Interview method of psychology
- 1. INTERVIEW METHOD OF PSYCHOLOGY Angel Sophia S V Department of Mathematics INTERVIEW METHOD The word "interview"refers to a one-on-oneconversation with one person acting in the role of the interviewer and theother in the role of the interviewee In their words…. P.V. Young: Interview is a scientific method through which a person enters into the life of a stranger. Good & Hatt: Interview is a process of social interaction between interviewer and interviewee. Kerlinger: A face to face interpersonal situation in which one ask questions fromthe other to get answer abouta social problem. What is an interviewmethod? • An interview is a method of conversation with a specified purpose. • Psychologists uses interview method in order to gain information in an efficient and streamlined manner. • Oldest and most widely used method • The conducting way depends on the objectives or goals in question.
- 2. • Investigateissues in an in depth way • Discover how individuals think and feel abouta topic and why they hold certain opinions. Points shouldbe notedwhile having an interview…. • Researchers can ask different types of questions which in turn generate different types of data. • Interviews willbe recorded by the researcher and the data written up as a transcript(a written accountof interview questions and answers) which can be analyzed at a later date. • The interviewer must ensureto provide special carewhen interviewing vulnerable groups, such as the children. • The language the interviewer uses should be appropriate. The interviewer effect • Because an interview is a socialinteraction the appearance or behavior of the interviewer may influence the answers of the respondent. • The gender, ethnicity, body language, age, and socialstatus of the interviewer can create an interviewer effect. For example : If a female interviewer interviews a male interviewee he will try to keep his impression good and this may leads to interviewer effect. Merits of interview Useful to obtain detailed information about personalfeelings, perceptions and opinions Usually achieve a high responserate Respondents'own words arerecorded
- 3. Interviewees arenot influenced by others Enable teacher to tackle everyday classroomproblems Superior data collecting device Creates friendly atmosphere Demerits of interview This method is very time-consuming for setting up, interviewing, transcribing, analyzing, feedback, reporting Itcan be costly Differentinterviewers may understand and transcribeinterviews in different ways. Preplanning is important .i.e.)to know who you are going to interview, when and where. Itis subjectiveand artificial Interpretation is difficult. Types of interview structured interview semi-structured interview unstructured interview I) Definitionof structuredinterview A structuredinterview is a type of interview in which the interviewer asks a particular set of predeterminedquestions. In structured interviews, questions are planned and created in advance, which means that all candidates are asked the same questions in the same order.
- 4. Ituses highly systematizedtechniques of recording. Itis a method of quantitative research used for the purposeof the survey. StructuredInterview…. Structured Interview is also known as, Formal interview Patterned interview. Planned interview. Standardized interviews Steps of structuredinterview a) Develop and write down interview questions b) Develop and write down a scale that will be used to gradecandidates answers. c) Print out your questions and bring them with you to the interview site. d) Take detailed notes of each candidate’s answers. e) Grade your candidate’s answers according to previously determined scale. Structuredinterviewquestions Structured interview questions can be open-ended or closed-ended. Closed-ended questions ask respondents for specific pieces of information, and often require the respondentto choosefroma list of given alternatives. E.g. : 'Are you currently taking any drugs ?‘ Here, the respondentcan either answer by saying yes or no. Open-ended questions arethose that can be answered in many ways and allow the respondentto give elaborate, thoughtful answers.
