Interviews
Planning and setting up interviews
Taking notes during
Reflecting on the interview
Writing up your notes
Planning and Setting Up
Choose an expert, someone with
experience in the field
Arrange a specific time for the interview
Represent NVC well
Make an observational visit and/or do
some background reading before the
interview
Planning and Setting Up
Open Questions: allow for range and
flexibility
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What do you think about (name a person or
event)?
Describe your reaction when (name an event)
happened.
Tell me about a time you were (name an
emotion).
Planning and Setting Up
Closed Questions: request specific
information
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How do you (name a process)?
What does (name a word or phrase) mean?
What does (name a person, object or place)
look like?
How was (name a product, process)
developed?
Planning and Setting Up
Best questions encourage the subject to
talk freely but to the point
If the subject strays, ask follow-up
questions
Rephrase the subject’s answers
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“Am I correct in saying that you feel….”
“Let me see if I have this right”
Planning and Setting Up
Avoid forced-choice questions
Do you think rape is about control or rage?
People often fall into two camps on the issue of
rape. Some think it is about control, while others
argue it is about rage. Do you think it is either of
these? If not, what is your opinion?
Planning and Setting Up
Avoid leading questions
Do you think the number of rapes has increased because
women are perceived as competitors in a highly competitive
economy?
Has the occurrence of rape increased in recent years? If so,
what has caused this increase? I’ve heard…. Do you think
there might be any truth to this?”
Taking Notes
Goals:
Gather information
Record a few quotations, key words, phrases
Details of the scene, person, mood
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Note how something was said: gestures, verbal inflection,
facial expression, body language, physical appearance, etc
Taking Notes
Do more listening than note taking
Reflecting on the Interview
Immediately after, write your impression
What did I learn?
What seemed contradictory or surprising about
the interview?
How did what was said fit my own expectations?
How can I summarize my impressions?
Write Up
Decide what perspective you want to take on this
person.
Choose details that will contribute to this
perspective.
Select quotations and paraphrases of information
you learned.