Collecting primary data using semi-structured, in-depth and group interviews

1.

Slide 10.1
Module 11
Collecting primary data using semi-structured,
in-depth and group interviews
Research Methods, Prof. Almaz Tolymbek

2.

Slide 10.2
Research interviews
Definition
‘An interview is a purposeful discussion
between two or more people’
Kahn and Cannell (1957)
Types of interview used in research
Semi-structured
In-depth
Structured
Group
Saunders et al. (2009)

3.

Slide 10.3
Research purpose and strategy (1)
Forms of interview
Saunders et al. (2009)
Figure 10.1 Forms of interview

4.

Slide 10.4
Research purpose and strategy (2)
Uses of different types of interview in each of
the main research categories
Saunders et al. (2009)
Table 10.1 Uses of different types of interview in each of the main research
categories

5.

Slide 10.5
Non-standardized (qualitative) interviews
Four key aspects
1.
Purpose of the research
2.
Significance of establishing personal contact
3.
Nature of the data collection questions
4.
Time required and completeness of process

6.

Slide 10.6
1. Purpose of the research
Where you are undertaking an exploratory study, it is likely that
you will include non-standardized (qualitative) interviews in
your design
Similarly, an explanatory study is also likely to include
interviews in order for the researcher to be able to infer causal
relationships between variables
Where it is necessary for you to understand the reasons for
your respondents’ attitudes and opinions, you are likely to need
to conduct a qualitative interview.

7.

Slide 10.7
Non-standardized (qualitative) interviews
Semi-structured and in-depth interviews provide you with the
opportunity to 'probe‘ answers, where you want your
interviewees to explain their responses.
It is important if you adopt an interpretivist epistemology
when
you seek to understand the meanings behind interviewees’
words or ideas which will add significance and depth to the
data you obtain.
It may also lead the discussion into areas not previously
considered but which are significant for your understanding.
The result should be that you are able to collect a rich
and detailed set of data.

8.

Slide 10.8
2. Significance of establishing personal contact
Managers are more likely to agree to be interviewed, than to
complete a questionnaire, especially where the interview topic
is seen to be interesting and relevant to their current work.
An interview provides them with an opportunity to reflect
on events without needing to write anything down.
This situation also provides the opportunity for
interviewees to receive feedback and personal assurance
about how information will be used
Potential participants who receive a questionnaire via the
Internet, the intranet or through the post may be reluctant to
complete it. They may feel it is not appropriate to provide
sensitive information to someone they have never met.
The use of personal interviews may therefore achieve a higher
response rate than using questionnaires.

9.

Slide 10.9
3. The nature of the questions
A semi-structured or in-depth interview will undoubtedly be the
most advantageous approach to attempt to obtain data in the
following circumstances:
• where there are a large number of questions to be answered;
• where the questions are either complex or open-ended;
• where the order and logic of questioning may need to be
varied (Box 10.2).

10.

Slide 10.10
Student Case: The order and logic of questions
may need to be varied

11.

Slide 10.11
4. Time required and
completeness of process
When expectations are clearly established about the
length of time required and participants understand and agree
with the objectives of the research interview, they are more likely
to be interviewed.
Where your participant does not provide an answer to a
particular question in a non-standardized interview, you should
be able to form some indication of why a response could not
be provided.
This may even lead you to modify the question or to compose
another one that would be appropriate.

12.

Slide 10.12
Factors that affect whether to
use semi-structured or in-depth interviews

13.

Slide 10.13
Data quality
Issues to consider
Reliability
Forms of bias
Validity and generalisability

14.

Slide 10.14
Data quality (Reliability)
The lack of standardization in such interviews may
lead to concerns about reliability, i.e.
whether alternative researchers would reveal similar
information
The concern about reliability in these types of
interview is also related to issues of bias.

15.

Slide 10.15
Data quality (Bias)
There are various types of bias to consider. The first of them is
related to interviewer bias.
This is where the comments, tone or non-verbal behavior of
the interviewer creates bias in the way that interviewees
respond to the questions being asked.
This may be where you attempt to impose your own beliefs
and frame of reference through the questions that you ask.
It is also possible that you will demonstrate bias in
the way you interpret responses

16.

Slide 10.16
Data quality (Bias)
Second type is interviewee or response bias. This type of
bias may be caused by perceptions about the interviewer, or in
relation to perceived interviewer bias.
However, this type of bias is not necessarily a perception
related to the interviewer. Taking part in an interview is an
intrusive process.
The interviewee may, in principle, be willing to participate but
may be sensitive to the unstructured exploration of certain
themes.
Interviewees may choose not to discuss an aspect
of the topic that you wish to explore, because this would lead
to probing questions that would intrude on sensitive information

17.

Slide 10.17
Data quality (Bias)
There is also an issue about the generalizability of the findings
from qualitatively based interview studies, although the validity
of such studies is not raised as an issue.
The high level of validity that is possible in relation to nonstandardized (qualitative) interviews conducted carefully is due
to the questions being able to be clarified, meanings of
responses probed and topics discussed from a variety of
angles.

18.

Slide 10.18
Data quality (Bias)
However, qualitative research using semi-structured or in-
depth interviews cannot be used to make statistical
generalizations about the entire population (whatever
this may be in the context of the research topic) where this is
based on a small and unrepresentative number of cases.

19.

