Conducting Interviews: Learning the Basics

Written by Grace Tarrant

Thumbnail & Banner Photo by charlesdeluvio on Unsplash

Conducting and planning for interviews can be a daunting experience. However, depending on the discipline and research focus, interviews can be the exact thing needed to strengthen the validity of an argument and help provide much-needed structure to a thesis.

Before getting too much into the ‘why’s’ and ‘how’s’ surrounding research interviews, research ethics is the first thing that will need to be addressed when you are still in the beginning phase of planning. Research ethics approval is required to ensure that the researcher's interviews, questions and experiments do not cause any harm to participants and are as ethical as possible. The research ethics form can be found on the SMU website and needs to be filled out by you and your supervisor a few months in advance before beginning the interview process. Only once you are cleared by Research Ethics, you can begin the recruitment process and reach out to people by doing some sort of sampling method.

In my research project, I have chosen to do a purposive sampling method by contacting only those who I know would be relevant to the research project. In other words, I’m looking for people with specific experience and expertise to be able to gain more information about my topic, so talking to people in the community that I am focusing on and getting the names and information of people who fit the project is what is going to work best for me. There are certain research topics that the selective or purposive sampling method would not be appropriate for, so always discuss these sorts of things beforehand with your supervisor.

There are several ways to conduct interviews. The different kinds of interviews are semi-structured, structured, and unstructured, and these can happen virtually or in person, with the nature and depth of interviews varying depending on the topic. A structured interview would include pre-set questions laid out with little to no deviation from the script/plan, whereas a totally unstructured interview would not have a set outline of questions and would appear to be more of a conversation than an interview. There are usually no set questions. In my research, I will use a semi-structured method, whereby I will have a general outline of questions, but can stray slightly from the script. It combines “a pre-determined set of open questions”, with the ability to explore more responses further. This is my preferred method because it ensures guided questions that force the interview to stay on topic while offering the researcher the freedom to ask questions that are thought of throughout the interview.

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In my experience throughout my time working in journalism, having the space to move slightly from the prepared questions has allowed me to learn way more about the story at hand than I would have otherwise. It also ensures that the interview is not too stiff, which can sometimes negatively limit the discussion. When the interviewee is on edge and not relaxed, you may not be able to get the sort of information that you would if the interviewee felt comfortable in the environment and with the process overall.

Asking open-ended questions is the most important tip that any person in the reporting and interviewing world will offer, in my experience. Asking open-ended questions will give space to the interviewee to give more of an explanation as opposed to giving a “yes” or “no” response, which will stall the discussion.

Another important thing to remember is to attempt to limit your own bias when responding to the information that the interviewee is providing you. If your questions posed are neutral, it will remove some of the tension and pressure that the interviewee could feel if they think that you are looking for a particular answer. Paying attention to your own tone and body language when asking questions and responding to the interviewee also just helps to ensure that the research you are conducting is as unbiased as possible.

 It is essential to consider the benefits and disadvantages of interview types. My research focus is on a small, rural community in Newfoundland. My focus is on fishers who fished cod before the moratorium, therefore, it is very likely that most of the individuals are above the age of 65. In this instance, it may not necessarily be ideal for me to expect that all of these people would want to meet online or have the means to do so. Therefore, I have prioritized travelling to Newfoundland to be able to conduct interviews with them in person. The other benefit of meeting people in person is that there is more room for connection and familiarization. In my case, connecting to people in a way that allows them to be open about their experiences with job loss and undergoing significant social and cultural changes is paramount.

Overall, conducting interviews is a great way to get new information from individuals who have first-hand experience with the topic that you are studying. It allows you to collect your own data and gain experience managing it properly and appropriately. Most importantly, conducting interviews has the potential to strengthen the ongoing relationship between community members and academia.