Interviews

Interviews

1. DEFINITION: Interviews are primarily done in qualitative research and occur when researchers ask one or more participants general, open-ended questions and record their answers.

2. DATA ANALYSIS: When the data collection process is finished or, in many cases, during the same process, researchers must interpret the information collected in order to create hypotheses, theories and also reduce the complexity of social reality. In order to know the best strategies and tools to carry out the analysis in a correct way, the preparation, exploration, development and data obtained are taken into account.

3. PROCEDURES:

   • Draft the interview: first you got to do a first draft of the main theme of the interview to have a guide to follow
     • Pilot your questions: next you have to start thinking about your questions, what kind of questions you’re going to ask?, how many?, how are you going to ask them?, etc
       • Select your sample interviewees: you have to ask the questions to the people that really cares or is affected by the main topic of your investigation Conduct the interview
         • Conduct the interview
           • Analysing the interview data: after you make the interviews and collect all the data, you have to analyze them in order to get any results from the investigation.

4. TYPES

   • Structured Interview: A formal set of questions posed to each interviewee and recorded using a standardized procedure.
     • Unstructured Interview: A less formal set of questions; the interviewer modifies the sequence and wording of questions.
       • Non-Directive Interview: An unguided interview, including open-ended questions and use of spontaneous engagement.
         • Focus Interview: An emphasis on the interviewees subjective and personal responses where the interviewer engages to elicit more information.
           • Focus Group Interview: A group of selected participants are asked about their opinion or perceptions concerning a particular topic.

5. USES: Interviews have long been used in research as a way of obtaining detailed information about a topic or subject. As there are many types of interviews and questions that can be asked in them, they allow us to collect large amounts of data and can be useful for uncovering experiences and depth information.

6. LIMITATIONS

   • ADVANTAGES
     • You can achieve a 100 percent response rate for your questions.
       • You can decide on follow-up questions.
         • You ‘hear’ far more than just what the participant ‘tells’ you.
           • You can observe body language and interpret the tone of a response to a question.
             • They are often seen as an opportunity to express opinions on issues.
               • They provide vast amounts of useful data for further analysis.
   • DISADVANTAGES
     • Training in interviewing techniques is required.
       • They are time-consuming and costly to conduct.
         • The data generated can be difficult for a lone researcher to analyse.
           • Interpretations of the data may differ between researchers. Whose interpretation should be applied?
             • They can easily deviate from the main topic.