A Dramaturgical Look at
Interviewing
9310031A Ken
9310033A Peter
9310043A Casper
Dramaturgy And Interviewing

Research is divided into two phases
1. Getting in
2. Analysis
Types Of Interviews
Three categories of interview:
1. Standardized interview
2. Unstandardized interview
3. Semistandardized interview
Standardized Interview


Use a structured schedule of interview
questions. (provide same questions to
every subjects, so that we can compare
the information from every subject after
interviewing)
Standardized interviews are designed to
elicit information from subjects by using a
set of predetermined questions.
Unstandardized Interview

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Do not use schedules of questions
We assume that interviewers do not know
what question is necessary.
We assume that not all subjects would get
the same meaning in one question.
Interviewers must generate questions
randomly under different situations, but
not predetermine questions.
It is useful when we are unfamiliar with
the background of the subjects.
Semistandardized Interview


Interviewers have to ask
predetermined questions to subjects,
but also allow to digress. (interviewers
can ask questions freely)
The subjects have to understand the
questions (or words)
The Interview Schedule

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Interviews provide more opportunities of
complete communication between
interviewers and subjects than pencil-andpaper questionnaires.
Interview is an effective method of
collecting information for certain type of
research question.
Schedule Development
1.Determine the nature of the investigation
and the objectives of the research
2.Begin with outline, list all the categories
we think may relate to the study
3.Develop questions which relate to the
outline categories (the major points of the
research)
Question Order, Content, and Style
There are 4 types of question in survey
instrument:
1.
Essential questions
2.
Extra questions
3.
Throw-away questions
4.
Probing questions

1.
2.
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1.
2.
Essential Questions:
Essential questions concern the central
focus of the study.
They may be placed together or scattered
Extra Question:
Extra questions are roughly equivalent to
certain essential questions.
The purpose of extra questions are to
check the reliability of subjects’ responses.

1.
2.
Throw-Away Questions:
Throw-away questions are incidental or
unnecessary for gathering important
information.
Even throw-away questions are
incidental, they may draw out a
complete story from a subject.
Probing Questions:
Probes provide interviewers a way to get
more complete information from subjects.
Ex: Could you tell me more information?

Question Wording

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In order to acquire information,
researchers must word questions so that
they will provide the necessary date.
If wrong questions are asked or if
questions are asked in a manner that
inhibits or prevents a respondent frm
answering fully, the interview will not be
fruitful.
Communicating Effectively
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Researchers must always be sure they
have clearly communicated to the
subjects what they want to know.
The interviewers’ language must be
understandable to the subject.
A Few Common Problems In
Question Formulation

Affectively Worded Questions

The Double-Barreled Question

Complex Questions

Question Sequencing
Affectively Worded Questions
Arouse people some emotional response.
 May control interview subjects.
 Limit people’s possibility of a full answer.
<ex>Do you study hard?
→How many times a week would
you read books?

The Double-Barreled Question
Ask a subject to respond to two topics in a
single question at the same time.
<Ex>Do you like the feedback what
grammar checker gives, or the
convenience what it gives?
 The solution is to separate the two topics
and ask separate questions.

Complex Questions

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A long and complicated question will
effect the entirety of a answer.
The solution is to keep questions short,
specific and understandable.
Question Sequencing

The arrangement of questions affect the
results.

These questions should be easier (general)
in the beginning and then more complex
(specific) step by step.
Pretesting The Schedule
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After developing the instrument and
sequence of questions.
The schedule should be examined by other
people familiar with your study’s subject.
It can help you find out your biases and
blind spots.
To seek what your information should be
revised.
Pretesting The Schedule


Pretesting can evaluate how effectively the
interview will work and whether the
information which you find will be obtain
Pilot-testing: Before you formally ask
questions to your participants, you can ask
your teachers or friends whether they can
understand.
Conducting an interview: A
Natural Or An Unnatural
Communication?
Research interview:
Natural communication situation≠
Unnatural communication exchange
 Evasion Tactics: participants will express
that they don’t conduct further discussion
of a issue by a word and gesture.

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Deference Ceremony: Respect and thank
those participants.

If you do not respect participants, they will
give you wrong answer or unrelated
information.
The Dramaturgical Interview
Interviewers can not have any
preconceived notions.
 Interviewers should offer incorrect and
correct information to interviewees.
<EX>What do you think “grammar
checker”?
<EX>What are advantages of grammar
checker?

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Role-Taking: Interviewees know about
notions and expectation of interviewer’s
role, but it is possible for interviewer to
change role images.

By changing roles, the interviewer can
prevent the avoidance tactics.
Interviewer Roles and Rapport
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Rapport: develop a good relationship with
interviewees.
Interviewers often assumed that they
measure up to interviewee’s role
expectation.
It still can conduct an interview without
entire interviewees' expectations.

