Interview

An interview is essentially a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and
the other provides answers.[1] In common parlance, the word "interview" refers to a one-on-one
conversation between an interviewer and an interviewee. The interviewer asks questions to
which the interviewee responds, usually providing information. That information may be used or
provided to other audiences immediately or later. This feature is common to many types of
interviews – a job interview or interview with a witness to an event may have no other audience
present at the time, but the answers will be later provided to others in the employment or
investigative process. An interview may also transfer information in both directions.

A musician interviewed in a radio studio

A woman interviewing for a job

Athletes interviewed after a race

Street interview conducted with a member of the public

Some interviews are recorded for television broadcast

Interviews usually take place face-to-face and in person but the parties may instead be
separated geographically, as in videoconferencing[2] or telephone interviews. Interviews almost
always involve spoken conversation between two or more parties. In some instances a
"conversation" can happen between two persons who type their questions and answers.

Interviews can be unstructured, free-wheeling and open-ended conversations without

predetermined plan or prearranged questions.[3] One form of unstructured interview is a focused
interview in which the interviewer consciously and consistently guides the conversation so that
the interviewee's responses do not stray from the main research topic or idea.[4] Interviews can
also be highly structured conversations in which specific questions occur in a specified order.[5]
They can follow diverse formats; for example, in a ladder interview, a respondent's answers
typically guide subsequent interviews, with the object being to explore a respondent's
subconscious motives.[6][7] Typically the interviewer has some way of recording the information
that is gleaned from the interviewee, often by keeping notes with a pencil and paper, or with a
video or audio recorder. Interviews usually have a limited duration, with a beginning and an
ending.

The traditional two-person interview format, sometimes called a one-on-one interview, permits
direct questions and follow-ups, which enables an interviewer to better gauge the accuracy and
relevance of responses. It is a flexible arrangement in the sense that subsequent questions can
be tailored to clarify earlier answers. Further, it eliminates possible distortion due to other
parties being present.

Face to face interviewing helps both parties to interact and form a connection, and understand
the other.[8] Further, face to face interview sessions can be more enjoyable.[8]
 Etymology

Contexts

A radio interview

Interviews can happen in a wide variety of contexts:

Employment. A job interview is a formal consultation for evaluating the qualifications of the
interviewee for a specific position.[9] [10] One type of job interview is a case interview in which the
applicant is presented with a question or task or challenge, and asked to resolve the situation.[11]
Candidates may be treated to a mock interview as a training exercise to prepare the respondent
to handle questions in the subsequent 'real' interview. A series of interviews may be arranged,
with the first interview sometimes being a short screening interview, followed by more in-depth
interviews, usually by company personnel who can ultimately hire the applicant. Technology has
enabled new possibilities for interviewing; for example, video telephony has enabled inteviewing
applicants from afar.

Psychology. Psychologists use a variety of interviewing methods and techniques to try to

understand and help their patients. In a psychiatric interview, a psychiatrist or psychologist or
nurse asks a battery of questions to complete what is called a psychiatric assessment.
Sometimes two people are interviewed by an interviewer, with one format being called couple
interviews.[12] Criminologists and detectives sometimes use cognitive interviews on
eyewitnesses and victims to try to ascertain what can be recalled specifically from a crime
scene, hopefully before the specific memories begin to fade in the mind.[13][14]
Marketing and Academic. In marketing research and academic research, interviews are used in
a wide variety of ways as a method to do extensive personality tests. Interviews are the most
used form of data collection in qualitative research.[15] Interviews are used in marketing research
as a tool that a firm may utilize to gain an understanding of how consumers think. Consumer
research firms sometimes use computer-assisted telephone interviewing to randomly dial phone
numbers to conduct highly structured telephone interviews, with scripted questions and
responses entered directly into the computer.[16]

Journalism and other media. Typically, reporters covering a story in journalism conduct
interviews over the phone and in person to gain information for subsequent publication.
Reporters also interview government officials and political candidates for broadcast.[17] In a talk
show, a radio or television "host" interviews one or more people, with the topic usually chosen by
the host, sometimes for the purposes of entertainment, sometimes for informational purposes.
Such interviews are often recorded.

