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The Interview Process

This is often the backbone of the case study, and the single most important way to get information from your study participants. Depending on the size of the study, interviews could be conducted weekly or monthly. You will want to use the questions you developed in the planning stage, and then dig deeper if necessary.

When asking questions to your subjects, keep your focus on the following:

  1. Describe the experience - When interviewing the subject, ask them what it's like to participate in the study.

  2. Describe the meaning - When interviewing the subject, ask them what the study means to them, and what, if anything, they will take from the experience.

  3. The focus - As the interview progresses, be certain to keep the focus on the study, while keeping an open mind to any newly developing questions or ideas.
When asking questions, you want a balance of open-ended and close-ended questions. For example, a researcher studying PTSD in veterans could have the following set of questions:

  1. Which event of war did you find most upsetting when it happened?

  2. When you have nightmares, what are they about?

  3. Based on a scale of 1-10, where do you rank the sound of gunfire?

  4. Based on a scale on 1-10, where do you rank the image of an injured child?

  5. When you think of an injured child, how do you feel?
Stay Rigorous!

Case studies are not as data-driven as medical or scientific trials, or large studies. But that doesn't mean you can lose or relax attention to detail. The study methodology must remain strict.

If you have multiple interview subjects, make sure you spend equal time with all subjects. You may find yourself drawn to certain subjects, especially if their results are helping or proving your case. However, keep interviewing and observing your typical subjects, as well. You won't be able to judge the veracity of their responses until after the interview period is over, and you begin to review your notes.

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