Interviews Flashcards
What are the key features of structured interviews?
Usually face to face, similar to a questionnaire, pre-set questions, and conducted in the same standardised way each time.
What are the advantages of structured interviews?
Practical, Representative and Reliable
What is a practical advantage of structured interviews?
They are cheap and easy to conduct and train interviewers.
How do structured interviews enhance representativeness?
They can be used to interview a wide range of people, increasing the ability of the results to be generalised.
Why are structured interviews considered reliable?
Standardised pre-set questions allow for replicability.
What is a disadvantage of structured interviews regarding validity?
The lack of open-ended questions does not allow for a range of details, limiting subjects’ ability to fully express their answers.
Validity
What is another disadvantage of structured interviews?
People may lie or exaggerate their experiences.
Can you provide an example of a structured interview?
Young and Willmott used structured interviews to research extended families in East London with a sample of 933 people. The interviews were formal and standardised, with precise and factual questions on straightforward topics like age and job.
What are the key features of semi-structured interviews?
Each interview has the same set of questions in common, but the interviewer can also probe for more information.
What are the key features of unstructured interviews?
Includes open-ended questions, complete freedom to vary questions, detailed answers, and a close rapport between researcher and subject.
What is an advantage of unstructured interviews?
They are flexible, allowing the interviewer to gain more information if needed, which increases the validity of answers.
How does informality benefit unstructured interviews?
It allows the interviewer to develop rapport with the interviewee, encouraging them to open up.
What is a disadvantage of unstructured interviews?
They are very time-consuming and expensive to train interviewers.
What is another disadvantage of unstructured interviews?
They usually have a small sample size, making findings less representative of the general population.
Why are unstructured interviews considered unreliable?
Questions aren’t set, making it impossible to replicate the same interview twice.
Can you provide an example of an unstructured interview?
Dean and Taylor Gooby used unstructured tape-recorded interviews lasting up to 90 minutes with 85 claimants.
What issues might sociologists study using interviews?
Pupil subcultures, pupils’ experience of health and sex education, class, ethnicity and language, gender identity and the male gaze, and class and parental choice of schools.
What practical issues may arise when interviewing young people?
Young people may be less articulate, reluctant to talk, not understand complex questions, or have shorter attention spans.
How can communication difficulties affect interview validity?
They may lead to misunderstandings and incorrect or incomplete answers.
What training considerations are necessary when interviewing children?
Training needs to be more thorough, adding to research costs.
formal
How do structured interviews affect reliability and validity?
They produce reliable data due to standardisation but may not produce valid data due to the formal style - perhaps because it makes the interviewer appear too much like teacher..
What challenges do researchers face when seeking to interview teachers or pupils?
Schools are hierarchical, requiring multiple approvals, and may object to interviews during lesson time.
How do power and status inequalities affect interview outcomes?
Interviewees may lie or exaggerate to please the interviewer, reducing data validity.
How does peer pressure influence group interviews with pupils?
It may reduce the validity of data as individuals conform to peer expectations.
What strategies can improve the validity of interviews with pupils?
Use open-ended questions, avoid interrupting answers, and tolerate long pauses.
