Planning and Conducting Various Types of Interviews
Interviews
allow you to gather information
from
respondents by asking them questions
directly
(rather than having them complete
answers
on their own, such as by filling out
a
questionnaire). Interviews may be done
in-person
or by telephone. Interviews tend
to
be more time-consuming and expensive
to
conduct than surveys, but can also yield
a
better response rate. Interviews are most
useful
when you need in-depth information
about
people’s experiences or perspectives
or
when you want to interact with your
respondents,
by clarifying questions or
providing
them with information.
Interviews
vary in their degree of structure
and
formality. Less formal interviews may
be
useful if you are exploring a broad topic
or
conducting interviews with very diverse
participants.
More structured interviews
are
useful when it is important to collect
consistent
information across all of your
participants.
Interviews generally fall somewhere
along
the following continuum:
1. Informal,
conversational interview —
No
predetermined questions are asked, in
order
to remain open and adaptable to
the
respondents’ nature and priorities.
2. Semi-structured
interview —
The
same general areas of information
are
collected from each respondent,
providing
more focus than the informal
approach.
However, the specific
questions,
and the way that they are
asked,
may vary each time, allowing
some
flexibility in getting information.
3. Structured
interview —
All
respondents are asked exactly the
same
questions and provided with a
consistent
set of response options.
While
this approach is less flexible, it
makes
it easier to analyze and report
responses.
When
interviews are structured, it is
important
that they be done consistently
each
time. If more than one person is going
to
conduct interviews, provide training in
advance,
including opportunities to conduct
practice
interviews.
While
people are usually willing to be
interviewed,
some may refuse. People are
more
likely to agree to an interview when
their
initial contact with an interviewer is
positive.
On making initial contact:
Maintain a positive
attitude and be
enthusiastic.
Explain the purpose of the
interview,
the
kinds of questions you will ask,
how
long the interview usually takes,
and
how the information will be used.
Allow the respondent to ask
questions
before
beginning the interview.
If someone seems reluctant
to participate,
ask
about their concern or objection and
try
to address it – this is more effective
than
being pushy.
Practice
your introduction before contacting
respondents…people
respond more favorably
when
you sound like yourself and not as
though
you are reading from a script.
Conducting the interview
Interviews
allow you to establish rapport
with
respondents. Before starting, use small
talk
to give yourself and the person you are
interviewing
a chance to get comfortable.
Once
you begin the interview:
Ask questions at a reasonable pace.
If the interview is structured, read each
question
exactly as written and in the
same
order every time.
Read the entire question before
accepting
an answer.
When asked to repeat a question,
repeat
the entire question.
Do not skip a question because it was
answered
earlier or because you think
you
know the answer.
Encourage responses with occasional
nods
of the head, "uh huh"s, etc.
Provide transition between major topics,
e.g.,
"we've been talking about (some
topic)
and now I'd like to move on to
(another
topic)."
Do not count on your memory to recall
their
answers. Ask for permission to
record
the interview or take notes.
Do not allow the person you are
interviewing
to continually get off
topic.
If the conversation drifts, ask
follow-up
questions to redirect the
conversation
to the subject at hand.
Avoid getting into casual conversation
or
discussing issues, topics, and viewpoints
that
are related or unrelated to
questions
on the survey.
If
you plan to conduct the interview in
person,
be thoughtful about where it will
take
place. Make sure the location is
comfortable
for the respondent, such as
their
home, work place, or other location
they
prefer. The setting should be quiet and
private,
so that you can conduct the interview
without
violating confidentiality.
Avoiding bias
One
disadvantage of interviews is the
possibility
of respondents changing their
answers
to please the interviewer or avoid
embarrassment.
It is important to prevent
bias
when conducting interviews. Do not
express
your own attitudes, opinions,
prejudices,
thoughts, or feelings during
the
interview.
The
following tips can help you avoid
influencing
the respondent’s answers:
Do not show surprise, approval,
or
disapproval with your words,
gestures,
or expressions to anything
the
respondent says or does.
Do not disagree or argue with someone
even
if they express opinions you feel
are
wrong.
Do not become too familiar or casual
by
sharing personal information.
Do not laugh too much or make the
interview
seem like a friendly
conversation.
Do not seek clarification in a way
that
leads the respondent toward one
particular
answer.
Probing for more information
Interviews
provide the opportunity for you
to
explain or clarify questions, and allow
you
to explore topics in more depth than
you
can with a survey. Use “probe” questions
to
obtain more information about answers
that
are incomplete, unclear, or irrelevant.
Common
probes include: “Could you be
more
specific?,” “Could you give me an
example,?”
or “Could you explain that?.”
Probes
should be asked in a neutral way, and
should
not be used to pester or coerce someone
into
answering uncomfortable questions.
Other
recommendations for using probes:
Never use leading probes. If you are not
sure
what a respondent means, ask the
question
again or ask for clarification.
Probe responses to closed-ended
questions
if the respondent selects an
answer
that was not on your list.
Repeat
the entire list of options, instead
of
trying to guess what was meant.
Respondents sometimes say “Don’t
Know”
because they didn’t understand
the
question, didn’t hear the entire
question,
or are not sure how to answer.
If
someone says that they “don’t know”
an
answer, probe at least once. Reading
the
question again can be effective.
If someone does not want to answer a
question,
probe one time. If he or she
still
doesn’t answer the question, move
on
to the next question. Sometimes it is
helpful
to reassure the respondent
that
all answers are confidential.
