506 Appendix A Competent Interviewingsolicited from the interviewee, which then prompts
reactions from the interviewer, and it just keeps
building from there. To have the most effective and
most successful interview possible, whether you’re
the interviewer or interviewee, you need to consider
question type, impact, and sequence.Types of Questions
The path of the interview is largely determined
by the types of questions asked. Questions vary in
two distinct ways: the amount of freedom the re-
spondent has and how the questions relate to what
has happened in the course of the interview.
First, questions vary in terms of how much
leeway the interviewee has in generating responses.
An open question gives the interviewee great
freedom in terms of how to respond. Questions
like “What’s it like being a student here?” and “What issues will influence
your vote in this election?” allow the interviewee to determine the amount and
depth of information provided. Interviewers often ask open questions when
the interviewee knows more about a topic than the interviewer does or to help
the interviewee relax (there is no “correct” answer, so no answer is wrong).
In other situations, the interviewer will want a more direct answer. Closed
questions give less freedom to the interviewee by limiting answers to specific
choices. For example, an interviewer conducting a survey of student attitudes
toward parking on campus might ask “Do you usually arrive on campus in the
morning, afternoon, or evening?” or “Do you use the parking structure or nearby
lots?” The simplest form of a closed question is the bipolar question, for which
there are only two possible responses, “yes” and “no” (“Do you normally eat
breakfast?” “Do you own a car?” “Did you vote in the last election?”). To allow
for more variation in their answers, interviewees can be asked to respond to a
scale, as with the question “How would you rate parking availability on campus?”1 2 3 4 5
Very poor Poor Adequate Good Excellent
Questions also vary in terms of how they relate to what has happened so
far in the interview. Primary questions introduce new topics; secondary ques-
tions seek clarification or elaboration of primary question responses. Thus, if
interviewing an older family member, you might open by asking “What can you
tell me about my family history?” This primary question might then be followed
by a number of secondary questions, such as “How did my grandparents meet?”
and “How did they deal with their parents’ disapproval of their marriage?” Some
of the more common forms of secondary questions are illustrated in Table A.2.Question Impact
In addition to considering question type, interviewers must also consider that the
way in which a question is constructed can directly influence the interviewee’sPROSPECTIVE
STUDENTS on a campus
tour should ask their stu-
dent guides open questions
(“What’s the social scene
like?”) and closed questions
(“Is the dining hall open on
the weekends?”) to figure
out what student life is really
like. AP Photo/The News-Gazette,
Robin Scholz1 18_OHA_45766_App_A_498_529.indd 506 8 OHA 45766 _AppA 498 _ 529 .indd 506 13/10/14 5:38 PM 13 / 10 / 14 5 : 38 PM