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methods
ACROSS FAMILIES/ Research practice

Triangulation

Compare perspectives and investigate disagreement

Triangulation deliberately compares evidence or interpretations across sources, researchers, methods or theoretical perspectives. It can seek convergence, complementarity or an explanation of disagreement. It should follow a substantive rationale: adding another interview or analyst is not automatically triangulation. In mixed methods, integration provides the mechanism for considering how different forms of evidence relate.

WHEN IT FITS

Use when one source or perspective leaves an important blind spot and an additional, sufficiently distinct perspective can clarify, extend or challenge the account.

Strengths

  • Can expose source-specific blind spots
  • Creates opportunities to investigate informative disagreement

Limitations

  • Different sources can reproduce a shared bias
  • Conflicting findings may reflect different constructs or times

Know the boundary

Triangulation is not automatic validation and is not synonymous with using mixed methods.

USED ACROSS
Banking & financeBusiness & MBAPsychologyComputer scienceEducation
CONNECTED METHODS