- 5. E.g. : ‘Tell about yourself’ Here, the respondentcan answer thoughtfully. Advantages of structuredinterview Since in structured interviews all the candidates are asked the same questions, it’s easy to compare their answers We can evaluate candidates in a most objective and fair way Structured interviews are more legally defensible Can reach a large sample Can ensurequestions are fully understood. There is a pre-developed systemor guide to check the results. These are easy to replicate, as a fixed set of closed questions are used. It is easy to test for reliability Can take place within a short amount of time. Allows generalization of results Disadvantages of structuredinterview Structureinterviews are not flexible. This means new questions cannot be asked during the interview The answers fromstructured interviews lack detail Restrictive questioning leads to restrictive answers Structured interviews are harder and more complicated to develop. Before giving questions we haveto write them, test them and make sure interviewers stick to them. Interview questions may be leaking out
- 6. The method seem a bit cold and impersonalized Itis harder to providean excellent candidate experience II) Definitionof semi-structuredinterview A semi-structuredinterview is a type of interview in which the interviewer asks only a few predeterminedquestions whilethe restof the questions are not planned in advance. In semi-structured interviews, some questionsare predetermined and asked all candidates, while others arise spontaneously in a free-flowing conversation. Open –ended questions with answers solicited in writing- typically in the for of shortessays Respondents are free towrite as much as or as little as they choose Ithas a general set of questions but the interviewflows like conversation and topics are covered as they come up. Semi-structuredinterview…. Semi-structured interviews arealso known as: # Moderately structured interviews # Hybrid interviews # Combined interviews Steps of Semi-structuredinterview a) Write down most important questions thatyou want to ask all the candidates.
- 7. b) Develop a few conversationstartersto explore specific interesting points fromyour candidate’s resume. c) Depending on your candidates'answers, ask followupquestions to gain a more in-depth understanding of their qualifications and motivation. d) Follow the natural flow of conversation and feel free toexplore Advantages of semi-structuredinterview Itcan secureobjective comparison of candidates Itprovidea more personalized and spontaneous approach thatallows exploration of interesting points in a specific candidate. Less proneto interviewer’s bias. More information can be explored. Needed data is collected. Interviewer and the interviewee create the interview together. Flexibility to follow up interviewee’s responses ad interests. Providemuch more detailed information. Providemore relaxed atmosphereto collect data. Disadvantages of semi-structuredinterview • Spontaneous questioning makes answers difficultto evaluate • The outcome largely depend on the skill of the interviewer • The process is highly time consuming • Itis very expensive • Sees to be un reliable
- 8. • Difficult to analyzethe relevance of answers • Some of the information may not be revealed • Needs preparation • Semi-structured interviews areless objective • legally harder to defend. III) Definitionof unstructuredinterview • An unstructuredinterview is a type of interview in which the interviewer asks questions which arenot preparedinadvance. • In unstructured interviews, questions arisespontaneously in a free- flowing conversation, which means that different candidates are asked different questions. • As the interview is unplanned, it has an informal approach wherea friendly conversation takes place between the interviewer and interviewee. • They will contain open-ended questions that can be asked in any order. Unstructuredinterview…. Discovery interviews Guided conservation Informalinterviews Casualinterviews Free-flowing interviews
- 9. Steps of unstructuredinterview Keep in mind interview’s purpose and thegeneral experiences and qualities you are looking to asses in candidates. The goal is to gather and record important information about candidates. Make sure you have a focus Be flexible to proceed based on the candidate’s responses. Explore specific interesting points Advantages of unstructuredinterview The main advantageof an unstructured interview is their personalized approach. They seem much more casualand help candidates relax and feel more comfortable during the interview. Observing directbehavior Allows control of extraneous variable Reliability of results by repetitive study Try to establish rapportad trust Gently guide discussion towards goal Explorative and qualitative studies They have increased validity Disadvantages of unstructuredinterview • Time consuming • Employing and training interviewers is expensive • Control can effect behavior
- 10. • Not possibleto know intentions behind the behavior • Unable to producedata a whole • Information cannotbe compared • Analysis will be difficult ComparisonChart Structured interview Unstructured interview predetermined questions are prepared by the interviewer in advance. the questions to be asked to the respondents arenot set in advance. Quantitative Qualitative Closed-ended questions Open-ended questions To validate results, when the number of candidates is quite large. To probe personaldetails of the candidate, so as to judge if he is the right person for the job. Research type is descriptive Research type is exploratory same set of questions areput to all the candidates different questions are put to different candidates Structured interviews are used by positivists unstructured interview is used by interpretivists In a structured interview, the characteristics evaluated are explicit in an unstructured interview, the characteristics evaluated are implicit.