Disclosure of Hiv status to sexual partners among people who ...

3.6 Strategies to ensure Rigour
In order to ensure rigour of the data, soundness of data was maintained through measures
addressing the following aspects: credibility, transferability and conformability (Lincoln
& Guba, 1985). The truth value of a qualitative research resides in the discovery of
experiences as they are lived and perceived by the subjects rather than in the verification
of a priori conceptions of those experiences (Sandelowski, 1986).
Credibility (truth value) in qualitative study then is when the study presents faithful
descriptions or interpretations of human experience that others with such an experience
would immediately recognize from those descriptions or interpretations as their own.
According to Patton (1990), credibility in qualitative research depends less on sample
size than on the richness of the information gathered and on the analytical abilities of the
researcher. Hence in order to improve credibility, there was taking of notes during the
interviews and FGD as well as using a tape recorder. In addition, triangulation of
methods, which were in-depth interviews and focus group discussion, enabled the
researcher to validate the emerging issues thus increasing the rigour (Mays & Pope,
2000). Triangulation of data sources through meeting clients and clients’ representatives (
expert clients/peer educators) increased validity by corroborating descriptions.
Transferability or generalisabilty relates to the extent to when the findings can ‘fit’ into
contexts outside the study situation and when its audience views its findings as
meaningful and applicable in terms of their own experiences (Lincoln & Guba, 1985).
In this study as Lincoln and Guba (1985) suggest, there was sufficient information that
could be used by readers to determine whether the findings obtained were applicable to
situations among other TASO Mulago clients. There is application of dense description
or thick contextual descriptions for transferability to other clients in the same context and
if possible in other TASO service centres.
Dependability in qualitative research refers to the degree to which the reader can be
convinced that the findings did indeed occur as the researcher states they did. In this
study this was achieved through the intense description of the process and research
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