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Conducting Interviews. "The purpose of interviewing...is to allow us to enter the other person's perspective .” – Michael Quinn Patton. Goals for the next 30 minutes:. How to plan and conduct interviews Different types of questions The importance of listening
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Conducting Interviews "The purpose of interviewing...is to allow us to enter the other person's perspective.” – Michael Quinn Patton
Goals for the next 30 minutes: • How to plan and conduct interviews • Different types of questions • The importance of listening • Giving you a chance to practice writing interview questions
Pre-Interview 1: Develop clear objectives: • Are you looking for facts/opinions? • Do you have Open (the interviewee will have the freedom to go into details) or Closed (yes/no) questions? • Are you asking the right person for the information you want? • Will your interviewee be comfortable with your questions?
Pre-Interview 2: Decide how you want to conduct your interview: • In person? • By phone? • By email?
Pre-Interview 3: Where? • Your home? • Their home? • Somewhere neutral?
Pre-Interview 4: Set-up an Appointment: • Introduce yourself and the purpose of your interview • Decide and agree upon a mutual time and location • Discuss how much time you would like to speak to them • Explain the question areas you want to pursue
Question Planning Advice: Questions should… • Be clear • Be in a logical order • Be connected to the previous question • Be designed to allow the interviewee to answer freely (avoid leading questions) • Be written down
The 6 Types of Topics in Interviews: You will need to spend some time deciding which of these question types will work best for collecting the information you need. • Behaviors – what a person has done or is doing • Opinions/values – what a person thinks about a topic • Feelings – how a person feels about a topic • Knowledge – facts about a topic • Sensory – seen, touched, heard, tasted, or smelled • Background/demographics – age, education, etc.
During the Interview • Have your questions in front of you • Be prepared to write down new questions as they pop up while the interviewee speaks • Seek clarification – what is your interviewee really saying?
Other Useful Interview Advice 1 • Have a pen/pencil and paper ready to write – paraphrase whatever you heard • If you have something to record the person (audio or video), ask beforehand if they’re willing to have themselves recorded.
Other Useful Interview Advice 2 • Small talk can be good! – weather, sports, flowers, whatever – if you’re both relaxed and having a good time, you’ll get a lot more information • Share your writings with your interviewee later – they can clarify or give you more details on a topic addressed in the interview