Interviewing

Interviewing has played a significant role in evaluation methodologies. From the question a doctor might pose a patient to the widespread use of opinion polling in social research, people have relied on question and answer exchanges to gather and share information, opinions, feelings, ideas, and experiences. Interviewing in the context of evaluation is a form of instrumentation used in both quantitative and qualitative study designs to collect data. Interviewing can occur through the mail, over the telephone, in person, or in groups. Most evaluation designs employ several types of interviews.

Interviews are often defined as being either structured or unstructured. However, all interviews have structure in that they involve purposeful thinking on the part of the interviewer and a desired outcome from the exchange. Whether to ...