Slide 10.19
Data quality (Bias)
One response to the issue of reliability is that the findings
derived from using non-standardized research methods are not
necessarily intended to be repeatable since they reflect reality
at the time they were collected, in a situation which may be
subject to change
The value of using non-standardized interviews is derived from
the flexibility that you may use to explore the complexity of the
topic.
Therefore, an attempt to ensure that qualitative, nonstandardized research could be replicated by other
researchers would not be realistic or feasible without
undermining the strength of this type of research.

20.

Slide 10.20
Data quality (2)
The importance of preparation – the 5 Ps
‘Prior planning prevents poor performance’
Saunders et al. (2009)

21.

Slide 10.21
Interview preparation (1)
Associated issues
Interviewer’s level of knowledge
Level of information supplied to interviewees
Creating an interview guide
Appropriateness of location

22.

Slide 10.22
The importance of preparation – the 5 Ps
It is critical that you plan precisely how you
are going to demonstrate your credibility
and obtain the confidence of the interviewees.

23.

Slide 10.23
The importance of preparation – the 5 Ps
1. Level of knowledge You need to be knowledgeable
about the research topic and organizational context in which
the interview is to take place.
In addition to your literature review, a prior search in your
university library may reveal journal articles written by senior
employees.
There may also be other material about the organization to be
found on the Internet, in the 'trade' press and the quality
newspapers.
It may also be appropriate to look at company reports or
financial data relating to the organization.
The ability to draw on this type of information in the interview
would demonstrate your credibility, assess the accuracy of
responses and encourage the interviewee to offer a more
detailed account of the topic.

24.

Slide 10.24
The importance of preparation – the 5 Ps
2. Level of information supplied to the interviewee
Credibility may also be promoted through the supply of
relevant information to participants before the interview.
Providing participants with a list of the interview themes before
the event, should help promote validity and reliability by
enabling the interviewee to consider the information being
requested and to assemble supporting organizational
documentation from their files.

25.

Slide 10.25
The importance of preparation – the 5 Ps
3. Creating an Interview Guide
should start with a set of themes that reflect the variables being
studied, or at least one or more general questions related to
your research topic. These themes can be incorporated into
your interview guide (Box 10.6).
This guide lists topics that you intend to cover in the interview
along with initial question and probes that may be used to
follow up initial responses and obtain greater detail from the
participants
When creating your guide, you need to ensure that the order of
questions is likely to be logical and the language you use will
be comprehensible.
Using your guide, you will be able to develop research themes
through the non-standardized interviews to see whether you
can identify and test relationships between those themes.

26.

Slide 10.26
The importance of preparation – the 5 Ps
Level of information supplied to the interviewee:
Key Themes and Interview Guide

27.

Slide 10.27
How To: Prepare to ask questions– the 5 Ps

28.

Slide 10.28
The importance of preparation – the 5 Ps
4. Appropriateness of location: The place where you
conduct your interviews may influence the data you collect.
You should choose the location with regard to your own
personal safety.
It is also important to assess the impact that the location will
have upon your participants and the responses they are likely
to give.
You should choose a location convenient for your participants,
where they will feel comfortable and where the interview is
unlikely to be disturbed
Finally, choose a place that is quiet so that outside noise will
not reduce the quality of your audio-recording of the interview.

29.

Slide 10.29
Interview preparation (1)
Associated issues
Researcher’s appearance – dress code
Shaping the interview - opening comments
Approach to questioning – clarity and reducing bias
Use of critical incident technique

30.

Slide 10.30
Shaping the interview - opening comments;
Approach to questioning - clarity and reducing bias

31.

Slide 10.31
Interview preparation (2)
Associated issues
Appropriate interviewer behavior- verbal and non-verbal
Attentive listening skills and testing understanding
Approaches to data recording - notes and tape-recording
Cultural differences and bias

32.

Slide 10.32
Interview preparation (3)

33.

Slide 10.33
Interviewing competence (1)
Approaches to questioning
Open questions
Probing questions
Specific and closed questions

34.

Slide 10.34
Interviewing competence (2)
Advantages and disadvantages of audiorecording interviews
Saunders et al. (2009)
Table 10.3 Advantages and disadvantages of audio-recording the interview

35.

Slide 10.35
Interviewing competence (3)
Other issues to consider
Dealing with difficult participants –Table 10.2
Managing resources – logistics and time
Obtaining participants’ permission for interview
records (written and taped)

36.

Slide 10.36
Interviewing competence (4)
Additional forms of interviews:
Group interviews
Focus groups
Telephone interviews
Internet and intra-net mediated interviews

37.

Slide 10.37
Interviewing competence (5)
Forms of electronic interviews
Saunders et al. (2009)
Figure 10.2 Forms of electronic interviews

38.

Slide 10.38
Summary: Chapter 10
Use of non-standard (qualitative) interviews
should generate rich and detailed data
Different types of interview are useful for
different research purposes
Qualitative interviews are generally categorised
as in-depth (unstructured) and semi-structured
Research design may incorporate more than one
type of interview

39.

Slide 10.39
Summary: Chapter 10
Using qualitative interviews is related to the
research strategy and data collection questions
Establishing personal contact with subjects and the
length of time required are significant factors
Data quality issues, interviewer competence and
resource management are important
considerations
Face-to-face (individual, group and focus group)
and electronic interviews can all be advantageous