Seidman (2012) describes the root of in - depth interviewing as “an interest in understanding the lived experience of other people and the meaning they make of that experience.” The research method of interviewing has become a widely used technique for gathering different forms of methodical information about individuals in the social world. Interviews can be performed using one of two basic structures known as structured (closed questions) or unstructured (open questions). They can be framed in such a way by the researcher to retrieve the desired information from the respondent.
Open -ended Interviews is a qualitative research technique, which involves conducting interviews with either an individual or a small number of participants. The strategy is administered by the researcher to explore unique perspectives of participants on a particular topic area that is being investigated. For example, the researcher may ask participants about their experiences and expectations related to the topic area and their thoughts they have concerning the subject matter (Boyce and Neale 2006).
The appeal of this research method is that it can provide a detailed description from the respondent, whilst being cost effective for the researcher.
They allow individuals to communicate more than just standardised responses; it grants the researcher to see the true perspective of the interviewee and elicits more honest responses (Erickson & Kaplan 2000).
This is because open questions are phrased in a specific way that prevents simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers. An example of an open question is;
“What do you think about modern consumer culture?”
The researcher should ensure that the questions given are not ‘leading’ or ‘directing’ a...
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...ations of interviews as a research technique for studying television viewers. [online] Available from: http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/aeo9702.html [Accessed 17 April 2014].
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Interviews are very popular among most individuals especially researchers and scholars as they attempt to obtain information and data from an interviewee. However, there are many factors that influence the interview and which determines its success or failure. Often, the interviewer takes charge of the situation, and they have the sole responsibility of asking the questions while the interviewee provides an explanation or an answer to the question asked. As a result, an interview can be defined as a consultation or a discussion in person through which information and data are exchanged regarding a particular phenomenon event with the intention of establishing the interviewee’s position. It is easy to tell the mood and success of the interview
Understanding Television. Routledge Marris, P.; Thornham, S. (1996) Media Studies A reader. Edinburgh University Press. Neale, S; Krutnik, F. (1990) Popular Film and Television Comedy.
The unstructured interview approach, is an excellent way of creating multiple realities by giving the control of the interview over to the participants being interviewed and inviting them to tell their stories peaked by only an open-ended question. This method requires an environment in which the participants readily open up (Hill, 2001). To the credit of the current study, the interviewees did provide detailed accounts when interviewed. Additionally, as the stories are elicited by the participants own volition, they can cover a broad range of topics allows for unplanned comments and topics to come up that may have otherwise been left untouched in a more structured methodology (Kvale, 1983). However, because the responses are so gloriously open ended they are difficult to compare across different cases, and large amounts of irrelevant data must be sifted through in a time consuming manner. The benefit of qualitative phenomenological research is that while most scientific methods focus on what can be physically observed and quantitatively measured, this leaves a gapping hole in our ability to evaluate the human condition as most of what we do is determined by unseen forces in our psyches (Kvale, 1983). Therefore, open-ended phenomenology allows researchers to break the restrictive mold and attempt to discover insights into lived experience that would normally remain invisible to more traditional scientific study (Dale,
Qualitative research has gained significant recognition in the social science sphere with its holistic and purposeful pursuit in illuminating new areas for research lacking through quantitative research. (Carey, 2012; Cleary, Horsfall, & Hayter, 2014; Reeves, Kuper, & Hodges, 2008; Stevenson, Britten, Barry, Barber, & Bradley, 2000; Thyer, 2012). Qualitative research uses a variety of methodologies to explore an individual’s inner world, expand our understanding of a social phenomenon, and advance and discover new theories (Carey, 2012; Fortune, Reid, & Miller, 2013; Saldana, 2011; Thyer, 2012). Stevenson (2000) describes qualitative research as an in-depth investigation into the inner world of reasoning, decision-making and meaning. Furthermore, qualitative research takes into account the context and history that shapes presented information and ventures to understand participant’s experiences, thoughts, opinions, and feelings towards their social reality (Ivey, 2012; Nielsen, 2011; Thyer, 2012).
Qualitative research is an approach that attempts to situate an activity that locates the observer in the world by providing the study to occur in their natural setting and by attempting to make sense of, or interpret information (Denzin and Lincoln, 2005). A characteristic of qualitative research is to use a variety of empirical materials such as personal experience, interviews, and questionnaires. It is imperative to understand the task at hand and how to fully carry out the study when using a qualitative research approach in order to find out the information needed. One view of qualitative research is it involves examining individual’s experiences and documenting those experiences in detail (Jones, 2011). By documenting these observations the researcher is ensuring validity in his or her data and giving the correct creditability to those who participated in the study.
During the analysis phase, the interviewer uses several techniques to observe and analyze the subject's behavior “to determine the subject's truthful and deceptive behaviors or at least to determine those areas most sensitive to the subject and, therefore, in need of further attention through verbal inquiry” (Walters 3). Walters describes four fundamental stages of the interview: (1) orientation, (2) narration, (3) cross-examination, and (4) resolution (Id. at 25-29).
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It involves a structured or semi structured interview between the researcher and the subjects where by all elements of the study are discussed in
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Audience reception is a critical area of focus and research when approaching media audiences. It is dependent on the context of viewing, making media use and media consumption within the home environment and other contexts an interesting area of study. During the 1980s the emergence and increasing use of television increased media research into consumption in an everyday context, addressing the domestic, the family and its contribution to daily life. The importance can be displayed through the centrality of the position of the television and how the arrangement of a living room is commonly based around this. According to David Morely (1986) patterns of television consumption can only be understood through the context of ‘family leisure activity’ (Schroder, Drotner, Kline, Murray, 2003: 8). Therefore in order to discuss whether the aspects within the home environment and other contexts differ in terms of consumption, it is fundamental in exploring family viewing and the patterns of everyday life. With the rise of new media and constant technological developments, media within the home have succumbed to fragmentation. Televisions can be used as an illustration, traditionally located in communal areas to the shift of location in every bedroom, along with the vast amount of channels available, the different platforms we can watch it on and developments that allow catch-up. ‘Furthermore the set has acquired a range of accessories and attachments such as videocassette recorders (VCRs), personal computers and remote controls, which have significantly modified the way it is used (Lee, Becker and Schonbach, 1989: 71). The diverse amount of media platforms available both in and outside our homes has somewhat merged, making it difficult to d...