SUMMARY 3: INSTRUMENTATION II- Interviews, Checklists, and Observations

Interviews
Definition: Interview is a major technique in gathering information used by qualitative researchers. It is in a form of data collection in which individuals or groups are questioned orally.
Purposes: to find out how the participants in a qualitative study think and feel about something. Also, to provide a check on the researcher's observations.

Types of Interview:

1. Structured- A formal type of interview, in which the researcher asks, in order, a set of predetermined questions.
2. Semi-structured - A structured interview, combined with open-ended questions.
3. Informal -  Less-structured forms of interview, usually conducted by qualitative researchers. They do not involve any specific type or sequence of questioning, but resemble more the give-and-take of a casual conversation.
4. Retrospective -  A form of interview in which the researcher tries to get a respondent to reconstruct past experiences.

Observation
Definition: Observation is one of favoured approaches, where more accurate indication of activities would probably be obtained by observing while discussions take place.

There are four roles that an observer can play in a qualitative research study, ranging from:

1. Complete participant to
2. Participant-as-observer to
3. Observer-as-participant to
4. Complete observer