Real Communication An Introduction

510 Appendix A   Competent Interviewing

c “What other classical compositions are you comfortable play-

ing?” (specific)

c “How did you feel about taking piano lessons as a child?”

(general)

In the tunnel sequence, all of the questions are at one level.

The tunnel sequence works particularly well in polls and sur-

veys. A large tunnel would involve a series of broad, open-ended

questions. A small tunnel (the more common form) would ask a

series of narrow, closed questions, as in the following example:

c “Have you attended any multicultural events on campus?”

(specific)

c “Have you attended any sporting events?” (specific)

c “Have you attended any guest lectures?” (specific)

The Conclusion

Once the purpose of the interview has been achieved, the interaction should

come to a comfortable and satisfying close. This phase of the interview is es-

pecially important because it often determines the impression the interviewee

retains of the interview as a whole.

There are important norms involved when individuals take leave of each

other (Knapp, Hart, Friedrich, & Shulman, 1973), so in closing the interview,

the interviewer needs to employ both verbal and nonverbal strategies to serve

three important functions (Von Raffler-Engel, 1983):

c To conclude, or signal the end of the interview

c To summarize, or review the substantive conclusions produced by the

interview

c To support, or express satisfaction with the interaction and project what will

happen next

Table A.4 illustrates closing strategies to help you conclude, summarize, and

support. As these sample statements indicate, bringing the interview to a close

is largely the responsibility of the interviewer. In the next section, we’ll look at

how this and other responsibilities fall to the interviewer and interviewee.

Understanding Roles and

Responsibilities in Interviews

Jan, a thirty-year-old high school biology teacher, is seeking a new career. She can

approach this job hunt in two ways. First, she could simply answer advertisements

for open positions and hope to be called in for an interview. Alternatively, she

General questions

Questions all at

the same level of

specificity or generality

General questions

Funnel

Inverted Funnel

Tunnel

Specific questions

Specific questions

nvertedFunnel

FIGURE A.1

FUNNEL, INVERTED

FUNNEL, AND TUNNEL

SEQUENCES

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