UNSTRUCTURED INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEWING Anitra Rustemeyer Streett, U.S. Department of Energy Introduction were they covered by insurance, other family members, charity, etc.? Sometimes a questionnaire designer is required to develop a questionnaire on a Since household fires are fairly rare topic which he knows little about, and events in the general population, some about which little information related of the households selected for the to questionnaire design exists from unstructured interviews were chosen from previous surveys. In this situation, fire department records, so that between the development of a questionnaire can one-third and one-half were known to benefit from the use of "unstructured" have reported a fire within the pre- interviews with members of the intended ceding 6 to 9 months. The other respondent universe. The term households were selected from Census "unstructured interview" is used here to address lists; to reduce the amount of describe a discussion of the proposed driving done by interviewers, addresses survey topics between a member of the were chosen that were within 2 or 3 target survey population and the blocks of the households identified questionnaire designer, which is guided in the records of a fire department. by a topic outline rather than a set of Interviewers were not told which specific questions. When sufficient households had reported a fire to the numbers of such interviews are conducted fire department. with a set of respondents who are fairly representative of the target population, The team leader was a senior member the technique can provide ideas and of the survey methods research group; insights about how best to structure the others on the interviewing team were questionnaire before the first draft is junior professionals from the research written. and operations offices who would work on the final survey. The team of 5 worked The following example provides an singly and in pairs and, with permission overview of the technique. In 1973 the of the respondents, tape recorded some Bureau of the Census (where the author interviews. was then employed) was asked to deter- mine the incidence and characteristics The team began with a list of topics of household fires in the United States. to be covered and a thorough briefing on It was decided that a few "screener" and discussion of the survey objectives. questions should be added to the They met daily to share with each other (monthly) Current Population Survey to what they had learned. Each interviewer determine if a fire had occurred in the conducted about 4 interviews per day for household within the preceding few 5 days. They met together with the team months. If a fire had occurred, a leader each morning to discuss new separate questionnaire would be ideas. administered to gather more detailed information, including extent of damage, After 3 days patterns of questioning death or injury to household members, respondents had developed and these were and financial loss attributable to the discussed. At the end of 5 days of fire. unstructured interviewing it was fiarly easy to draft a questionnaire that could The study directors and sponsors be endorsed by all team members as agreed to unstructured field inter- suitable to meet the study objectives views as a means of drafting a ques- and workable with respondents. A tionnaire, because they needed definition of a fire was developed which answers to several questions, includ- included short lists of things to ing what definition of fire should be include and exclude. The questionnaire used, and whether or not people would developed in this process was used later call things like the following a fire: in an informal test and was judged to a grease fire while cooking, a smolder- work very well. ing mattress caused by a cigarette, a small fire ignited by a child, a fire in Personnel and Skill Requirements an automobile engine, and a chimney fire. They also wanted to know if it would be A key concept in the successful use feasible to ask questions about injuries, of unstructured interviewing is flexi- loss of life, and whether or not the fire bility. The questionnaire designer was caused by carelessness. Another area functions as a researcher during this of uncertainty dealt with economic loss process, and must keep the objectives of and who paid to restore the damage: did the study firmly in mind, while dis- people know the dollar value of the missing any fixed ideas about how to losses due to fire and to what extent structure the questionnaire. 661 Best results are achieved when rather than systematic sampling. several people work together as a team. Although rigorous scientific selection The team should include interviewers as procedures are not necessary, respon- well as data processing and subject dents should be members of the popula- matter specialists. This allows diverse tion to be surveyed and should be fairly ideas and insights to be used in the representative of that population. refinement of the survey instrument. The characteristics of people asked to Persons selected to conduct be respondents for unstructured unstructured interviews should have interviews may depend on the survey interviewing experience and be capable topic. For example, in developing a of understanding the broad perspective questionnaire dealing with saving habits of the research project for which the to be administered to a national cross- questionnaire will be designed. This sectional sample, the initial round of type of interviewing requires skills developmental work may include inter- different from those for structured views with people from a variety of interviewing (i.e., interviewing in demographic population subgroups. which questions are read verbatim from a During additional interviews, however, questionnaire), and only some inter- different classifications of savings viewers on a regular field staff are habits may emerge, and it may be likely to possess those skills. necessary to locate and interview persons who are members of specific Interviewers selected for this type categories. Thus, the "sampling" of of assignment should feel comfortable respondents is an iterative process "thinking on their feet" as they will too--as is the questioning of those not have a questionnaire script to use respondents. In some cases, respondents as a crutch; if they are easily may be located by contacting community flustered or confused, they may give or business organizations, or by respondents the impression that they are selecting residential areas. incompetent or that the study is unimportant. Members of the inter- The Interviewing Process viewing team need sufficient experience in unsturctured interviewing to be Interviewers may begin each interview sensitive to the effects of wording by explaining that they are working on a changesand to recognize responses that very early phase of preparing a new indicate potential problems with survey. They should emphasize the question wording or order. In addition, reasons for and importance of talking to interviewers should be able to tolerate people before a questionnaire is long pauses while the respondent thinks prepared. or looks for answers, have the ability to probe nondirectively in order to get In unstructured interviewing, the the respondent's ideas, and have a interviewer should follow up on answers thorough understanding of potential or comments that seem to have a bearing problems in questionnaire design which on how a concept is interpreted by the can affect the achievement of the survey respondent or how a sequence of ques- objectives. tions should be ordered. The interview should have a conversational flavor Unstructured interviewing is actually rather than the question-and-answer a combined data collection and analysis format of a formal interview. Inter- process. In addition to the inter- viewers should understand that their viewing skill necessary for successful objective is not to collect data in the results, a "coder," who is capable of usual sense--rather it is to become making independent judgments, is an aware of any difficulties that are essential part of the process. This likely to arise when the survey is person should be able to analyze and conducted. tabulate results of the previous day's work while the interviewers are in the During each unstructured interview, field conducting additional interviews the interviewer should record how each and then meet with them to explain how key inquiry was phrased, as well as the they are failing to meet survey objec- wording used by the repondent in tives. The simultaneous conduct of answering the question. The interviewer these two tasks speeds up the question- should record what effect topic order naire development process. Subject had on the flow of the interview, the matter specialists can provide valuable respondent's reaction to specific insights at the frequent meetings of the questions of interest, and the apparent team. level of difficulty of the inquiry for the respondent. Selection of Respondents Tape recording, with the respondent's Respondent selection for unstructured permission, can be useful as long as interviews generally involves purposive 662 time is available to listen to the tapes otherwise be the case, because the and to extract information from them. knowledge gained from the unstructured interviews can be quickly incorporated As experience using the topic outline into the questionnaire. is gained, interviewers will develop their preferred question wording for Cost Requirements topics. They should exchange those wordings during their meetings and then The monetary costs associated with try the wordings used by others in the use of unstructured interviews are successive iterations of interviewing. essentially limited to the salaries of the personnel who are members of the The input of the coder is beneficial team. Depending on the number of people in noting ambiguities or superficiality involved as team members, the number of in the responses obtained in previous interviews conducted, and the amount of interviews which require further time spent in analyzing the interviews, clarification before the response can be these costs could vary considerably.