What is triangulation?

using more than one method in the same study. Several methods check and support each other.

What is a longitudinal study?

a study of the same group over a long period. The same people are revisited again and again.

Which is a limitation of a longitudinal study?

people drop out as the years pass. A shrinking sample is less representative.

Why might a researcher add interviews to a questionnaire?

to explain the reasons behind the numbers. Interviews add depth to the patterns a questionnaire reveals.

Two methods in one study give opposite results. What problem does this show?

the researcher cannot easily tell which finding is true. Contradictory results are a limitation of triangulation.

Triangulation and longitudinal studies · Cambridge IGCSE Sociology

In plain words

Every method has a blind spot. One answer is to use two or three together, so each covers for the others. Another is to keep going back to the same people for years, and watch their lives change.

7 things to know

Triangulation is the use of more than one research method, or source of evidence, in the same study.
A researcher might hand out questionnaires to 500 pupils and then interview 20 of them. The questionnaire gives numbers from a large sample. The interviews explain what lies behind the numbers.
Strengths of triangulation: the weaknesses of one method are covered by the strengths of another. Findings can be cross-checked. The study can be both reliable and valid.
Limitations of triangulation: it takes more time and money, and the researcher needs skill in several methods. If the methods give different results, it is hard to know which to believe.
A longitudinal study follows the same group of people over a long period of time, collecting data from them at intervals.
Strengths of longitudinal studies: they show how people change over time, and they help to show causes, because the researcher can see what came first.
Limitations of longitudinal studies: they take years and cost a great deal. People drop out, move or die, so the sample shrinks and becomes less representative. People who know they are being studied for years may change how they behave.

Worked example

A researcher wants to know whether children from poorer homes fall behind at school as they get older. Explain why a longitudinal study is suitable.

The question is about change over time, so the same children must be followed.
The researcher tests a sample of children at age 5, and again at 7, 11 and 16.
Comparing each child's results across the years shows when a gap opens and how it grows.
One-off research could only compare different children of different ages, which shows less.

Tips and tricks

Triangulation is about several methods. A longitudinal study is about a long time. A study can be both.
The standard limitation of a longitudinal study is people dropping out. Say what that does: the sample becomes less representative.

5 questions, about 2 minutes.

It lands in your notebook with its questions as flashcards.

Triangulation and longitudinal studies: 5 questions and answers

These are the quiz’s questions. Do the quiz first, then come back here for the ones that got you.

What is triangulation?
- studying three people
- repeating a study three times
- using more than one method in the same study (the answer)
- studying the same group for many years
Several methods check and support each other.
What is a longitudinal study?
- a study of the same group over a long period (the answer)
- a study using three methods
- a study of a very large sample
- a study done in one day
The same people are revisited again and again.
Which is a limitation of a longitudinal study?
- it cannot show change over time
- it uses only one person
- it is always quantitative
- people drop out as the years pass (the answer)
A shrinking sample is less representative.
Why might a researcher add interviews to a questionnaire?
- to make the study cheaper
- to explain the reasons behind the numbers (the answer)
- to make the sample smaller
- to avoid collecting any data
Interviews add depth to the patterns a questionnaire reveals.
Two methods in one study give opposite results. What problem does this show?Stretch
- the sample was too large
- triangulation always fails
- the researcher cannot easily tell which finding is true (the answer)
- one method must have been illegal
Contradictory results are a limitation of triangulation.

5 questions

Tap an answer and you’ll see straight away whether it’s right, and why.

Worksheet

3 questions, 10 marks. Write your answers on paper, then check them.

Triangulation and longitudinal studies

Cambridge IGCSE Sociology 0495 · 10 marks · papermunch.org

Name ______________________________ Date ______________

What is meant by the term "triangulation"?[2]
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The use of more than one research method or source of evidence in the same study.
I got this one
Explain two strengths of using triangulation.[4]
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The strengths of one method cover the weaknesses of another, for example interviews add depth to a questionnaire. Findings from one method can be checked against another, which makes the conclusions more trustworthy. (Also: both quantitative and qualitative data are collected, giving reliability and validity.)
I got this one
Explain two limitations of longitudinal studies.[4]
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They are expensive and take many years to complete. Participants drop out over time, so the sample gets smaller and less representative. (Also: people may change their behaviour because they know they are being studied.)
I got this one

Answers: Triangulation and longitudinal studies

1. The use of more than one research method or source of evidence in the same study.
2. The strengths of one method cover the weaknesses of another, for example interviews add depth to a questionnaire. Findings from one method can be checked against another, which makes the conclusions more trustworthy. (Also: both quantitative and qualitative data are collected, giving reliability and validity.)
3. They are expensive and take many years to complete. Participants drop out over time, so the sample gets smaller and less representative. (Also: people may change their behaviour because they know they are being studied.)