Understanding Data Analysis from Multiple Viewpoints: An Example from Quantum Tunneling

During individual clinical interviews, the interaction between researcher and interviewee leads to a specific set of data that can later be interpreted from several viewpoints. In this paper, we describe three analyses of a student's reasoning. First, we describe her 'physics reasoning' in terms of the physical situation she describes and the 'difficulties'she has in reasoning about the interview question. Second, we describe some 'reasoning resources'that she uses. Finally, we describe 'epistemological resources'that may influence her reasoning about quantum physics. We conclude with a discussion of implications about the practice of interviews and their analysis.