to gather data, such as interviews, observations, questionnaires, and documents.

References

{{Authority control Social science methodology Cohen, L., Mansion, L. and Morrison, K. (2000). Research Methods in Education.5th ed. London: Routledge. p.25

Purpose

Types

See also

References