INTERVIEWS
Presenters:
Robert Farnsworth
Roshani Shrestha
Ardis Holldorsdottir
Hannah Schechter
Introduction
Benney and Hughes (1970) stated
that “An interview is the “favored
digging tool” of social researchers.
They rely largely on verbal
accounts to learn about social life.”
Historical Men…
Charles Booth 1840-1916
-Combined census data with interviews,
observations and notes from
the London School Board
-Determined social class
-Produced poverty maps of London
Sigmund Freud 1856-1939
-Psychoanalysis
More Historical Men…
William Isaac Thomas 1863-1947
-Studied in Germany
-Interests in ethnography
-Studied Polish immigrants
-Wrote book with Florian Znaniecki
“The Polish Peasant”
George Gallup 1901-1984
-The Gallup Poll
-Interviewing public opinion
-Global survey in 1976 of
Quality of life around the world
-Market research
Original & Current
Techniques
Past- War Present- Ahhhh- War….
Torture & Interrogation Torture & Interrogation
Disciplines
Conservation Social Sciences
Landscape Architecture
Sociology
Anthropology
Psychology
Education
Business
Media
Medicine
• War
Types of Interviews
Structured Interviews
Semi-structured Interviews
Unstructured Interviews
Structured Interviews
Quantitative Approach
Definition
Interviewer gives a set of predetermined
questions or “probes” to the interviewees
Aim
Measures facts, attitudes, knowledge, behavior
Finding accurate information
without influences from
the researcher
Structured Interviews
Relationship between interviewer and
interviewee
Minimize interaction
No distractions
No flexibility
strict control over interview
Structured Interviews
Concern While Conducting Interviews
Keeping control of how questions are
asked
Using the same questions for all
interviewees
Following a fixed order
Using a rating scale or tick box
Ethical considerations
Structured Interviews
Strengths Weaknesses
Control Close of theoretical
Reliability avenues
Limit freedom to talk
Speed Miss what
Structuring interviewees think is
reduces variability important
Efficient use of Does not allow
time complexity of
answers
Structured Interviews
Quality of Data
Framing interview with tactics
Data collection process
Interpreting interview
Types of Interviews
Telephone
Face-to-face
Mail (usually associated
with survey research
Structured Interviews
Types of characteristics
Definitio n
Face to face interviews
Type of in terview where
Telephone interviews
Type of in terview where
Mail interviews
Type of in terview where
the interviewer has dire ct the interviewer has an the interviewer doesnÕt
contact with the indirect contact with the have any contact with the
interviewee interviewee. interviewee.
Quality of data Train ed in terviewer Train ed in terviewer Well defined and
administrated questionnaire
Sampling From telephone or address From a telephone dire ctory From a complete list of
population
Data collection The interviewer contacts People are interviewed at Eachh member of the
each member of the sample the tim e of the first phone sample receives a notice
to conduct the interview in call or at another , more letter in advance, followed
person convenient tim e by a questionnaire. Then
within a we ek they receive
a postcard reminder
Data recording Video, tape recorder, notes Tape recorder Questionnaire
Involvement of researcher The researcher has direct The researcher has phone The researcher is
contact with the contact with the completely separated from
interviewee, but does not interviewee. the interviewee
influence the in terview
Strength Enables the interviewer to Less costly than personal Do not need trained
establish rapport with the interview interviewers
respondent Produce results quickly Minimiz e sampling error at
The interviewer has control relative low c ost
of the interview
More effective when the
number of the questions is
relatively small and tim e
avail able to gather data is
short
Weaknesses Higher cost of the survey Not all people have They are sensitive to non
Exp ensive telephone coverage error
Time c onsumi ng Telephone dire ctorie s Some people are less likely
could be incomplete to respond to the
Necessity of questionnaire than others
knowledgeable supervisor The researcher has little
control over what happens
to the questionnaire after it
is mailed.
Semi-Structured
Interviews
Everyone gets the same questions
asked, but there is flexibility in how they
are asked.
Particularly useful for exploring the
views of a subject towards
something
Semi-Structured
Interviews
Strengths
Well suited for exploring attitudes, values, beliefs, and
motives…. Sensitive areas (Barriball, 1993)
Non-verbal indicators assist in evaluating
truthfulness/validity and urgency (Farnsworth, 2006)
Facilitates getting every question answered
Ensures the respondent is working on his/her own
Can potentially increase response rate…
Semi-Structured
Interviews
Weaknesses
„Equivalence of meaning‟ difficulties may arise
„Preferred social response‟
Non-response/particular groups being unrepresented
Invasion of privacy
Extenuating circumstances
Prejudices, stereotypes, appearances and/or
perceptions of researcher may alter response
Semi-Structured
Interviews
Getting Beyond the Constraints
Constructing the questionnaire is critical
(Lazarsfeld, 1954)
All questions must comply with three
principles
Specification
Division
Tacit Assumption
Semi-Structured
Interviews
Training for the interviews
Developing competency and
understanding of the study
Developing an awareness
of potential errors or biases
Unstructured Interviews
Also known as…
Qualitative interviewing
Non-directive interviewing
Non-standardized interviewing
Open-ended interviewing
In-depth interviewing
Unstructured Interviews
Qualitative approach
Definition
“…repeated face-to-face encounters
between the researcher and the informants
directed toward understanding informants‟
perspective on their lives, experiences, or
situations as expressed in their own words”
(Taylor & Bogdan, 1998, p. 88)
Unstructured Interviews
Aim/Logic
Learn what is…
Important to the participants
What meaning the phenomenon under study has to them
Their point of view
Their understanding and experiences
Types of in-depth interviews
Life History
Learn about events and activities that cannot be observed
directly
To yield a broad picture of a range of settings, situations, or
people
Group interviews
Unstructured Interviews
Create trust between researcher and
participant
Anonymity and confidentiality
Follow cultural rules
“nice and gentle”
Show interest
Be understanding
Unstructured Interviews
To conduct a good interview
You need to…
Be nonjudgmental
Ask open questions
Allow people to speak
Be a good listener
Tolerate the silence
Probe when it is appropriate
Make sure you have the right
understanding
Unstructured Interviews
Strengths Weaknesses
Rich data People say and do
Understand what is different things in
important to the different situations
participant Language barriers
Time consuming
General understanding Researcher‟s bias
of provided when little Little control
is know about the issue Attention not focused
Important concepts are on a given issue
uncovered that can Very little factual
eventually guide future information provided
enquiries
Ethics
Informed consent
Make sure the participants understand
what the research is for and where it will
be published
Protecting participants by changing
names and places when necessary
Nonjudgmental interviewers
Trustworthy interviewers
Confidentiality
Member-checking
Examples in CSS
Alicia De la Cruz-Novey
Peruvian Tourism
Comparing three protected areas- rainforest, coast, and
highlands
Semi-structured interviews & archival data
How tour operators and local tourist initiatives can reduce negative
impacts on the ecosystem
Questionnaires & archival data
Evaluate socioeconomic changes in communities with tourism plan
Questionnaires, archival data, & literature analysis
Evaluation of the cost and effectiveness of different types of
participation for the development and implementation of tourism
plans
Examples in CSS
Shannon Amberg
Perception of risks and benefits
of eating fish
Will use semi-structured
interviews to understand how
media affects people‟s choices
Will use the results to write a
survey
Conclusion
Remember… Be like Oprah!
Current Techniques
Interviewing for dating services…
And now for some
dating fun...