QRMSS Ch. 4 Dramaturgical Interview

Chapter four touches on the topic of the dramaturgical interview as interpreted by Goffman. Dramaturgy in a social theory sense may be seen as a performance in which researcher/subject play off each other. Another words, I (researcher) am the director, choreographer, performer when conducting the interview. Researchers assess the performance and must be careful not to let the participant direct it! It is suggested by Denzin (2001, p.26), "that we inhabit a performance-based, dramaturgical culture"; that what we do in life can be viewed as a performance.

Interviewing can be seen as conversation with a purpose or as an "encounter" or "social interaction". So, like in any conversation, we begin with some small talk, building a rapport with subject. We want to establish a common ground connection, something to build comfort and sense of trust as these subjects are allowing us into their lives!

There are several approaches we can use when structuring the interview we will be utilizing. There are standardized interviews, which are a strict protocol of questions that we never deviate from. There are unstandardized interviews. These involve talking with a purpose, but not going off a questionnaire as guidance. Also, there are semi standardized interviews, which are guided or semi structured. With semi standardized interviews, there are chances to probe and allowance of deviation from script is common. Although we need to realize when to bring a subject back in if they go off on a tangent. Interviews can also be long or short. Short interviews on average can be around 40 minutes to an hour, and it depends on the subject matter to decide whether a long or short interview would be more beneficial to your research.

Helpful tips to take into consideration before interviewing are as follows: state and be honest about connection/intention of project, be transparent. Always make eye contact! Be aware of subject's body movements and adjustments (body cues). This can be absent if conducting telephone or computer assisted interviewing. Be sure to carefully and effectively word questions, as this can elicit emotional responses! On that note, stay away from double barreled questions or two questions in one asking. With complex/difficult questions, we need to be upfront and clear. Pre- testing the questions could give you a heads up to remedy a situation before it happens. Practice echoing! Echo and nod affirmatively without giving too much info of yourself. Uncomfortable pauses are ok! Allow subject time to think and respond; let them talk! Finally, know your audience!

With most skills, it takes time, practice, and effort to develop. Conscious listening sounds easy, but will be put to the test as we go out and conduct our research. Being a successful hairdresser, I always wondered why people have all these hair horror stories. My theory is that many stylists don't truly listen to the clients. I always prided myself on being a good listener when it came to my clients and assuring them that I wouldn't do anything that we didn't speak of. Also, I'd repeat what we decided on, so as to protect myself from surprise of the outcome for the client. I look forward to putting my conscious listening skills to the test while conducting my interviews!