Conducting interviews
Talk based methods
Interviews are one of the most familiar and frequently used qualitative methods in public health.
Good interviews can generate rich, nuanced insights into people’s experiences and perspectives. How you plan, open, facilitate, and end your interview will shape the quality of the data you collect, the experience of the participant, and your own confidence as a researcher.
This chapter focuses on the practical process of conducting one-to-one interviews, from preparation, through the interview itself, to what happens immediately afterwards.
Preparing the interview
Clarifying the practicalities
Before your interview begins, you should be clear about the following. The choice of how you do the interview should reflect participant preference, accessibility, sensitivity of the topic, and available resources.
Mode of interview
In person
Online (e.g., via Microsoft Teams)
Telephone
Timing and length
Be realistic about how long the interview will take
Communicate this clearly in advance
Allow flexibility if participants need breaks or time to pause
Location (for in-person interviews only). Choose a space that is:
Private and quiet (e.g., avoid any spaces where conversations might be overheard or interrupted)
Accessible
Neutral (if necessary) or convenient for the participant
Consent and participant information
Consent processes should be planned ahead of time and not improvised. Participants should have:
Received an information sheet including key details about the research
Had time to consider whether or not they want to take part
Had the opportunity to ask you any questions
Remember to confirm consent at the start of the interview (even if you have received written consent) and remind participants of their right to withdraw, pause, or skip any questions.
Recording and notetaking
If you are recording your interview, remember to:
Test equipment in advance (e.g., Dictaphones)
Ensure any devices are fully charged
Have a backup plan if recording fails
Decide whether you will also take brief notes during the interview
Participants should always know what is being recorded, why it is being recorded and how recordings will be stored and used.
During the interview
Opening the interview and building rapport
How you begin your interview is key. The opening minutes of your interview will shape how safe, comfortable, and open the participant feels.
A good opening usually includes:
A brief introduction to the project
Who you are (e.g., your role, background)
Why you are interested in their perspective
Re-stating the purpose
What the interview is about
How their input will be used
Why it is important
Confirming consent and communicating any ground rules
Recording
Confidentiality and its limits (e.g., safeguarding duty)
Right to take a break, skip questions, or withdraw
A ‘warm up’ question. Start with something descriptive and easy to answer, such as:
Their role (e.g., can you tell me a little bit about your job and what your role looks like day to day?)
How they became involved (e.g., how long have you been involved with the programme?)
A general experience (e.g., Thinking about your experience of [topic/service] can you tell me what it’s generally been like for you?
Using the topic guide flexibly
Your topic guide is there to support you to cover the key topics and guide the flow of the interview. It is not a script.
Be prepared to:
Change the order of questions
Spend more time on topics that matter or are relevant to the participant
Follow up on any unexpected but relevant points
You do not need to ask every question in your topic guide if the participant has already addressed it naturally.
Active listening and probing
Good interviews depend on active listening and being attentive. Active listening can involve:
Reflecting and summarising: Occasionally paraphrasing or summarising what a participant has said (e.g., “So it sounds like the main issue was…“) shows that you have been following closely and gives participants the opportunity to correct your understanding if needed.
Using participants’ own language: Where a participant uses a particular word or phrase to describe something, picking that up in your follow-up questions shows attentiveness and avoids inadvertently reframing what they have said in your own terms.
Body language and non-verbal cues: Nodding, facing the participant, and maintaining eye contact can show engagement. Avoid crossing your arms, looking at notes for an extended period, or anything that signals distraction or impatience.
Verbal acknowledgements: Brief affirmations such as “mm-hmm”, “yes”, or “I see” signal that you are following along without interrupting the participant’s flow.
Try to avoid finishing participants’ sentences, correcting or validating responses, or sharing your own views.
Managing pace, emotion, and sensitivity
During the interview, be attentive to signs of discomfort or fatigue. This might include long pauses, shorter or more hesitant answers, changes in tone or body language, visible restlessness, reduced eye contact, checking the time repeatedly, or the participant explicitly saying they feel tired, overwhelmed, or that they don’t want to continue.
If you notice these signs, it is best practice to:
Check in on the participant, and ask whether they would like to continue
Offer the participant a break
Gently remind participants they can skip questions
Slow the pace of the interview
If sensitive topics arise unexpectedly, acknowledge them respectfully and avoid pressing for detail unless it feels appropriate and relevant to your project’s aims.
Ending the interview and debriefing
Bringing the interview to a close
The end of the interview should provide some closure and leave the participant feeling empowered, listened to, and positive about taking part.
Use the final moments of the interview for reflection, clarification, and giving participants space to add anything they feel is important, rather than introducing new or complex questions.
- For example, “Is there anything else you’d like to add that we haven’t covered?”
Don’t ask key questions at the very end of the interview. Time can run short, participants might be tired or less able to reflect in depth. Important topics are best introduced earlier, when participants are likely more focused and have more energy to engage fully.
Member checking
Some researchers do something called member checking1 (also referred to as respondent validation) which involves checking your understanding of what a participant has shared, either during the interview (e.g., in real time) or afterwards.
In practice, this might look like:
Briefly summarising a key point and asking the participant whether you have understood it correctly
Reflecting back on your interpretation of an experience or concept and asking for clarification
Offering participants the opportunity to comment on a transcript, summary, or key themes at a later stage (after the interview)
Member checking can be particularly helpful for:
Those who are newer to conducting interviews
Understanding complex or sensitive topics
Capturing subtleties such as emotion, emphasis, or meaning that might not be clear from the transcript alone
Participants do not necessarily need to agree with your analysis, but it allows you to check that your interpretation aligns with what the participant was trying to tell you. Member checking can strengthen the credibility and accuracy your findings and also help you build trust with participants. However, having clear boundaries about what participants can and can’t change and in what timeframe is key.
Debriefing the participant
Once you have covered the key topics, or if the interview needs to end due to time, you will debrief the participant. Debriefing gives participants the opportunity to reflect on the discussion and leave the interview feeling acknowledged and valued.
Good practice includes:
Thanking the participant for their time and for sharing their experiences
Checking in on how they are feeling, particularly if sensitive or challenging topics were discussed
Explaining next steps, including any further involvement, how their data will be used and whether they will receive any outputs
Signposting to support services if appropriate, and remind the participant how they can contact you if they need to
Immediate reflections and notes
Once the interview has finished, it is helpful for the interviewer to make brief reflective notes (often called memos) as soon as possible. These might include:
Key themes or quotes (paraphrased)
Contextual factors
Anything that felt unexpected or especially important
Reflections on how the interview went
These early reflections are not your analysis – you will analyse your data separately. However, memos are useful when you return to analyse your data.
After conducting your first few interviews, this is a good point to pause and reflect on your topic guide. Consider whether questions are working as intended, whether important areas are missing, or whether some questions are unclear or unnecessary. Revisiting and refining your topic guide at this stage is good practice and can help improve the flow and focus of subsequent interviews.
Footnotes
Creswell, J.W. and Poth, C.N., 2016. Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. Sage publications.↩︎