Triangulation

The purpose here is to use different methods to examine the same research question. The results are then used to "triangulate": surveyors use this word to describe how taking readings from different points of view allow them to precisely identify a particular spot. The idea here is that, since all methods are biased, investigating a question with multiple methods will allow us to better identify a more accurate result.

Triangulation does not involve simply averaging the results achieved from different methods. Rather, we need to appreciate the weaknesses of each method in order to evaluate how best to interpret the results from each. In particular we may want to rely on one method for certain aspects of a question and another method for other aspects.