Interviews

Question 1

What is an interview ?

Answer 1

• is a face to face interaction involving the interviewer and interviewee, where the interviewer asks questions

Question 2

What types of interviews are there?

Answer 2

• Structured interviews, where the interviewer is given strict instructions on how to ask the questions and it is the same each time
• Unstructured or informal interviews, which are like a guided conversation, where the interviewer has complete freedom to ask whatever questions and they can ask follow up questions
• Semi-structured interviews, where there are a still set and fixed questions being asked but the interviewer can ask for more information if needed
• Group interviews, multiple individuals being interviewed at the same time example was Paul Willis

Question 3

What are advantages of group interviews ?

Answer 3

• Participants may feel more comfortable being with others and thus are more likely to open up
• In a discussion, participants often throw around ideas and this may stimulate each others thinking and thus produces more valid and reflective data

Question 4

What do Positivists prefer and why?

Answer 4

• They prefer structured interviews because they take a scientific approach using standardised methods such as structured interviews to obtain quantitative data
• Structured interviewers create fixed lists of close ended questions so answers can be quantified and this allows the researcher to identify patterns and establish the cause and effect
• They also prefer it because they are reliable and can produce fairly large scale representative data

Question 5

What are the limitations of group interviews ?

Answer 5

• 1 or 2 individuals may dominate the discussion which inhibits others from contributing
• Peer pressure to conform to group norms may lead to participants not saying what they really think
• There is a lot of dependence on the researcher’s ability to keep the group focused

Question 6

What are advantages of structured interviews?

Answer 6

• Quick and cheap, since the questions are preset and the answers are usually short it will take less time
• Researcher will not need deep sociological training
• It is easy to replicate
• Produces quantitative data meaning it can be easily quantified and analysed
• Informed consent is easier, as participants know exactly what to expect since the questions are fixed
• Higher response rate, as because there is an interviewer present, people are more likely to complete the interview , and this is also beneficial for those who may struggle with literacy
• Interviewer also needs limited training

Question 7

What are the disadvantages of structured interviews?

Answer 7

• Cannot explore participants feelings or meanings, so the researcher is stuck with surface level answers
• If the respondent mentions something interesting outside the question set, the interviewer cannot explore it further
  -Participant frustration: Respondents may feel restricted by closed questions or feel their views are oversimplified or ignored.
• Lack of personal rapport: Less opportunity to build trust, which may reduce openness or willingness to participate.
• Low validity: Because answers are fixed, you may not capture the true thoughts, motivations, or experiences of respondents.
• It is difficult to know if the respondent is being truthful, since the interviewer cannot move away from the fixed interview schedule to double check the answers given
• Presence of an interviewer can still influence how people respond especially on sensitive issues such as crime and education, thus respondents may give socially desirable answers rather than honest ones
• Interpretivists criticise it for lacking validity and not capturing true meaning behind peoples actions

Question 8

What do feminist argue about structured interviews?

Answer 8

• argue that they are patriarchal as the interviewer and not the female interviewee is in control, which makes it difficult for women to express their experience of oppression

Question 9

Advantages of structured interviews in education context

Answer 9

• High response rate from schools and teachers, as schools may encourage participation, especially if the research is approved by senior staff
• Reliable as questions are standardised, which makes it easy to compare answers between schools,year groups and social classes which is useful to identify patterns
• Time efficient, it fits well within school timetable since they are short focused interviews they can be scheduled during break or free periods

Question 10

Disadvantages of structured interviews in education context of education

Answer 10

• Lack of Validity , students may give brief, surface level answers and may not fully understand the questions properly especially younger pupils, and it does not allow deeper exploration of complex issues like teacher racism or peer pressure
• Power differences, Students may feel intimidated by the formal nature of an interview with an adult researcher, as they may just see the researcher as an adult in disguise and this will lead to socially desirable answers, and teachers might give answers that reflect well on themselves or their school
• Ethical concerns, as gaining informed consent from minor and ensuring their understanding of the research can be tricky
• Gatekeepers, access to pupils is controlled by teachers, heads or school polices , and schools may refuse to participate

Question 11

Why do interpretivists favor unstructured interviews?

Answer 11

• because they aim to seek and discover meanings behind our actions and this means using open ended research methods that provide valid qualitative data
• They prefer unstructured interviews because they give people the opportunity to talk openly, unrestricted by a fixed set of questions

Question 12

Advantages of unstructured interviews

Answer 12

• High validity, trust and rapport can develop between the interviewer and interviewee, and the more comfortable the interviewee feels, the more likely they are to open up, this is useful when researching sensitive topics such as bullying to institutional racism
• Also it avoids the dangers of the sociologists imposing their ideas onto the interview process, as with no fixed or set questions interviewees have the opportunity to reply in their own words in ways that are meaningful to them
• It can uncover things that teachers or school policies do not reflect for example labelling
• The questions can be adapted based on age or understanding, and this is helpful when interviewing students with special needs or language barriers and they are able to ask follow up questions

Question 13

Disadvantages of unstructured interviews

Answer 13

• The closer rapport between the interviewer and interviewee may increase the chance of the respondent seeking to please by giving the answer they think the researcher wants to hear
• Because each interview is different it is harder to replicate or compare results thus making it hard to generalise findings
• Time consuming
• Cost as the interviewer would have to be trained
• Interviewer bias, The interviewer may ask leading questions where the wording tells the interviewee what to answer for example using the phrase “ wouldnt you agree” so they may be unconsciously or consciously influencing the research
• gatekeeper control, as teachers may limit access to certain pupils or topics making it difficult to get a full honest answer