Critical Points to Address for This Section
In this section clearly describe exactly how you will collect data and what will be col-
lected. Provide a step-by-step account of the data collection process so that anyone could
replicate your study. Explain what data will be collected and why it is being collected, and
then explain how you will collect it.
Explain where the interviews will be held, and discuss issues of confidentiality that might
be impacted by the setting. The research setting should be a place that provides a quiet
confidential place to conduct the interviews. For example, libraries often have confer-
ence rooms that can be used at no cost, whereas it is not a good idea to hold an interview
at Starbucks. If you are conducting your research within your participants’ work setting,
you will need to consider how you will protect the anonymity of your participants.
Also, if relevant, discuss when the interviews will be held. Generally, make certain that
the interviews are held at a convenient time for your participants.
If you are videotaping or audiotaping your interviews, you must discuss this. In addition,
this must be noted in the informed consent form.
If you will be using incentives to solicit participants, discuss this and explain what the
incentive is and justify why you are using it. It is usually not a good idea to offer a cash
reward for participation. If you offer too little, the incentive might not be effective. If you
(Cont.)
In semi-structured interviews, the researcher has a set of questions but can deviate from the
questions by asking additional questions to get clarification for any answers. Unstructured
interviews are more like a conversation. The researcher might start the interview by saying,
“Tell me about. . . .” Additional questions flow from responses to the previous questions. When
conducting a structured interview, the researcher does not deviate from the interview script.
You can conduct interviews in several different ways. You can conduct semi-structured inter-
views with an individual or a focus group. Interviews can be conducted in person, via tele-
phone, via online sites such as SurveyMonkey, by using Skype, or through email. In-person
interviews are preferred because they give you the opportunity to observe each participant
and to make notes regarding body language or how the person reacts to questions. But some-
times in-person interviews are not possible because of constraints caused by distance and
cost. The telephone interview does not give you the opportunity to observe the participants,
but you can be aware of changes in voice and make note of this. Using email or online sites can
be convenient, but they do not allow you to see or hear the participants. In addition, when you
use email or SurveyMonkey you run the risk of someone other than the intended participant
answering your questions.
Gathering documents and artifacts relevant to the phenomenon being studied will provide
additional information that you can use to supplement the data gathered from interviews.
Data such as newspaper accounts, pictures, audio tapes, or video tapes can provide good
sources of information regarding the phenomenon. Archival data can also provide valuable
information. If you use archival data, remember that you probably must get permission to
access it unless it is in the public domain.
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