1. Social Research Methods
Alan Bryman
Social Research Methods
Chapter 20: Interviewing in qualitative research
Slides authored by Tom Owens

2. Differences between structured and qualitative interviews
are less structured/standardized
take the participant’s viewpoint
encourage ‘rambling’ off the topic
are more flexible
seek rich, detailed answers
aim to understand rather than to generalize
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3. Unstructured or semi-structured?
Unstructured interview
Few, loosely defined topics
Open-ended questions to allow free response
Conversational style
Semi-structured interview
List of specific topics to cover (interview guide)
Flexible question order and phrasing
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4. A student comments…..
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5. Preparing an interview guide
Have a logical but flexible order of topics
Focus on research questions: ‘what do I need to know about?’
Use comprehensible and relevant language
Avoid leading questions
Record ‘face sheet’ information (name, age, gender, position etc)
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6. Preparing for the interview
Make yourself familiar with the interviewee’s world, so that you will be able to understand their remarks.
Get a good quality tape recorder and microphone.
Try to arrange a quiet setting for the interview.
Learn how to be a ‘successful’ interviewer (Kvale, 1996)
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7. Kvale’s criteria of a successful interviewer
Knowledgeable: familiar with the focus of the interview.
Structuring: gives purpose for interview; rounds it off.
3. Clear: asks simple, easy, short questions; no jargon.
4. Gentle: lets people finish; gives them time to think.
5. Sensitive: listens to what is said and how it is said.
6. Open: responds to what is important to interviewee.
7. Steering: knows what he or she wants to find out.
8. Critical: is prepared to challenge what is said.
9. Remembering: relates what is said to what has previously been said.
10. Interpreting: clarifies and extends meanings of interviewees’ statements.
Note: Being balanced and ethically sensitive are criteria added by Bryman.
Tips and skills
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8. Make notes after the Interview
How did the interview go (was interviewee talkative, cooperative, nervous, well-dressed/scruffy, etc.?)
Where did the interview take place?
Did the interview open up new avenues of interest?
What was the setting like (busy/quiet, many/few other people in the vicinity, new/old buildings)?
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9. Formulating questions for
an interview guide
Figure 20.1
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10. Kinds of questions Introducing (“Tell me about…”) Follow-up Probing
Specifying (“What happened next?”)
Direct
Indirect (“What do most people think about…?”)
Structuring (“Let’s move on to…”)
Silence
Interpreting (“Do you mean that…?”)
Kvale (1996)
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11. Recording and transcription
Audio-recording and transcribing
Researcher is not distracted by note-taking
Can focus on listening and interpreting
Corrects limitations of memory and intuitive glosses (Heritage, 1984)
Detailed and accurate record of interviewee’s account
Opens data to public scrutiny
Tape recorder or mini-disk recorder?
Transcription machine
Selective transcription saves time
Tips and skills
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12. Special types of qualitative interview
Life history interview
Subject looks back across their entire life
Reveals how they interpret, understand and define the social world (Faraday & Plummer, 1979)
Shows how life events have unfolded
Naturalistic, researched or reflexive (Plummer, 2001)
Oral history interview
Subject reflects on specific events in the past
Testimonies of ‘unexceptional’ social groups
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13. Feminist approaches to interviewing
The in-depth, face-to-face interview has become the paradigmatic ‘feminist method’ (Kelly et al, 1994)
Unstructured or semi-structured rather than structured interviews (Oakley, 1981):
Indefensible for women to ‘use’ other women
Non-hierarchical research relationship
Rapport and reciprocity
Possible tension between researcher’s interpretation and women’s own perspective
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14. Advantages of participant observation over qualitative interviewing
Seeing through others’ eyes
Learning the native language
Taken for granted ideas more likely to be revealed
Access to deviant or hidden activities
Sensitivity to context of action
Flexibility in encountering the unexpected
Naturalistic emphasis
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15. Advantages of qualitative interviewing over participant observation
Finding out about issues resistant to observation
Interviewees reflect on past events / life course
More ethically defensible
Fewer reactive effects
Less intrusive
Longitudinal research (follow-up interviews)
Greater breadth of coverage
Specific focus
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