Here's a starter on this. I'm not an expert on it so please chip in more.
I would say that in much qualitative (or mostly-qualitative) sociological
inquiry, theory and data co-evolve. You can't do much with theory without
data, and you can do even less with data in the absence of theory. In
qualitative and mixed-method research, method needs to be flexible and
adaptive to the nature of the data, to practical constraints and to the
evolving research question / focus. This all means that theory, method and
data are interlinked. But I personally don't like the word "triangulation"
which I think belongs in a more objectivist world in which protocols are set
in stone at the outset and measurement X is checked against measurement Y.
So it's not that these aspects of inquiry aren't related, it's just that the
term doesn't quite encompass the process researchers go through.
Trisha Greenhalgh
Professor of Primary Health Care and Director, Healthcare Innovation and
Policy Unit
Centre for Primary Care and Public Health
Blizard Institute
Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry
Yvonne Carter Building
Turner Street
London E1 2AT
t : 020 7882 7325 (PA) or 7326 (dir line)
f : 020 7882 2552
e: [log in to unmask]
http://www.icms.qmul.ac.uk/chs/staff/trishagreenhalgh.html
-----Original Message-----
From: Realist and Meta-narrative Evidence Synthesis: Evolving Standards
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Gill Westhorp
Sent: 20 July 2011 03:15
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Triangulation in RS
Hi all
Bill Walker from World Vision Australia is a partner in a realist synthesis
project just getting underway (and also a PhD candidate). I just received
this email question from him and have his permission to put it to this group
for feedback.
"I have been reading up on different types of triangulation (data, theory,
method etc) and am interested to know what role if any it plays in RR,
please."
Any comments from anyone would be most gratefully received!
Cheers
Gill
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