It is mixed method approach where you use both quantitative and qualitative approaches on the same study for a more robust understanding and analysis of the phenomena of interest. On a normal day, quantitative methods will have you present evident facts based on data collected and analysed. However, the data are often collected using instruments that do not offer deeper explanations apart from what they have been designed to measure. For example, using a thermometer to examine temperature will yield a numeric data that will tell you how much a the person temperature level is. It does not go beyond that to tell you what caused the increase in the temperature (if the temperature was observed to have increased.

Qualitative data collection technique on the other hand will allow you interact with individuals, record, and collect a large chunk of information based on the person's explanations and discussion. Using the earlier example, a researcher may only get to know how a person is feeling under a rainy day. The person might explain that he is feeling cold; but the researcher cannot tell by how much is the person feeling cold.

Using triangulation which is a mixed method approach, the researcher may get to know more about the phenomena than it will have been had he applied any of the two approaches. By linking the two approaches, their overlapping strengths and weaknesses will be taken care of, giving room for a thorough understanding of the phenomena. From the earlier example above, the researcher using triangulation, will get to know the rate of a person's temperature, his feelings, symptoms, and perhaps earlier activities the individual engaged in that may have contributed to his temperature increasing or dropping.

Thank you

Owan, V.J.

Dear Valentine

Thanks so much for your reply and explanation.

it is claimed that triangulation is a tool to use in qualitative research and is a way of establishing validity of qualitative studies, but you say that triangulation means using both qualitative and quantitative approaches to collect research data. Is it exactly an approach through which just qualitative research data are gathered? In my investigation, on the one hand, I'm trying to identify the components of demotivation construct (factors that demotivate language learners ) (one variable in my research) which have negative effect on the performance of EFL learners in the classrooms. First, the same pre-structured questionnaire is administered to homogeneous language learners of two countries in two different sessions with 6 months interval to identify demotivated learners who will be selected as the members and participants of the research group. Through the next stage, I have to collect qualitative data through face to face interviews and direct observation of the classrooms to construct a questionnaire identifying components of demotivation construct which will be administered to the demotivated learners. It is worth mentioning that the interview and direct classroom observation will be done by two researchers in two countries. In the last stage, the constructed questionnaire will be distributed to the demotivated learners, novice teachers and experienced teachers (three groups) to collect quantitative data to examine some correlations between groups.

Dear Valentine

My question is, does it appear from the above description that I'm employing triangulation method in my research, since I'm using the same questionnaire in two sessions in two countries (first research stage), conducting interview and direct observation (methodological triangulation) in two countries (environmental triangulation) by two researchers (investigator triangulation), or distributing the constructed questionnaire to three groups of learners, novice teachers and experienced teachers (data triangulation: using different sources of information)?

OR may I claim that I'm employing triangulation method because I'm trying to use both qualitative and quantitative approaches to collect research data?

When can I exactly claim that I'm using triangulation method in my research? in every individual stage of the research, for example in the stage of identifying components of demotivation construct through interview and direct observation in two countries by two researchers? or in the whole progress of the research work?

I think your explanations on the examples above will greatly enable me to gain a better understanding and overall impression of the concept of triangulation method. you may provide me with your own examples.

Thanks in advance. your descriptions will be great help

Triangulation can be used to enhance the "credibility" of an entirely qualitative study. In your case, you would use the typical quantitative approaches to reliability and validity for your survey data, and what you have correctly labelled as "investigator triangulation" for the qualitative data.

In mixed methods, the term triangulation is not longer preferred because it has been used for too many different meanings. Instead, if you want to compare the two data sources to determine whether they produce similar results, a better term might be "convergence." Alternatively, if you intend to you use the qualitative data to help understand what you find in the quantitative results, this is know as an "explanatory sequential" design.

Dear Seyyed Morteza Hashemi Toroujeni ,

This is an interesting question. Following all the great responses.

Regards.

Dear @Morgan

Thanks for your answer. So, I use investigator triangulation in my qualitative approach correctly.

Of course, I want to collect quantitative data to support the results of qualitative data, and this design is called "exploratory sequential", yes?

Thanks for your interest dear Mohammad. Share your idea and let us enjoy your great ideas on the issue

An "exploratory sequential" design begins with a smaller qualitative study to help design a primarily quantitative study (qual --> QUANT). In contrast, an "explanatory sequential" design uses the qualitative study to follow up on the results from a primarily quantitative study (QUANT --> qual).

Thanks for the information

This can be done by reliability and validity of themes

Dear @Akinbode

How, exactly?