Interviews With Individuals  Structured  Semi-structured  Un-structured (open, in-depth) With Groups  Focus groups

Interviewing is…  Talking and listening to people  Verbally asking participants questions and hearing their point of view in their own words  Done face-to-face or over the phone  In the field (contextual interviews)

Interviews  Deep and free response  Flexible, adaptable  Glimpse into participant’s tone, gestures  Ability to probe, follow up  Costly in time and personnel  Requires skill  May be difficult to summarize responses  Possible biases (interviewer, participant, situation)

Structured interview  Uses script and questionnaire  No flexibility in wording  No flexibility in question order  Closed response options  Open response options

Open ended or closed questions?  What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages?

Closed questions: advantages  it is easier and quicker for respondents to answer  the answers of different respondents are easier to compare  answers are easier to code and statistically analyse  the response choices can clarify question meaning for respondents  respondents are more likely to answer about sensitive topics  there are fewer irrelevant or confused answers to questions  less articulate or less literate respondents are not at a disadvantage  replication is easier

Closed questions: disadvantages  they can suggest ideas that the respondent would not otherwise have  respondents with no opinion or no knowledge can answer anyway  respondents can be frustrated because their desired answer is not a choice  it is confusing if many response choices are offered  misinterpretation of a question can go unnoticed  distinctions between respondent answers may be blurred  clerical mistakes or marking the wrong response is possible  they force respondents to give simplistic responses to complex issues  they force people to make choices they would not make in the real world

Open questions: advantages  they permit an unlimited number of possible answers.  respondents can answer in detail and can qualify and clarify responses  unanticipated findings can be discovered  they permit adequate answers to complex issues  they permit creativity, self-expression, and richness of detail  they reveal a respondent’s logic, thinking process, and frame of reference

Open questions: disadvantages  different respondents give different degrees of detail in answers  responses may be irrelevant or buried in useless detail  comparisons and statistical analysis become difficult  coding responses is difficult· articulate and highly literate respondents have an advantage  questions may be too general for respondents who lose direction  a greater amount of respondent time, thought, and effort is necessary  respondents can be intimidated by questions  answers take up a lot of space in the questionnaire

Semi-structured interview  Outline of topics or issues to cover  Some questions may be standard  May vary wording or order of questions  May probe interesting responses  Fairly conversational and informal

Unstructured  Most spontaneous  Focused topics or questions are not predetermined  But can have general ideas of initial areas of interest  Questions emerge from the situation and what is said  Individualized and relevant to the situation

Focus Groups  Structured small group interviews  Focused in two ways: 1. Participants are similar in some way 2. Information on the topic is guided by a set of focused questions  To solicit perceptions, views, and a range of opinions (not consensus)

Probing  Q: What did you like best about the interface?  A: “I liked everything”

Interviewing Tips  Keep language in line with the participant  Note taker + interviewer ideal  Avoid long questions  Create comfort  Establish time frame (and stick to it!  Avoid leading questions  Be respectful  Listen carefully

Active Listening  HEAR  H - hear the speaker’s words  E – empathize with the speaker ; put yourself in her shoes  A – analyze the speaker’s words and thoughts  R - respond

Active Listening Exercise  Read first page of handout  Pair up: A and B  5 minutes: A interviews B  1 minute question formation  4 minutes interview/probe  Repeat - 5 minutes: B interviews A

Topic 1  What do they like/dislike about Dalhousie

Topic 2  Consider a class where they have performed poorly (below their normal standards). Find out why that happened.

CAVEATS  You can conduct a great interview, but not achieve your research goals:  Interview the wrong people  Omit a segment of the target population  Recruitment strategies could bias population  Ask the wrong questions  your interview questions don’t adequately address the research questions  Incomplete data collection  Faulty analysis of data collected

Today’s readings  Conducting interview studies: challenges, lessons learned, and open questions.  Motivation?  Research Questions?  Methodological Approach?  What do you think they did well?  What were the flaws/limitations?  Do you trust their findings?

Today’s readings  "It is always a lot of fun!": exploring dimensions of digital game experience using focus group methodology  Motivation?  Research Questions?  Methodological Approach?  What do you think they did well?  What were the flaws/limitations?  Do you trust their findings?

Active Listening Exercise  Read first page of handout  Pair up: A and B  5 minutes: A interviews B  1 minute question formation  4 minutes interview/probe  Repeat - 5 minutes: B interviews A

Topic 1  What do they like/dislike about Dalhousie

Topic 2  Consider a class where they have performed poorly (below their normal standards). Find out why that happened.