QUALITATIVE

INTERVIEWS

13th September 2023

WHAT IS AN
INTERVIEW?
• Interviewing may be defined simply as a
conversation with a purpose. Specifically, the
purpose is to gather information.

• A qualitative interview is essentially a conversation

in which the interviewer establishes a general
direction for the conversation and pursues specific
topics raised by the respondent. Ideally, the
respondent does most of the talking.
INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISTIC
INTERVIEWS

Style of Questioning
Interrogative and confrontational
Power Dynamics
• Potentially high stakes for intervieww in
Visibility terms of personal and group representation.
• Especailly in broadcast media, interviewer
Highly public and visible. Any word out of needs to demonstrate ability to get beyond
place could be headlines. the interviewee's defences
CELEBRITY INTERVIEW

Style of Questioning
Deferrential, with the interviewer aiming to
Power Dynamics
coax the celebrity into sharing their
experiences • Interviewee likely to have high level of
control; may even have given prior approval
Visibility of questions.
• Can be much at stake for the interviewer in
Also highly public - indeed maintaining the
terms of keeping celebrity happy, so they
celebrity's visibility is their key reason for
may be cooperative in the future.
participation.
JOB INTERVIEW

Style of Questioning
May be challenging at times, but also seeks to
Power Dynamics
enable interviewee to present their strengths
effectively • Power very much in hands of interviewers,
bounded in its exercise by organisational
Visibility policies and legislation (e.g. regarding equal
opportunities)
Details of what happens are confidential to the
interview panel, but outcome )success or
failure to get the job) will be public knowledge
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
INTERVIEW
Style of Questioning
Emphasises open-ended non-leading
questions, focuses on personal experience,
seeks to build rapport with interviewee
Visibility
Hihg level of confidentiality and anonymity
expected in great majority of cases
Power Dynamics
• As the person asking the questions, interviewer
may be seen to be in the more powerful position.
However, the balance is often complicated by
factors such as age, gender, and status of the two
parties. Also, the interviewee has the explicit
right to withdraw at any time with no further
consequences for them.
 PHILOSOPHICAL
ASSUMPTIONS
To what extent can the methodology and methods
adopted be justified in relation to the purpose of or
rationale for the research?

This question brings to the fore a host of issues that need

to be carefully worked through, examining our
philosophical assumptions about what we can (and cannot)
know and associated theoretical perspective(s).
METHODS AND METHODOLOGY

Methods
The tehniques or procedures we use to collect and analyse
data. In qualitative research interviewing is one of the most
frequently used methods when generating data.

Methodology
Relates to a process where the design of the research and
choice of particular methods (and the justification of these in
relation to the research project) are made evident.
INTERPRETIVE RESEARCH

Interpretive research is generally idiographic- describing aspects of the social world by

offering a detailed account of specific social settings, processes or relationships. The
focus for research might be to uncover how people feel about the world and make
sense of their lives from their particular vantage points.

Interpretivism perceives experience and understanding as seldom straightforward;

people participate in indeterminate lifeworlds, often attaching different interpretations
and meanings to seemingly similar ‘facts’ and events.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRADITIONS

‘The interview approach relies heavily upon respondents being able and willing to give
accurate information’. Breakwell (1990: 81)
The assumption here is that accurate information is there to be discovered and thus such
knowledge is achievable.

Rorty (1979) emphasised how we constitute knowledge through conversation and social
practice. So rather than knowledge being conveyed in conversation, it is brought into
being.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRADITIONS

This has resonance for qualitative interviewing as we become increasingly aware of the
constructive nature of social interaction and the part played by active subjects in making
sense of their experiences (Gubrium and Holstein, 2003).

Shotter (1993: vi) describes how ‘conversation is not just one of our many activities in the
world. On the contrary, we constitute both ourselves and our worlds in our conversational
activity.’
PHILOSOPHICAL TRADITIONS

Willig (2001: 12–13), these three questions she suggests provide a framework for
elaborating on assumptions (about philosophical positions) that might underpin
particular methodological approaches:

• What kinds of assumptions does the methodology make about the world?

• What kind of knowledge does the methodology aim to produce?

