A Dissertation by GRACE HUI-CHIN LIN Submitted to the Office of ...

indicated that the researcher’s comprehension and interpretations for the collected
data were consistent as every individual case’s learning experiences.
Denzin and Lincoln (1994) argued that case study based on member check
can be verifiable in its text of findings: “It is the researcher’s goal to contest multiple
verisimilitudes, multiple versions of reality, and the perceived truths that structure
these realities” (p. 580). Therefore, this study conducted member checks twice in
order to ensure that all the individuals’ multiple perspectives of communication
strategies were interpreted and described verily in the findings.
Peer Debriefing
Peer debriefing offers a function of achieving a higher credibility in research
(Lincoln & Guba, 1985). When the study is reviewed and reconfirmed by a peer, who
is knowledgeable in the same professional field, the accuracy of the analysis and the
conclusion of the study can be raised.
During the data collection and analysis stages of this study, 2 doctoral peers
of the researcher in Texas A&M University’s Department of Teaching, Learning, and
Culture assisted the researcher as peer debriefers. Both of these assistants’ interest
and expertise were in the similar area of English as a Second Language Learning
(ESL), and they had taught English for a long while. So, the researcher
discussed with these two doctoral students from time to time, especially when doing
the data coding and organizing the concepts interpreted. The concluded themes and
recommendations for further research topics retrieved from the data were examined
and reconfirmed three times.
57