A Retrospective Examination of Interactional Behaviors Viewed as Experimentally Nonsignificant

In the process of field testing a metalinguistic intervention procedure, unanticipated behaviors were noted. Although these behaviors did not have a statistically significant impact on the results of the original investigation, the children's varied perceptions of specific tasks influenced their performance in important ways. Limitations were noted in a strictly quantitative analysis of the experimental data. Ethnographic techniques were applied to a post-hoc examination of the children's responses. The reflective and qualitative nature of ethnography was used to account for these different perceptions and their impact on the children's behavior.