TRIANGULATION IN SOCIAL WORK RESEARCH: THE THEORY AND EXAMPLES OF ITS PRACTICAL APPLICATION

Abstract

The social work researcher is often faced with the daunting task of having to analyse complexphenomena and systems or relationships without the luxury of an abundant supply of resources,time and standardised measuring instruments. A typical response has been attempts to followeither the qualitative or quantitative research routes stringently, only to find that the final resultdid not meet scientific requirements. This has necessitated a rethink of the predominant way inwhich social work research is conducted in South Africa and to find a route that would meetboth the demands of science and accommodate the constraints of research practice. One suchroute is the use of triangulation

Keywords

• triangulation
• social work research
• practical application