Mode effects in qualitative interviews: a comparison of semi-structured face-to-face and telephone interviews using conversation analysis

Researchers: Annie Irvine, Roy Sainsbury; Paul Drew (Sociology)

Funder: Economic and Social Research Council

Duration: July 2009 - June 2010

Background

Among the many decisions to be made when designing qualitative research, one concerns the mode by which data will be collected. The two principal options for conducting qualitative research interviews are face-to-face or by telephone. A range of pragmatic and ethical arguments have been presented in the literature as to why one or other of these two modes might be preferable. However, the ways in which the spoken interaction and resulting data are affected by qualitative interview mode have not been robustly or systematically investigated to any significant extent. While there is a substantial body of literature falling under the broad heading of ‘interview mode comparison’, the majority of this focuses on standardised survey interviewing, with little empirical work on mode comparison in qualitative interviews.

Aims and objectives

The study’s overall aim was to increase knowledge about how interview mode (telephone or face-to-face) influences the structure and content of qualitative interview interactions and to consider the implications of any differences for the data that is thereby generated.

The objectives of the study were to:

Explore, using the method of Conversation Analysis, the range of interactional techniques and practices that are employed by researcher and participant throughout the qualitative research interview.
Identify, through systematic comparison, whether or not there are differences in the range and use of interactional techniques and practices employed in face-to-face and telephone interviews.
Consider the salience and potential implications of these differences (if any) in light of contemporary academic and professional understandings of effective practice in the conduct of semi-structured qualitative interviewing.

Method

The research drew on an existing set of qualitative interviews collected for the SPRU study, Managing mental health and employment, which explored the experiences of people who had sustained paid employment throughout a period of mental ill health. For pragmatic reasons, some people were interviewed face-to-face and others were interviewed by telephone. This resulted in a corpus of data that provided a fortuitous opportunity to explore comparatively whether and what types of difference were apparent between the two interview modes.

The study used the methodological technique of Conversation Analysis to explore interactional difference between interview modes. Conversation Analysis (CA) concerns itself with identifying the strategies that individuals use to accomplish ‘social actions’ through talk and the interactional consequences of selecting one strategy or format over another. This was pursued through the detailed examination of collections of audio and transcribed data, to identify recurring patterns and structures in interaction. CA offers a method for systematically examining and comparing the interactional patterns that emerge in telephone and face-to-face interviews.

Project information sheet available here (PDF)

Impact

The project had a primarily methodological focus. The findings have importance to qualitative researchers across a range of disciplines and will have wider relevance to other professions and industries that use semi-structured interview approaches in their dealings with clients or customers.

Practitioner workshop

A practitioner workshop was held in May 2010, during which the findings were disseminated. A background paper was produced for workshop participants before the meeting which detailed the reasons for the research, the study structure, data and the method of analysis used.

To view the background paper click here.

Participants were invited to discuss the salience and potential implications of the study findings for research practice. The workshop also provided a forum to explore collaborative opportunities for developing a larger-scale investigation into qualitative interview mode effects, for example, by identifying further existing data sets which may be amenable to such comparative analysis.

A summary of these discussions is available here.

Publications and Presentations

2012

Telephone interviewing in qualitative research, 2012
Irvine, A., pp.297-302 in S. Becker, A. Bryman and H. Ferguson (eds.) Understanding Research for Social Policy and Social Work, 2nd ed., The Policy Press.

'Am I not answering your questions properly?' Clarification, adequacy and responsiveness in semi-structured telephone and face-to-face interviews, (forthcoming)
Irvine, A., Drew, P. and Sainsbury, R., Qualitative Research, (Available online from 5 April 2012).

2011

Duration, dominance and depth in telephone and face-to-face interviews: a comparative exploration, 2011
Irvine, A., International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 10, 3, 202-220.

2010

Mode Effects in Qualitative Interviews Expert Practitioner Workshop
Irvine, A., National Council for Voluntary Organisations, London, 13 May 2010.

Mode effects in qualitative interviews: a comparison of semi-structured face-to-face and telephone interviews using conversation analysis
Irvine, A., British Sociological Association Annual Conference, Glasgow Caledonian University, 8 April 2010.

Mode effects in qualitative interviews: a comparison of semi-structured face-to-face and telephone interviews using conversation analysis
Irvine, A., International Perspectives on Qualitative Research in the Social Sciences (EUROQUAL) Conference, Institute of Civil Engineers, London, 6 May 2010.

Mode effects in qualitative research interviews, 2010
Irvine, A., SRA News, November, p.9.

Using Phone Interviews, 2010
Irvine, A., Realities Toolkit 14, Realities, 7 pages.

Mode effects in qualitative interviews: a comparison of semi-structured face-to-face and telephone interviews using conversation analysis, 2010
Irvine, A., Drew, P. and Sainsbury, R., Research Works, 2010-03, Social Policy Research Unit.

2009

Mode effects in qualitative interviews: a comparison of semi-structured face-to-face and telephone interviews using conversation analysis
Irvine, A., Tenth International Interdisciplinary Advances in Qualitative Methods Conference, Vancouver, Canada, 8-10 October 2009.

Mode effects in qualitative interviews: a comparison of semi-structured face-to-face and telephone interviews using conversation analysis
Irvine, A., Analysing the Language of Interviews Workshop, Lancaster University, 30 October 2009.

If you require further information about the project, please contact Annie Irvine (SPRU)