Abstract
Interviews are acknowledged in the current literature in applied linguistics as one of the most popular tools to collect data. Although interviews can be used to gather quantitative data, they are prone to qualitative data. An interview commonly includes at least one interviewer and at least one interviewee or respondent. The interviewer prepares a set of questions about a particular topic to elicit information from the interviewee about their experiences of an occurrence, opinions about an event or phenomenon, and/or suggestions. This chapter mainly presents issues in qualitative interviews. It first discusses the rationale before presenting the advantages and disadvantages of interviews. Then, types of interviews are outlined with their specific purposes and characteristics. Interview techniques are then discussed alongside the considerations in each technique. Guidelines for developing an interview scheme and protocol are presented. Finally, ethical considerations regarding qualitative interviews are discussed.
TopTypes Of Interview
Once decision to collect data via qualitative interviews is made, the researcher then thinks of what type of interview is appropriate. There are different types of interviews. The main types are individual interviews, focus-group interviews, synchronous online interviews, email interviews, and open-ended questions. These interview types have distinct characteristics, so the researcher may consider the amount of funding, time, and accessibility of participants.
Individual Interviews
Individual interviews may take a great amount of time because the researcher needs to arrange the time with the target participants to meet them individually (Creswell & Poth, 2018). Because this type of interview allows participants to meet the interviewer one by another personally, the interviewer can control unwanted variables and find the root of the problem by asking strategic questions (Creswell & Creswell, 2018). Also, inter-respondent reliability can be high as respondents may not influence each other. This type of interview may make respondents comfortable because they can share opinions privately. The respondents can take it easy to speak unreluctantly (Creswell, 2012).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Interview Protocol: A written guide containing the topics to be explored that a researcher follows during an interview.
Open-Ended Question: A question that requires a description or an explanation as an answer.
Structured Interview: An interview that follows a rigorous set of predetermined questions. In structured interviews, the researcher uses the same protocol for all interviewees.
Semi-Structured Interview: An interview that combines a set of predetermined questions and some unscripted questions, such as probes and follow-up questions. In a semi-structured interview, the researcher may flexibly use the wording of questions, or change them if needed for clarification or more information.
Close-Ended Question: A question that requires a specific piece of information.