• How does the methodology conceptualise the role of the researcher in the
research process?
ETHICS IN QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWS
King (2018) discusses nine ethical considerations that might
apply to any qualitative interview-based study

Informed Consent
Confidentiality
Right to Withdraw
Assessing Risk of Harm
Deception
Debriefing
Use of Incentives
Limitations to the Researcher’s Role
Honesty and Integrity in the Research Process
 THE INTERVIEWER
Steinar Kvale (1996: 3–5) offers two metaphors for interviewing: the interviewer as a
“miner” or as a “traveler.”
• The first model assumes that the subject possesses specific information and that the
interviewer’s job is to dig it out.
• By contrast, in the second model, the interviewer -

“wanders through the landscape and enters into conversations with the people
encountered. The traveler explores the many domains of the country, as unknown territory
or with maps, roaming freely around the territory. . . . The interviewer wanders along with
the local inhabitants, asks questions that lead the subjects to tell their own stories of their
lived world.”
 THE INTERVIEWER
John Lofland and his colleagues (2006: 69–70) suggest that researchers should adopt the
role of the “socially acceptable incompetent” when interviewing. That is, offer yourself as
someone who does not understand the situation you find yourself in and must be helped to
grasp even the most basic and obvious aspects of that situation:

“A naturalistic investigator, almost by definition, is one who does not understand. She or
he is ‘ignorant’ and needs to be ‘taught.’ This role of watcher and asker of questions is the
quintessential student role” (Lofland et al. 2006: 69).
 THE INTERVIEW PROCESS
Steinar Kvale (1996: 88) details seven stages in the complete interviewing process:

1. Thematizing: Clarifying the purpose of the interviews and the concepts to be explored
2. Designing: Laying out the process through which you’ll accomplish your purpose, including a
consideration of the ethical dimension
3. Interviewing: Doing the actual interviews
4. Transcribing: Creating a written text of the interviews
5. Analyzing: Determining the meaning of gathered materials in relation to the purpose of the
study
6. Verifying: Checking the reliability and validity of the materials
7. Reporting: Telling others what you’ve learned
TYPES OF INTERVIEWS
Structured Interviews
The interviewer uses a schedule in which questions are
read out in a predetermined order.
Semi-structured Interviews
The interviewer uses a guide in which set questions are
covered, but can prompt for more information.

In-depth Interviews

The interviewer uses a topic list but respondents’ priorities

influence the final range of questions covered.
Principles of Social Research (Understanding Public Health) - Judith Green, John Browne (2005)
 WHAT MAKES A GOOD INTERVIEW?
Rapport establishment - Interviewing requires specific skills on the part of the interviewer
- both qualitative and more structured interviews the interviewer needs social skills in
putting the respondent at ease, so that trust is established, and they feel comfortable in
talking about experiences and attitudes.
Conversation skills - The aim is to recreate the flow of a ‘natural’ conversation, which
requires additional skills in listening and asking appropriate questions.
Sensitivity - The interviewer must be able to listen attentively without appearing
judgemental, and use prompts and probes appropriately
and sensitively to lead respondents to expand on their ideas.
 RAPPORT ESTABLISHMENT
The sociologist Richard Sennett (2003), in reflecting on his early experiences as a field
researcher, describes how he came to develop interview skills:

“In-depth interviewing is a distinctive, often frustrating craft. Unlike a pollster asking

questions, the in-depth interviewer wants to probe the responses people give. To probe, the
interviewer cannot be stonily impersonal: he or she has to give something of himself or
herself in order to merit an open response. Yet the conversation lists in one direction; the
point is not to talk the way friends do . . .The craft consists in calibrating social distances
without making the subject feel like an insect under the microscope.”
 RAPPORT ESTABLISHMENT
To maintain rapport in an interview, the interviewer needs to listen carefully to answers so
that the next question follows on and so that respondents don’t have to repeat themselves.
Some of the ways in which this is achieved will include:

• Eye contact.
• Making the appropriate non-verbal responses or prompts
• Following up points where appropriate
• Not interrupting
• Not giving our own opinions or disagreeing.
 INTERVIEW ENVIRONMENT
Creating a comfortable environment for the interviewee is crucial both for the purposes of
an informative and accurate interview.