Other situations. Sometimes college representatives or alumni conduct college interviews with
prospective students as a way of assessing a student's suitability while offering the student a
chance to learn more about a college.[18] Some services specialize in coaching people for
interviews.[18] Embassy officials may conduct interviews with applicants for student visas before
approving their visa applications. Interviewing in legal contexts is often called interrogation.
Debriefing is another kind of interview.

Blind interview

In a blind interview the identity of the interviewee is concealed so as to reduce interviewer bias.
Blind interviews are sometimes used in the software industry and are standard in orchestral
auditions. Blind interviews have been shown in some cases to increase the hiring of minorities
and women.[19]

Interviewer bias

The relationship between the interviewer and interviewee in research settings can have both
positive and negative consequences.[20] Their relationship can bring deeper understanding of the
information being collected, however this creates a risk that the interviewer will be unable to be
unbiased in their collection and interpretation of information.[20] Bias can be created from the
interviewers perception of the interviewee, or from the interviewee's perception of the
interviewer.[20] Additionally, a researcher can bring biases to the table based on the researcher’s
mental state, their preparedness for conducting the research, and the researcher conducting
inappropriate interviews.[21] Interviewers can use various practices known in qualitative research
to mitigate interviewer bias. These practices include subjectivity, objectivity, and reflexivity. Each
of these practices allows the interviewer, or researcher, the opportunity to use their bias to
enhance their work by gaining a deeper understanding of the problem they are studying.[22]

See also

Repertory grid interview

In research
Telephone interview

Computer assisted telephone interviewing

Interview (research)

Knowledge transfer

Online interview

Mall intercept interview

Qualitative research interview

Structured interview

Unstructured interview
In journalism and media
Interview (journalism)

Talk show
In other contexts
College interview

Reference interview, between a librarian and a library user

References

1. Merriam Webster Dictionary, Interview (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/interview) ,

Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016
 2. "Introduction to Interviewing" (https://www.brandeis.edu/hiatt/howto/interview/index.html) . Brandeis
University. Retrieved 2015-05-02.

3. Rogers, Carl R. (1945). Frontier Thinking in Guidance (https://books.google.com/books?id=3OdBAAAAIA

AJ&q=Non-directive+counselling+as+an+effective+technique) . University of California: Science
research associates. pp. 105–112. Retrieved March 18, 2015.

4. Jamshed, Shazia (September 2014). "Qualitative research method-interviewing and observation" (https://
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4194943) . Journal of Basic and Clinical Pharmacy. 5 (4): 87–
88. doi:10.4103/0976-0105.141942 (https://doi.org/10.4103%2F0976-0105.141942) . ISSN 0976-0105
(https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0976-0105) . PMC 4194943 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/article
s/PMC4194943) . PMID 25316987 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25316987) .

5. Kvale & Brinkman. 2008. InterViews, 2nd Edition. Thousand Oaks: SAGE. (http://www.sagepub.com/book
sProdDesc.nav?prodId=Book226668) ISBN 978-0-7619-2542-2

6. 2009, Uxmatters, Laddering: A research interview technique for uncovering core values (http://www.uxma
tters.com/mt/archives/2009/07/laddering-a-research-interview-technique-for-uncovering-core-values.p
hp)

7. "15 Tips on How to Nail a Face-to-Face Interview" (https://blog.pluralsight.com/15-tips-on-how-to-nail-a-f

ace-to-face-interview) . blog.pluralsight.com. Retrieved 2015-11-05.

8. Snap Surveys, Advantages and disadvantages of face to face data collection (https://www.snapsurveys.c
om/blog/advantages-disadvantages-facetoface-data-collection/) , Retrieved April 27, 2018

9. Dipboye, R. L., Macan, T., & Shahani-Denning, C. (2012). The selection interview from the interviewer and
applicant perspectives: Can't have one without the other. In N. Schmitt (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of
personnel assessment and selection (pp. 323–352). New York City: Oxford University.

