Interviewing As Qualitative Research: A Guide for Researchers in Education and the Social Sciences

About the Book

This popular text, now in its fifth edition, provides step-by-step guidance for new and experienced researchers who want to use interviewing as a research method. This user-friendly guide explains the rationale for interviewing and the complexity of selecting interview participants, important interviewing techniques, and how to work with the results of interviews. Appropriate for individual and classroom use, this expanded edition includes: a revised assessment of the utility of Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis systems; contributions by Julie Simpson, the Director of Research Integrity Services at the University of New Hampshire, about preparing research for local Institutional Review Boards; and guidance for obtaining informed consent when using technology to interview, when interviewing abroad, and when hoping to include children as participants.

Book Features:

• Principles and methods that can be adapted to a range of interviewing approaches.
• A clear and inviting presentation appropriate for both individual use and for classes.
• Ideas to help readers analyze and improve their own approach, as well as suggestions for group practice.
• An interviewing technique that stresses listening, with guidance for avoiding leading questions.
• Examples of doctorial students’ research demonstrating that interviewing can deal with life and death issues, as well as everyday life.
• Updated references to help readers deepen their understanding of interviewing as qualitative research.

Table of Contents:

• Contents
• Preface vii
• Acknowledgments xi
• Introduction: How I Came to Interviewing 1
• 1. Why Interview? 7
• The Purpose of Interviewing 9
• Interviewing: “The” Method or “A” Method? 9
• Why Not Interview? 11
• Conclusion 13
• 2. A Structure for In-Depth, Phenomenological Interviewing 14
• What Makes Interviewing Phenomenological and Why Does It Matter? 16
• Phenomenological Theme One: The Temporal and Transitory Nature of Human Experience 16
• Phenomenological Theme Two: Whose Understanding Is It? Subjective Understanding 17
• Phenomenological Theme Three: Lived Experience as the Foundation of “Phenomena” 18
• Phenomenological Theme Four: The Emphasis on Meaning and Meaning in Context 19
• How Do These Phenomenological Themes Matter? 20
• The Three-Interview Series 21
• Respect the Structure 24
• Alternatives to the Structure and Process 25
• Length of Interviews 26
• Spacing of Interviews 27
• Whose Meaning Is It? Validity and Reliability 27
• Experience the Process Yourself 32
• 3. Proposing Research: From Mind to Paper to Action 33
• Research Proposals as Rites of Passage 33
• Commitment 34
• From Thought to Language 35
• What Is to Be Done? 35
• Questions to Structure the Proposal 36
• Rationale 40
• Working with the Material 41
• Piloting Your Work 43
• Conclusion 43
• 4. Establishing Access to, Making Contact with, and Selecting Participants 4
• The Perils of Easy Access 45
• Access Through Formal Gatekeepers 48
• Informal Gatekeepers 49
• Accessing Children 50
• Access and Hierarchy 52
• Making Contact 52
• Make a Contact Visit in Person 53
• Building the Participant Pool 54
• Some Logistical Considerations 55
• Selecting Participants 56
• Snares to Avoid in the Selection Process 59
• How Many Participants Are Enough? 60
• 5. The Path to Institutional Review Boards and Informed Consent  62
• The Belmont Report 62
• The Establishment of Local Institutional Review Boards 63
• The Informed Consent Document 65
• Seven Key Sections of an Informed Consent Document 66
• 1. What, How Long, How, to What End, and for Whom? 67
• 2. Risks, Discomforts, and Vulnerability 68
• 3. The Rights of the Participant 68
• 4. Possible Benefits 73
• 5. Confidentiality of Records 73
• 6. Dissemination 76
• 7. Contact Information and Copies of the Document 77
• Special Conditions for Children  78
• Informed Consent When Using Technology to Interview 79
• Informed Consent When Interviewing Abroad 80
• The Complexities of Affirming the IRB Review Process and Informed Consent 82
• 6. Technique Isn’t Everything, But It Is a Lot 85
• Listen More, Talk Less 85
• Follow Up on What the Participant Says 88
• Listen More, Talk Less, and Ask Real Questions 91
• Follow Up, but Don’t Interrupt 92
• Two Favorite Approaches 93
• Ask Participants to Reconstruct, Not to Remember 94
• Keep Participants Focused and Ask for Concrete Details 95
• Do Not Take the Ebbs and Flows of Interviewing Too Personally 95
• Limit Your Own Interaction 96
• Explore Laughter 96
• Follow Your Hunches 97
• Use an Interview Guide Cautiously 98
• Tolerate Silence 99
• Conclusion 100
• 7. Interviewing as a Relationship 101
• Interviewing as an “I–Thou” Relationship 101
• Rapport 102
• Social Group Identities and the Interviewing Relationship 104
• Distinguish Among Private, Personal, and Public Experiences 113
• Avoid a Therapeutic Relationship 114
• Reciprocity 116
• Equity 116
• Interviewing Online or by Telephone, and the Relationship Between Participant and Interviewer 118
• 8. Analyzing, Interpreting, and Sharing Interview Material 121
• Managing the Data 121
• Keeping Interviewing and Analysis Separate: What to Do Between Interviews 122
• Recording Interviews 123
• Transcribing Interviews 124
• Studying, Reducing, and Analyzing the Text 125
• Sharing Interview Data: Profiles and Themes 127
• Making and Analyzing Thematic Connections 133
• Interpreting the Material 136
• Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis (CAQDAS) 138
• Cautions Regarding CAQDAS 140
• 9. The Ethics of Doing Good Work 147
• Doing Good Work 147
• The Reciprocity Implicit in Treating Participants with Dignity 150
• Conclusion 151
• Appendix: Two Profiles 153
• Nanda: A Cambodian Survivor of the Pol Pot Era 153
• Betty: A Long-Time Day Care Provider 160
• References 164
• Index 182
• About the Author 196

About the Author :
Irving Seidman is professor emeritus at the College of Education, University of Massachusetts Amherst. He offers workshops and short courses and communicates with individual researchers who have questions about the methods described in this book.

Review :
“For four editions, readers have turned to Interviewing as Qualitative Research for its practical and straight-forward presentation of a powerful interviewing model. With updated examples, new sections on ethics, and much more, this new edition remains a must-read for any graduate student or experienced researcher interested in the art of qualitative interviewing.”- Nancy Dana, University of Florida;

Praise for Previous Editions!

“A comprehensive perspective of the nature of qualitative inquiry and the art of interviewing.”- Theory and Research in Social Education;

“A good starting point for training new researchers.”- The Journal of Higher Education;

""I found Seidman’s guide coherent and relevant to its area of contribution and I look forward to consulting this text in the future not only in my work but also when teaching qualitative research methods.""- Qualitative Research;

""Seidman fulfills the book's stated purpose of providing a practical guide for graduate students and early career scholars who are interested in interview research...His writing is clear and concise, avoiding jargon and unnecessarily complex concepts ""- The Journal of Educational Research