Problem:
Ordinary conversation and qualitative interviewing differ fundamentally in purpose and structure. As Rubin and Rubin (2012) emphasize, ordinary conversations prioritize sociability and relationship maintenance, whereas qualitative interviews are intentional, goal-directed interactions designed to generate data relevant to a research question. Across the two Walden (2016) interviewing technique videos, this distinction became evident in how interviewers either succeeded or struggled to maintain a responsive interviewing stance. In the more effective interview, the interviewer established a conversational partnership by using open-ended questions, neutral prompts, and active listening behaviors such as minimal encouragers and reflective paraphrasing. These practices aligned with the responsive interview model, which frames the interview as an extended conversation guided by the participant's meanings rather than the interviewer's assumptions (Rubin & Rubin, 2012). The interviewer demonstrated flexibility by following emergent topics while still keeping the discussion anchored to the study's purpose, illustrating how structure and responsiveness can coexist.
In contrast, the less effective interview revealed several practices to avoid. At multiple points, the interviewer shifted prematurely into interpretation, asked leading questions, and interrupted the participant's narrative flow. As Dr. Crawford cautioned in the videos, conflating observation with interpretation risks imposing the researcher's framework onto the participant's experience (Walden University, 2016). These issues could have been mitigated by relying more heavily on probes designed to elicit clarification and depth rather than confirmation. Rubin and Rubin (2012) stress that follow-up questions should emerge from what the participant has said, not from what the interviewer expects to hear. Additionally, moments of interviewer overtalk reduced opportunities for rich data, underscoring the importance of strategic silence and patience in qualitative interviewing.
This viewing experience will directly inform my approach to the upcoming interviewing assignment by reinforcing the importance of preparation paired with adaptability. I plan to design main questions and probes in advance while remaining attentive to participants' language, emotions, and meanings during the interview process. I will also be more deliberate in separating descriptive field notes from analytic interpretations, allowing analysis to occur after data collection rather than during the interview itself. Overall, the videos and course readings clarified that effective qualitative interviewing is less about controlling the interaction and more about cultivating a respectful, responsive relationship that enables participants to share their perspectives in depth, thereby producing credible and meaningful qualitative data (Rubin & Rubin, 2012; Walden University, 2016). Need Assignment Help?
References:
Rubin, H. J., & Rubin, I. S. (2012). Qualitative interviewing: The art of hearing data (3rd ed.). Sage Publications.
Walden University, LLC. (Producer). (2016). Doctoral research: Interviewing techniques, part one [Video]. Author.
Walden University, LLC. (Producer). (2016). Doctoral research: Interviewing techniques, part two [Video]. Author.
Walden University, LLC. (Producer). (2016). First cycle coding: Structural coding [Video]. Author.
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