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How to … conduct a successful ‘in-depth’ interview | |||||||
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An ‘in-depth’ interview can be an excellent way of exploring culture at first hand and a wonderful intercultural experience in itself. From liceum-aged students, and from intermediate level upwards, it can be encouraged whenever an opportunity arises. Such an interview will remain in the minds of students long after it has served its original purpose, and as an event requiring the living use of authentic language it is very good for motivation.
For the teacher they can provide a source of classroom material, while at college level they are a powerful research technique and can be used in cultural studies and ethnographic investigations
Two interviews in action:
What is an ‘in-depth’ interview? Why use ‘in-depth’ interviews? How to do an ‘in-depth’ interview - stage-by-stage guidelines
What is an ‘in-depth’ interview? An ‘in-depth’ interview is one where time is spent with an interviewee beyond the collection of information, usually discussing experience as well as knowledge. In contrast to briefer interviews they usually
Although led by the interviewer they are much more like a conversation. The turning up of something unexpected, yet valuable, influencing the interview’s direction in a sense is defining. Why use ‘in-depth’ interviews?‘In-depth’ interviews have tremendous potential to achieve a variety of classroom goals while providing a very rich cultural and linguistic experience for the learner (see Making the most of an ‘in-depth’ interview). They need care to do well but the rewards are considerable. At college level it is an important technique to learn in itself and get experience of for use in research or future teaching.
Is an ‘in-depth’ interview a good idea? If an opportunity presents itself with an English-speaking foreigner the answer undoubtedly is ‘Yes’. Coming by original cultural ‘material’ is rare enough, and to have an opportunity to actively interact with it gives such an interview unique value. If the interviewee can come to the school it gives a focus to the visit, involves your students in the process, and leaves material after. An ‘in-depth’ interview is also a good idea if you are going out with your students on a visit or during a trip to another country. They may well be valuable with a Polish native to be presented later in English.
Preparation is vital, and if possible get the active involvement of the interviewee. Know what you want to get from the interview (e.g. classroom materials). In school make it an event; involve as many students as you can, each using English with the visitor if possible - it then becomes the centre of a larger visit and this will add considerably to its value (the opportunities available are discussed in Making the most of an ‘in-depth’ interview). Well-prepared, the results can be displayed and any recording used in future years (e.g. a listening activity) as well as being a model for further interviews.
It can be a wonderful intercultural experience, and through it raise intercultural and language awareness and develop their skills, as well as understanding the cultural issues being investigated. Your interview will be crossing cultural boundaries which means a cultural exchange is taking place requiring the accurate communication of meaning. This is challenge and should be an explicit goal of all such interviews.
How to do an ‘in-depth’ interview - stage-by-stage guidelinesThe ‘in-depth’ interview process has been divided into four stages: Ø Stage one: objectives and finding an intervieweeØ Stage two: what to do before - the pre-interviewØ Stage three: the interview Ø Stage four: what to do after - the post-interview
These stages are used as the basis for the general ‘In-depth’ interviews - a checklist where there is a set of guidelines under the headings Dos, Don’ts and Have you thought of …? In Making the most of an ‘in-depth’ interview their potential is developed for a wide variety of learning outcomes and involving the whole of a school class, and not only from the interview itself but the pre- and post-interview stages as well. Throughout both you will find quotes from real interview experience.
Although we have tried to present some ideal guidelines here is an interviewers’ account of the reality - The interviewers’ story - with which to compare the actual interviews themselves (on the theme of kosher food) with Henryk Halkowski and Alberto Mizrahi. For a fully-described real instance of a visit at Politechnika Czêstochowska (with all the difficulties) - see An in-coming visit as an intercultural opportunity.
For those who want an amusing example of how perhaps not to handle an interview see Bridget Jones: the edge of reason by Helen Fielding (pp 170-178) for one with Colin Firth.
Models, links and referencesOral history makes great use of ‘in-depth’ interviews and provides excellent examples of this - for general discussion see Heritage Websites in our Heritage edition, while excellent advice on methods and especially equipment is given by the Oral History Society and at the BBC.
Good models of interviews We have a number of examples of well-conducted, well-presented interviews on our pages: · For examples of in-depth audio interviews: o UK Food Interviews - a series of interviews with UK natives
Resource point booksMost of the books mentioned below can be found in the British Studies Resource Points found in teaching colleges and British Council libraries throughout Poland Ø Bell, J 1993 (2nd ed) Doing your research project Open University (pp 91-101) Ø King, A et al. 1998 Crossing Cultures British Council, Romania (pp 145-6) Ø McNeill, P Research methods Routledge 1990
For those who wish to use ‘in-depth’ interviews in a more academically disciplined way, with an emphasis on their investigatory value and the drawing of substantive cultural conclusions
Ø Roberts, C et al. 2001 Language Learners as Ethnographers OUP (pp 141-145)
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