Structured Interviews and Questionnaires

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Structured Interviews and Questionnaires

Advantages

  • Can be comparable
  • Provide quantitative data (from closed questions)
  • Data can be presented as tables, graphs and charts
  • Reliable due to 'repeatability' of the questions
  • Can be applied to population if reliable

Disadvantages

  • Do not allow new issues to emerge
  • Researcher has to 'set' the questions and potential answers prior to the research taking place
  • Does not allow explanation for choice by participant
  • May lack validity
  • Participants may provide socially desirable answers
  • Feminist researchers see structured interviews as a power imbalance between interviewer and interviewee

Evaluation

Structured interviews and questionnaires are useful as they are reliable and can be repeated to ensure this reliability. They are also useful to find quantitative data which can then be represented numerically.  However, they are not valid as participants may provide socially desirable answers rather than true ones. Similarly, there is no opportunity to provide detail and explanation. 

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