10. "The Value or Importance of a Job Interview" (http://work.chron.com/value-importance-job-interview-166

0.html) . Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2014-01-17.

11. Maggie Lu, The Harvard Business School Guide to Careers in Management Consulting, 2002, page 21,
ISBN 978-1-57851-581-3

12. Polak, L; Green, J (2015). "Using Joint Interviews to Add Analytic Value" (https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/
en/publications/using-joint-interviews-to-add-analytic-value(dfe3fe1b-df7e-43f9-b6a1-6ed14f8300f1).ht
ml) . Qualitative Health Research. 26 (12): 1638–48. doi:10.1177/1049732315580103 (https://doi.org/1
0.1177%2F1049732315580103) . PMID 25850721 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25850721) .
S2CID 4442342 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:4442342) .

13. Memon, A., Cronin, O., Eaves, R., Bull, R. (1995). An empirical test of mnemonic components of the
cognitive interview. In G. Davies, S. Lloyd-Bostock, M. McMurran, C. Wilson (Eds.), Psychology, Law, and
Criminal Justice (pp. 135–145). Berlin: Walter de Gruyer.

14. Rand Corporation. (1975) The criminal investigation process (Vol. 1–3). Rand Corporation Technical
Report R-1776-DOJ, R-1777-DOJ, Santa Monica, CA
15. Jamshed, Shazia (September 2014). "Qualitative research method-interviewing and observation" (https://
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4194943) . Journal of Basic and Clinical Pharmacy. 5 (4): 87–
88. doi:10.4103/0976-0105.141942 (https://doi.org/10.4103%2F0976-0105.141942) . ISSN 0976-0105
(https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0976-0105) . PMC 4194943 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/article
s/PMC4194943) . PMID 25316987 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25316987) .

16. "BLS Information" (http://www.bls.gov/bls/glossary.htm) . Glossary. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Division of Information Services. February 28, 2008. Retrieved 2009-05-05.

17. Beaman, Jim (2011-04-14). Interviewing for Radio (https://books.google.com/books?id=OQusAgAAQBAJ

&q=news+interview+invented&pg=PA1) . Routledge. ISBN 978-1-136-85007-3.

18. Sanjay Salomon (January 30, 2015). "Can a Failure Resume Help You Succeed?" (http://www.boston.co
m/jobs/news/2015/01/30/can-failure-resume-help-you-succeed/uTBdq9A7LfXXF7vVOlG9oM/story.ht
ml) . Boston Globe. Retrieved January 31, 2016. "...A 'failure resume' is ... a private exercise ... outline
what they learned from the experience ... Mark Efinger is president and founder of Interview Skill
Coaching Academy in Great Barrington, where he prepares candidates for the job interview experience.
..."

19. Miller, Claire Cain (25 February 2016). "Is Blind Hiring the Best Hiring?" (https://www.nytimes.com/2016/0
2/28/magazine/is-blind-hiring-the-best-hiring.html) . The New York Times.

20. Watson, Lucas (2018). Qualitative research design : an interactive approach. New Orleans. ISBN 978-1-
68469-560-7. OCLC 1124999541 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1124999541) .

21. Chenail, Ronald (2011-01-01). "Interviewing the Investigator: Strategies for Addressing Instrumentation
and Researcher Bias Concerns in Qualitative Research" (https://nsuworks.nova.edu/tqr/vol16/iss1/16) .
The Qualitative Report. 16 (1): 255–262. ISSN 1052-0147 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1052-0147) .

22. Roulston, Kathryn; Shelton, Stephanie Anne (2015-02-17). "Reconceptualizing Bias in Teaching Qualitative
Research Methods". Qualitative Inquiry. 21 (4): 332–342. doi:10.1177/1077800414563803 (https://doi.or
g/10.1177%2F1077800414563803) . ISSN 1077-8004 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1077-8004) .
S2CID 143839439 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:143839439) .

External links

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