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The interviewee’s conception of the
interviewer centers on aspects of behavior
and appearance such as age, gender.
Interviewees will confirm or deny
expectations about what the interviewer
should be like by these observable
characteristics and general behavior
So interviewers should prepare everything
already and know whether various
strategies undertaken by interviewer.
The Negative Effects of An
Interviewer’s Characteristics in The
Literature on Interviewing

Obtain the interviewee’s permit to
participate in an interview.

In the literature, interviewees will have
potential bias arising from the effects of
interviewer’s characteristics.
The Interviewer as A SelfConscious Performer

Self-Conscious Performance: Interviewers’
actions, lines, roles, and routines must be
prepared in advance.
Social Interpretations And
The Interviewer
Social Interpretations:
Affect messages transferred from one acting
individual to another through nonverbal channels.
 Nonverbal Channels:
A variety of diverse elements which provides only a
part of the information for accurate social
interpretation.
 Interviewers must hear not only what the subjects say,
but also how they say it.

Interviewer as Actor
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Must perform your lines, routines, and
movements.
Must recite your scripted lines and be
aware of the interviewee.
Must listen carefully what participants
say.
Interviewer as Director
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Must be conscious of how you perform
lines, move, and the interviewee’s
performance.
Must reflect on each part of the interview.
Use the first-person to transcribe.
Use third-person to observe.
Interviewer as Choreographer

Control the whole interview process.

Interviewers can block their own
movements and gestures and write down
your own response lines.
To control your time, information, if
participants going to wrong topic, lead
them back.

The Interviewer’s Repertoire
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Interviews seldom genuinely improvise a
spontaneous technique or strategy.
Preparation is a major guideline in interviewing
1. Interviews prepared with a series of scripted
questions
2. The use of a consistent and systematic line of
questions for unanticipated is useful

The characterizations are components of the
interview’s repertoire

Make interviewees to feel more comfortable
with the idea of research

Character projections present effective
opportunities to develop rapport

Speaking with the subject on non-study related
to interviewees

Initial projections should be modifications,
alterations, and adaptations used by
interviewer

Make the participants feel comfortable before
interviewing.
Interviewer’s Attitudes and
Persuading a Subject

Attitudes toward the interview process
affect the quality of the resulting research

Arrange time for interviewees or separate
different time

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Novice interviews are often panic stricken.
1. Unprepared.

Novice interviews should be affected on their
project

It is necessary to convince subjects that what
they have to say is important

Potential respondents have no time, researchers
may be faced more difficult problem.
Interview should be flexible

Developing an Interviewer
Repertoire

Interviewing require practice

Reading about how to interview, particularly
ethnographic accounts, offer neophyte
interviewers necessary strategies and tactics

The most effective way to learn interviewing
is by role-playing with more experienced
interviewers

Novice interviewers must try out their
performances in front of an audience of
competent critics

The most effective way to accomplish this is a
dress rehearsal

Following dress-rehearsal period, novice
interviewers should be ready to enter the field
The Ten Commandments of
Interviewing
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Never begin an interview cold
Remember your purpose
Present a natural front
Demonstrate aware hearing
Think about appearance
Interview in a comfortable place
7. Don’t be satisfied with monosyllabic
answers
8. Be respectful
9. Practice, practice, and practice some
more
10. Be cordial and appreciative
6.
Curtain Call

Some individuals may never achieve the
status of highly skilled interviewer
Analyzing Data Obtained From the
Dramaturgical Interview

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Analysis is without question the most difficult
aspect of any qualitative research project, it is
the most creative
Insights obtained from qualitative research not
only add texture to an analysis but can also
demonstrate meanings and understandings about
problems and phenomena
Quantitative data are in order to find results, but
qualitative analysis cannot be conducted in this
manner
Beginning an Analysis

Analysis of interview data is necessary to
understand what to do when you reach this
phase in the research

The most obvious way to analyze
interview data is content analysis
Systematic filing systems
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The obvious purpose of a filing system is
to develop a means by which to access
various aspects of the data easily
Classes of things, persons, events, and
important characteristics
Intended to establish the various topics to
be indexed in the filing system
Table Student’s View of Formal Grammar Teaching on
the Development of English Writing Proficiency
[Major Topic/Theme]
Subthemes
No grammar
Concepts
No good grammar
and
concepts can write
down good sentence
Improve
writing skill
Use
sentence imitation
Teaching grammar
Students Write
can improve
writing skill
Share
their sentence
Short-Answer sheets
1.
Stored in separate files
2.
Stored each interview transcript
3.
Summarize many of the issues and topics
contained in each transcript
Analysis Procedures: A Concluding
Remark

The collection of qualitative data is
extensive that researchers can feel that
their jobs must be complete

After completed, researchers must
examine potential patterns