18 Interview

Interviewing is the meeting of two people for the purpose of exchanging information and ideas through questions and responses. This exchange involves communication and leads to joint understanding about a particular topic.

The purpose of interviewing is to discover what is on/in someone’s mind, not to put ideas in the person’s mind. The type of questions that the one asks in an interview is instrumental in determining the value of data collected in interviews. Care must be taken not to lead the person being interviewed in a particular direction. Consequently, the quality of information gained in an interview is based very much on the skills of the interviewer. Interviewers must proceed with the assumption that the knowledge and experience of the person being interviewed is of value, and it is the interviewer’s job to uncover that knowledge and experience.