• Choose a comfortable setting for the interview that is free from distractions
• Open the interview with easy questions that the interviewee can answer confidently, or
even begin with friendly, off-topic conversation
• Explain in broad terms the goals of the research, particularly if you can frame it in
terms of solving a problem that is important to the interviewee
 INTERVIEW ENVIRONMENT
• Make sure the interviewee understands the confidentiality agreement of the
interview
⚬ Interviewees can be allowed to speak “off the record,” but be clear about what this
means to you and the interviewee
• Generating trust early on can be important for acquiring interviews and making
them worthwhile
⚬ Self-disclosure can be effective, such as highlighting shared experiences or goals
that are shared with the interviewee
⚬ Mutual acquaintances (including previous interviewees) can generate trust
⚬ Trust is particularly important if the interview covers sensitive topics
 INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
• Start with general questions
• Ask open questions
• Ask neutral questions
• Use appropriate everyday vocabulary not jargon/field specific terminology
• Use concrete rather than abstract questions
• Avoid questions that can be answered with “yes” or “no”
• Avoid biasing responses
• Do not share your hypotheses (if applicable).
• Do not use emotional, loaded or biased language.
• Be careful about what your behavior conveys to participants (e.g., expressions of surprise,
jumping to take notes)
 INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
While the main questions will help establish the topic of discussion, most interviewees will only
have a general idea of your goals and the level of depth you are looking for in their responses.
The following two types of questions can be useful for directing the interview.

1. Follow-up questions should be used to encourage expansion of ideas deemed most relevant
to the research question
• Used to elaborate on themes, clarify concepts
• E.g., “What do you mean by… ?” “Can you tell me more about … ?”
 INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
2. Probes are standardized ways to get more depth and detail
• Probes should be short and simple to avoid breaking the interviewee’s focus
• For continuation: “Then what happened?”
• For elaboration: “Can you give me an example?”
• For steering the conversation: “You mentioned that…”
• Probes can be non-verbal as well, such as using silence to encourage elaboration, or leaning
forward to indicate interest
• Be careful to vary the probes and not to overuse them
 INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
You should also be prepared to reframe questions
• If a question causes discomfort, try reframing it in a way to reduce any perceived judgment.
• If a question draws a blank stare, try reframing the question to make it clearer, more
concrete, or by tying it to the interviewee’s earlier comments
• If all else fails, be ready to move on to another topic and come back to the current question.
Pushing on a dead-end can be frustrating for both interviewer and interviewee

 INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
• When interviewees are on a roll, you may miss the opportunity for important follow-up
questions. Rather than interrupting, keep notes on follow-up to ensure that you remember to
return to them later
• It may be helpful to summarize key ideas and themes back to the interviewee to ensure you
have a proper understanding of their meaning

 INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
Question order is important!

• Interviews should be structured like a conversation, with logical transitions between topics
• It is typically best to start the interview with an easy and general question
⚬ E.g., a “tour” question such as “Could you tell me what you do here?”
• Save sensitive or controversial questions for the middle of the interview, once rapport has
been established
• End with a question allowing respondents to comment on any topic covered in the interview
or on the interview itself
 INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
Knowledge is sometimes difficult to access and tied to particular contexts. Sometimes we need
to think more imaginatively about how to elicit particular
kinds of information. Here are some suggestions of types of question that can be used as
alternatives to simple questions:

• Diary questions
• Critical incidents
• Free listing
• Ranking
 MODE OF INTERVIEW
Interviews may be conducted face-to-face or over the phone or video.

While telephone interviews ease travel burdens, there are a number of downsides to phone
interviews:
• Harder to establish trust and rapport
• Typically must be shorter
• Potentially miss many non-verbal cues

What could be some downsides of video interviews?

 RECORDING YOUR INTERVIEWS
Ideally, you should tape-record all interviews, which minimizes loss of information and allows
the full attention of the interviewer. However, the interviewee must assent to being recorded.
• Keep in mind that some may be uncomfortable with the tape recorder, although many
interviewers report that people tend to quickly forget its presence
• If it is not possible to use a tape recorder, bring a second person to take notes
 RECORDING YOUR INTERVIEWS
• Take notes on body language, tone of voice, or any other clues as to the meaning of the
interviewee. This will all be lost on an audio recording and may give important insight into
the meaning of the interviewee
• A final transcript that integrates notes should be created as soon as possible after the
interview
• A full recording and/or detailed notes are crucial for transparency of the research
 INTERPRETING DATA
• The final constituent in the interview design process is that of interpreting the data
that was gathered during the interview process.

• During this phase, the researcher must make “sense” out of what was just uncovered
and compile the data into sections or groups of information, also known as themes or
codes (Creswell, 2003, 2007).

• These themes or codes are consistent phrases, expressions, or ideas that were common
among research participants (Kvale, 2007).
 INTERPRETING DATA
• How the researcher formulates themes or codes vary.

• Many researchers suggest the need to employ a third party consultant who can review codes
or themes in order to determine the quality and effectiveness based on their evaluation of
the interview transcripts (Creswell, 2007). This helps alleviate researcher biases or
potentially eliminate where over-analyzing of data has occurred.