LIVING SOURCES INTERVIEWS AND SURVEYS Arranging Interviews Look

LIVING SOURCES: INTERVIEWS AND SURVEYS

Arranging Interviews Look for experts in the topic your are researching. You can find experts by: Checking your sources. Ask the author or cited authors for an interview. Checking the phone book. Look for business owners in the field you’re researching. Ask friends and family who are experts. Ask university faculty who are experts. Check the Encyclopedia of Associations. Check the internet.

Arranging Interviews You can have interviews with nonexperts who have been affected by your topic as well. Somebody who would be considered a nonexpert would be a soldier who has experienced the traumas of war in Iraq, but who has not published a scholarly article about it.

Arranging Interviews Making Contact When contacting a subject for an interview, be sure to state your name and describe clearly and briefly the topic of your research. You may also want to use a little bit of flattery by saying “Your expert input can be very helpful for me” in order to make your subject more willing to participate in your interview. Be sure to ask them when and where they are most comfortable conducting an interview.

Arranging Interviews What type of interview? Personal (face-to-face) By phone By instant messager By email By mail A personal interview is the most preferred, as then you can listen to your subject, but also see all of their gestures, and they can see yours. This will often make the both the subject and the interviewer more comfortable.

Arranging Interviews Conducting Interviews What questions will you ask? �Have a list prepared. Make sure that your questions are specific and relevant, and demonstrate that you are knowledgeable of the topic at hand. �Don’t be afraid to ask open-ended questions, but don’t ask too many, or else you may get very little feedback, or a flood of information. �Ask follow up questions to display that you are paying attention, and that your are interested in what they have to say. During the Interview… �Be ready to ignore all of your prepared questions. What the subject has to say on their own may be more pertinent. �Keep eye contact as much as possible. �Use a sound recorder and take written notes.

Arranging Interviews The email interview Never send too many questions at once. You don’t want to overwhelm your subject. Be patient, they may take all day to respond, so let them. The discussion board interview Do not ask a question that has already been thoroughly discussed. Look for the answer on that board before making your post. If a particular member of the board may be more promising than the board as a whole, then message them singly.

Planning Informal Surveys Pick an appropriate audience Determine whether you will ask Open ended questions �These can yield the best results, or no results at all. Directed questions �These will yield a result, but are limited in that they may not cover the whole range of possible answers. Multiple choice questions �These are the middle ground. Be sure to include and “unsure” or “neither. ”

Planning Informal Surveys Survey Design Never ask too many questions. 7 should be your maximum amount. Never ask loaded questions, else the audience may feel corralled into an answer. Avoid vague or unclear questions. Choose a mix of all 3 types of questions. “On a scale of 1 -10” is another good type of question, and is best combined with other questions.

Planning Informal Surveys Planning and conducting surveys Can be administered in person, on paper, via email, or by phone. If possible, conduct surveys in a neutral environment. Never time your surveys. Ask friends and professors for help with distributing your surveys. The internet can also be useful in distributing surveys (www. surveymonkey. com).