Probe for clarification and inconsistencies.
Make
sure that you understand what
the
respondent is saying. If you don’t
understand
what a respondent means, ask.
10 tips on conducting effective interviews
#1: Determine your objective
Before you schedule the interview, determine why you want to have it. What information can you gain from the interviewee? How will this information help you achieve your other goals? How will you be better off after having conducted this interview?
#2: Outline your areas
You certainly could write out the questions you plan to ask the interviewee and then read them aloud at the interview. However, this approach may make you look stilted and artificial, and it could hinder the flow of information. Furthermore, by reading your questions, you might miss nonverbal cues, such as body language, that could indicate an area for further questioning.
A better approach is to outline the general areas you want to cover. I do so at the top-right corner of the first sheet of the tablet I'm using. After I discuss an area, I cross it out.
#3: Pick the location
Meeting at the interviewee's office may make that person more at ease. Be aware of the possibility, though, that the interviewee might instead think you are invading his or her space. In that case, a neutral location, such as a conference room, cafeteria, or even Starbucks might be more appropriate. Present these alternatives and work things out with the interviewee.
#4: Observe standards of etiquette
If you're meeting in the interviewee's office, knock before entering. Don't sit down until invited to do so. During the interview, keep things to yourself. If you start invading the interviewee's personal space (for example, by gradually taking over the person's desk), the latter will become less willing to talk. See below for other reasons you should keep your notebook and other items near you.
#5: Open with standard rapport/small talk
Before starting the interview, take a few moments to get to know the interviewee. Ask the standard questions and make standard comments about weather or make positive comments about the meeting room or office or mementos on the interviewee's desk. However, be careful about speculating on photographs. That child whom you think is a grandson or granddaughter might actually be a son or daughter instead. A college or high school photo of the interviewee could cause problems if you say, "You looked great back then." Instead, keep your comments general, as in, "What a great photograph."
Once you've spent a few minutes with the getting-acquainted talk, you can start transitioning to the interview. To signal this transition, shift position in your seat , begin to take out a notebook or tablet, or say something like, "I appreciate your time. As you know, I've come to discuss...."
#6: Distinguish open and closed questions
Open questions begin with words such as "Who," "What," "Where," or "When." That is, they give the other person a chance to give a narrative response, without being confined by the question. Such questions are good when one is seeking general or background information. Their disadvantage is that they can cause an interviewee to ramble on endlessly.
Closed questions, on the other hand, call for a specific answer, usually a "Yes" or a "No." A person who asks a closed question is usually seeking a particular answer to a particular question. The disadvantage of closed questions is that in using them, you may be jumping too quickly to conclusions.
Both types of questions have their place during the interview. In general, begin with open questions. At this point, you want to get the big picture and to avoid jumping to conclusions or making wrong assumptions. When you ask open questions, you allow the other person to bring up matters you then can focus on more specifically.
As the interview progresses, use closed questions either to confirm your understanding or to explore in more depth the matter being discussed. You can also use closed questions to help control the rambling interviewee. If you think you know the point he or she is making, cut to the chase by asking a question such as, "So if I understand, your point is that..."? If you're right, the person will agree, and you will have saved time. If you're wrong, the person will let you know, and (you hope) will summarize the point quickly.
#7: Use notations to record impressions
When I take notes, I draw a vertical line one-third from the left of the page. On the right side, I will record the interviewee's comments. On the left side, I will record impressions and reactions, and reminders of things I should follow up on. In particular, if I hear something that clashes with what I already know or have been told, I will note the comment accordingly.
Be careful about your notations, though. People can read upside down. If you write "ridiculous" on the left side, the other person may take offense. A better alternative is to develop your own set of codes -- one for "ridiculous," another for "follow up," etc.
#8: Hide your notepad and pen
Try to hide your notepad and pen while you're writing. Rather than write on a table or desk, keep the pad and pen in your lap so that the interviewee can't see any notations you've made. Furthermore, the person won't be able to see whether you're writing anything at all. If the interviewee sees you writing in reaction to some comments and not others, it might affect what he or she is saying or planning to say.
#9: Use tact when exploring sensitive issues
You may be conducting an interview to determine the cause of some high profile problem or failure. Perhaps you're interviewing someone who either caused the problem or is connected to it. In this case, tact and diplomacy are important, not only from a courtesy standpoint, but more pragmatically, to maximize the chances you get the information you are seeking.
Be careful about the word "you," because its overuse can make people feel defensive. Instead of saying, for example, "What factors led you to make that decision?" consider a passive construction, such as, "What factors led to the making of that decision?" Similarly, a hypothetical construction can soften a question, such as, "What might have caused the accident?"
I'm not saying you always have to use such techniques. Rather, I'm recommending that you consider such alternatives before asking your questions.
#10: Contradict with caution
Be careful when confronting an interviewee who gives you contradictory information. That person might be innocently mistaken or might have recalled things incorrectly. Calling him or her a liar will hardly endear you, and it certainly won't advance the interview. Instead, consider a statement such as, "That's interesting, because I've heard different things from other people...." Making this kind of statement signals that you may not disagree, but that the other interviewees might. You could go one step further and adopt the Columboapproach -- namely, pleading ignorance and lack of familiarity, then asking the interviewee to explain differences with you have heard elsewhere.
