InTERvIEwInG 333Ask open-ended questions. Your questions should encourage the person
you are interviewing to tell stories that will help you learn about your
subject. This means phrasing questions in ways that avoid simple yes/no
answers. For instance, you might ask for an explanation of how children at
a homeless center can overcome the obstacles they face as opposed to ask-
ing something like this: “Do you think children can overcome the obsta-
cles they face?” Asking for an explanation invites someone to explain the
process by which overcoming obstacles is possible. In turn, you can ask
specific questions such as the following: “Can you tell me about a specific
instance to illustrate the extent to which a child can overcome the obsta-
cles they face?” “Can you help me understand what made this possible?”Avoid leading questions. It may be tempting to ask leading questions to keep
the conversation going in an interview or to fill in something that an individ-
ual implies but does not actually say. For example, “Do you think that the food
industry has contributed to the problem of obesity?” “So are you saying that
the government should formulate policies to regulate the industry?” In each
case, the question supplies a possible answer. This is not appropriate. The
questions you ask should allow the person you are interviewing to come to his
or her own conclusions. Alternatively, you can ask: “Tell me more about what
you are saying about the government’s role.” Similarly, try not to reinforce
the answers that an interviewee gives, such as “That’s what I was thinking.”
“That’s great.” “You’re right.” Reinforcing answers may indicate to an inter-
viewee that there is a correct answer to the questions you are asking. Instead,
you want to this person to explore his or her thoughts in an open, honest way.Only share experiences occasionally. Although we have suggested that con-
ducting interviews can be like conversations, you should resist providing
your own experiences and stories. Listen to answers and follow up with
questions that encourage the person you are interviewing to elaborate.Rehearse and then revise the script. After you develop a script of questions,
rehearse it with your writing group or a friend who can play the role of the
person you want to interview. In doing so, you want to get a sense of how an
interviewee is going to respond to your questions. The following questions
can serve as a guide for assessing the interview and what you might change:(^) • What would you point to as a good example of an effective exchange?
(^) • What questions helped you get concrete details to tell the story you
wanted to tell?
(^) • What would you point to as an example of an exchange that didn’t go
as well as you had hoped? How would you explain what happened?
- What questions would you rephrase if you were to do the interview
again? - To what extent do you feel that you might have lost some opportuni-
ties to follow up? - Are there follow-up questions you should have asked?
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