interviews

interview

participant gives a verbal response to questions which are then recorded and analysed by the interviewer/researcher

structured interview

interviewer has a pre-determined set of questions that are asked in a fixed order

semi structured interview

begins with a general aim and some pre-determined questions but subsequent questions are developed based on the answers given by the participant

unstructured interview

only the first questions is pre-determined, all following questions are determined by the answers of the interviewee

structured interview strength

standardised format decreases the difference between interviewers and easy to replicate: increases reliability

structured interview weakness

not flexible: insightful questions cannot be asked, must stick to the fixed schedule. interesting information that is relevant may be overlooked

semi-structured interview strength

more informal and conversational than structured. interviewees feel more comfortable -> able to keep verbal responses on topic

semi-structured interview weakness

lack standardised procedure -> less reliable than structured interview questions may have been added/changed. lack of external reliability