METHODS - Interviews

Question 1

What are Self-Report methods?

Answer 1

Collecting data from participants in their own work and/or activities directly completed by them.

Question 2

What do Self-Report methods include?

Answer 2

Questionnaires, interviews and diaries.

Question 3

Degree of structure

What are the three degrees of structure in interviews?
Explain them.

Answer 3

Structured - pre-set questions asked in same order.
Partly structured - list of topics to cover.
Unstructured - few or no fixed questions, like a conversation.

Question 4

Degree of structure

What are the ADVANTAGES of STRUCTURED interviews?
3

Answer 4

Favoured by quantitative researchers
Easy to replicate and compare results
Less chance of interviewer bias

Question 5

Degree of structure

What are the DISADVANTAGES of STRUCTURED interviews?
3

Answer 5

No opportunity to probe deeper

Hard to discover what’s important to respondents.

Less chance of discovering new hypotheses.

Question 6

Degree of structure

What are the ADVANTAGES of PARTLY - STRUCTURED interviews?
1

Answer 6

Provides opportunity for respondents to lead the interviews

Question 7

Degree of structure

What are the DISADVANTAGES of PARTLY - STRUCTURED interviews?
1

Answer 7

Lack specific advantages of both structured/unstructured interviews.

Question 8

Degree of structure

What are the ADVANTAGES of UNSTRUCTURED interviews?
3

Answer 8

Favoured by qualitative researchers
Respondents can direct the interviews
Provides more opportunity for developing new hypotheses.

Question 9

Degree of structure

What are the DISADVANTAGES of UNSTRUCTURED interviews?
4

Answer 9

Hard to replicate
Time-consuming
Difficult to compare
Easy to go off-track

Question 10

Analysing Interviews

Interviews are recorded in________. _______ can be _____ by using new _____.

Answer 10

a) transcripts
b) transcripts
c) coded
e) techniques

Question 11

Analysing Interviews

What are the two different types of interview analysis? (both names)

Answer 11

• Content analysis (bottom-up method)

- Thematic analysis (top-down method)

Question 12

Analysing Interviews

Explain the content analysis/bottom-up method for analysing interviews.

Answer 12

Label & count trends found in transcripts, then discuss theories that apply to the findings.

Question 13

Analysing Interviews

Explain the thematic analysis/top-down method for analysing interviews.

Answer 13

Use theory to scan transcripts & count instances of relevant information, presenting findings on a graph/mind-map.

Question 14

Analysing Interviews

Who is more likely to use content analysis/bottom-up method?

Answer 14

Left-wing

Question 15

Analysing Interviews

Who is more likely to use thematic analysis/top-down method?

Answer 15

Right-wing

Question 16

Interview styles

What are the two interview styles?

Answer 16

Aggressive challenging

Collaborative interviewing

Question 17

Analysing Interviews

Who came up with ‘Aggressive Challenging’?

Answer 17

Becker - an interpretivist

Question 18

Analysing Interviews

Who came up with ‘Collaborative Challenging’?

Answer 18

Oakley - a feminist

Question 19

Interviewer Bias

What are the three brief factors that might make a biased interview?

Answer 19

• The social characteristics of the interviewer
• Using leading questions
• Misunderstandings/false records

Question 20

Interviewer Bias

Give examples of how ‘the social characteristics of the interviewer’ may influence an interview.

Answer 20

The age, gender, ethnicity or education all influence how much a participant tells the interviewer.

Question 21

Interviewer Bias

How can using leading questions influence an interview?

Answer 21

These can change the participant’s response.

Question 22

Interviewer Bias

How do misunderstandings/false records come about in interviews?

Answer 22

Age differences, clumsiness or coded language.