A Call to Better Qual: The Science and Art of Qualitative Research Interviewing
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5032/jae.v67i2.3345Keywords:
interviewing, extension, nonformal education, youth, qualitative researchAbstract
Substantial efforts across the qualitative landscape of the Journal of Agricultural Education occur through interviewing. Yet little exists in our discipline to support rigorous use of this methodological tool. This practical manuscript uses philosophy, methodology, theory, our own experience, and wisdom from wide-ranging sources to provide a guide to both the art and science of interviewing for novice and advanced researchers alike. In exploring the science of interviewing, we outline question types, interpretive frameworks, interview structures, and methodological assumptions. In advancing the art of interviewing, we align with the CHE framework focusing on the connectivity, humanness, and empathy required to engage in research with our participants rather than on or about them. Finally, we conclude with a call for reflexivity as a unifying means of conducting rigorous, well-articulated, and deeply meaningful interviews as we continually strive to improve as research instruments.
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