2.  Reports-In, Wiki Update, $$$  Silverman’s 6  Class Activity: The Art of Interviewing --------------------Dinner Break---------------------  Report-Outs › Input and ideas from the class  Discussion: Concerns in Creating Instruments and Collecting Data  Group-work

3. 1. Don’t mistake a critique for a reasoned alternative. 2. Avoid taking the actor’s point of view as an explanation 3. Recognize that the phenomenon always escapes 4. Avoid choosing between all polar opposites 5. Never appeal to a single element as an explanation 6. Understand the cultural forms through which “truths” are accomplished.

4.  Interviewing isn’t hard › An interview is just a conversation that has a purpose and (some) structure  Interviewing isn’t easy › It is a performance that requires both careful planning and artful execution (of course it’s really easy to do it poorly) Presentation based on the work of Kvale (1996)

5.  Purpose › Exploration / Hypothesis Testing  Mode › Description / Interpretation  Openness of Purpose › Direct Approach / Indirect Approach  Rationality › Intellectual / Emotional

6.  Well-structured › Formalized question wording › Standardized sequence of questions (possible branching) › Interviewers interchangeable  Semi-structured › Pre-determined themes / question areas › Formulation and sequence flexible, follow-up questions determined on the fly  Unstructured › Only a topic-introducing question is planned

7.  Knowledge is the gold nuggets that need to be uncovered and extracted › Objective facts › Essential meaning  Assumes › Nuggets are pre-existing › Nuggets are unaltered by the extraction process  Aligns with an objectivist epistemology Image Source: http://www.synthstuff.com/mt/archives/bertrand-miner.jpg

8.  The interviewer is on a journey to explore unknown territory › They may seek out specific sites or topics  The outcome of conversations is a coproduction of the interviewer and the subject  Goals include: › Understand the world from the subjects’ point of view /unfold the meaning of experiences  Aligns with a constructionist / subjectivst epistemology Image Source: http://www.synthstuff.com/mt/archives/bertrand-miner.jpg

9.  “What grades did you get?”  “What are your study habits?”  “You feel that grades are not an adequate measure of your competence?” In a semi-structured interview a student says: “I am not as stupid as my grades on the test say I am, I just have bad study habits” The Miner Says: The Traveler Says:

10.  Objectivity of the Interviewer › No leading questions  The subject’s ideas already exist, the goal is to reveal them › May or may not be conscious to the subject  Expectation of Convergence › Process of honing in  Questions must be cleverly designed to uncover the truth

11.  Focus on Themes of Meaning › Not completely free-form, where do questions lead  Strive for Specificity › Elicitation of rich, nuanced descriptions of specific situations and actions, not general opinions (it’s not just about asking your research Qs)  Flexibility › Interviewer needs to be open to new and unexpected phenomenon (not ready-made interpretations) › Realize that the process of the interview may change not only the interviewer’s understanding, but also that of the subject  Subject as Intellectual Companion

12.  Watch carefully Watch carefully  Answer the question on the paper I gave you  No sharing with your neighbor!

13. ReliabilityValidity Definition Consistency of research findings Correctness / Defensibilty of Knowledge Claim Interchangeability of interviewers Avoid leading questions Verification / Correspondence with reality Triangulation Craft of the interviewer Leading questions can uncover suspect info or test subject statements Falsification / Always check, question and follow-up surprises. Crystallization

14.  Thematic › The question (question area) relates to the research topic / questions and the theoretical conceptions underlying it  Analytic › The question is posed in a form that will facilitate the planned analysis (e.g. rich narrative versus conceptual categories)  Dynamic › The question promotes a positive interaction (keeps the conversation going and motivates openness). Question should be short, clear and jargon-free

15. 1. Introducing Questions › “Can you tell me about…?” › “Do you remember an occasion when…?” 2. Follow-Up Questions › Nods and “Hmms” › Repeat signification words / implicit ideas › Look for unusual terms / intonation / body lang. 3. Silence › Let the subject associate, reflect and break the silence with important information

16. 4. Probing Questions › “Could you say more about that…?” › “Do you have other examples of that…?” 5. Specifying Questions › “What did you do in that situation…?” › “In what way was that hurtful to you…?” 6. Direct Questions › “Have you ever copied someone else’s work?’ 7. Indirect Questions › “How do you think other students feel about copying work?”

17. 8. Structuring Questions › “I would now like to introduce another topic…” 9. Interpreting Questions › “Do you mean that…?” › “Does the expression _______ capture what you have just expressed?” › “Do you see any connections between your attitudes towards copying work and the incident you mentioned about your brother?”

18.  Introduction: Provide a context › Purpose, consent, tape recorder  First 5 minutes: The Key to the Interview › Inspire comfort and confidence with attentive listening with interest and respect  Conclusion: Debrief the Subject › Opportunity to bring up other issues, ask questions, what happens when you turn the tape recorder off  Immediate Field Notes › Impressions based on interpersonal interaction that may not be captured on tape

19. How do students use online course discussion forums? Group AlphaGroup Zed

20. How do students develop identities as participants in online discussions? Group AlphaGroup Zed

22.  Where is your group at?  What have you done?  What are you working on now?  What is your biggest concern?

23.  What are the big issues to worry about in collecting data from an objectivist perspective? (Argumentation)  What are the big issues to worry about in collecting data from a constructionist perspective? (Greening Gotham, Wario, SuperStar)  What are the big issues to worry about in setting up an experimental design? (Argumentation)  What are the big issues to worry about in terms of sampling? (Wario and Greening Gotham)  What are the big issues to worry about in collecting survey data?(Team SuperStar)  What are the big issues to worry about in analyzing online documents (posts / blogs)? (Greening Gotham, Super Star)