Planning and Conducting an Interview
An interview is a good method to obtain information from a person who has
experience in your topic area or is an authority on your subject. It allows for
clarification of questions, encourages discussion, and allows both the interviewer and
interviewee to put the research into his/her own words and context.
3 to 5 to be completed
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Develop your questions.
 Have an introductory question to establish the background of the
subject.
 Request information that is specific and relevant to your research
question.
 Make sure questions are open-ended and do not elicit one word
answers.
 Avoid the use of two-part questions
 List questions in a logical order.
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Plan additional questions to obtain further details during the interview.
Make an appointment by telephone or in person, not by letter or by word
of mouth.
Ask whether you will be able to record the interview.
Be punctual for the interview. Politely introduce yourself and restate the
reason for your visit. If you are unable to record the interview, ask
whether you can take notes.
If an interview in person is not appropriate due to time constraints of the
interviewee or distance, a telephone interview may be appropriate. It may
be possible to use a recording device on the telephone. Always ask first if
recording the interview is acceptable.
Keep your purpose in mind and ask your prepared questions rather than
allowing yourself to be sidetracked. Knowing your questions before the
interview will help you to be organized and may provide some freedom in
changing the order of the questions if the flow of the interviews allows.
Jot down the key points while the interviewee is answering. Try to listen
carefully and maintain some eye contact while taking notes. Remember,
the note taking will not be a transcript for what is said, rather, it is to act as
a reminder for you when you are writing your notes out in full.
At the end of the time provided, thank the interviewee. Later, send a
neatly written or typed thank you note.
Read over your rough notes as soon as possible after the interview. Add
observations and information that were not recorded.
Reorganize your notes under specific questions or sub-headings to allow
for your analysis.
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