AQA A Level Unstructured Interviews T+M

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  • Unstructured Interviews
    • Practical Issues
      • A rapport can be established
      • Interviewers must have a background in sociology
      • They take a long time which means the sample won't be very big
      • Large amounts of data take a while to transcribe, makes categorisation difficult
      • Questions can be explained to check meaning is understood
      • They are flexible
      • Useful when you don't know a lot about the subject
    • Theoretical Issues
      • Interpretivism
        • Validity through involvement
        • Grounded Theory
          • We should build up and modify our hypotheses during the actual course of the research
        • Interviewees have the freedom to raise issues and discuss what is important to them
      • Positivism
        • Lack reliability as the method isn't a standardised measuring instrument. Makes it impossible to repeat and thus compare
          • Lack of validity: due to the interaction between interviewer and interviewee, rapport distorts the obtained info
            • But not all unstructured interviews rely on rapport. Becker (1971): used disbelief, aggression...
        • Because they use open- ended questions they can't be easily categorised and quantified
      • Feminism
        • Unstructured Interviews are value-committed (takes women's side), involved rather than detached, aims for equality and collaboration rather than hierarchy and control
          • Oakley conducted 178 unstructured interviews about women becoming mothers, the rapport helped her research
            • Criticisms: Pawson (1992): there is nothing feminist or original about Oakley's approach. Her approach is the same as interpretivism

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