Real Communication An Introduction

512 Appendix A   Competent Interviewing

to the interview purpose, and is enough time allotted to complete the in-

terview satisfactorily? If not, make those adjustments before the interview

commences.

Make the Interviewee Comfortable

Interviewees, particularly job applicants and medical patients, are often very

nervous in interview situations—and understandably so. A good inter-

viewer should adapt to the situational and relational contexts to help the

interviewee feel at ease (Ralston, Kirkwood, & Burant, 2003). It would be

effective and appropriate, for example, for an interviewer to smile, make

eye contact, and offer a handshake. But be sure to keep these behaviors

appropriate to the context; imagine if your doctor entered the examining

room and gave you a big hug or if a job interviewer told you about his

problems with his partner’s parents.

Ask Ethical and Appropriate Questions

Although questions and question sequences can result in productive interviews, it’s

important to remember that good questions are also ethical and appropriate (and

avoid the leading and loaded questions we discussed in the past section). For ex-

ample, if Erik is a representative from his school newspaper interviewing a biology

professor about her recent grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), his

questions should stick to her research and her plans to implement a new lab on

campus. It would be inappropriate and unethical for him to ask how much money

she personally will be receiving from the NIH or whether she expects to receive a

promotion and salary increase from the university after receiving the award.

On a job interview, certain unethical and inappropriate questions are also

illegal. We’ll cover these later in this chapter.

Listen and Respond Effectively

The role of the interviewer is not limited to structuring an interview and asking

questions. After all, an effective interviewer needs to listen, respond, and evaluate

the information that those questions reveal. Throughout the interview, the inter-

viewer should keep both immediate and future goals in mind by making notes

(written or mental) during the interview.

Responsibilities of the Interviewee

True, the interviewer is responsible for quite a bit of work in an interview

situation, but that doesn’t mean that the interviewee is off the hook. As an

interviewee, you will benefit greatly by taking on three major responsibilities:

(1) clarifying your personal goals, (2) being prepared, and (3) listening and

responding effectively.

Clarify and Fulfill Personal Goals

One of the most important things that an interviewee can bring to the inter-

view is a clear sense of personal goals. That is, you should have a clear idea

of what you want to achieve in the interview; this allows you to look for and

CSI: MIAMI’S HORATIO

CAINE indicates that he’s

finished interviewing a sus-

pect or surveying the crime

scene by pausing to put on

his trademark sunglasses.

Your job interview should also

have a simple, comfortable

conclusion. © CBS/Photofest

Have you ever been in an

interview where you felt that

the interviewer neglected

his or her responsibilities? In

what ways did the interviewer

fail? How would you have

handled things differently?

AND YOU?

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