1. Introduction: Guba and Lincoln (1981) ‘Of all the means of exchanging information and gathering the data known to man, Interviewing is the oldest and one of the most respected of the tools that the inquirer can use ‘ (p. 154). Dexter (1970: 11), ‘interviewing is the preferred tactic of data collection when, it appears that it will get better data or more data at less cost than other tactics’ Writing a research essay on so complex a topic means highly selective. For my part I will focus: (1) on the essence of interviews; (2) advantages of interviews; (3) disadvantages of interviews; (4) conclusion Dexter (1970) describes the interview as a ‘conversation with a purpose’ (p. 123) By definition Interview is a meeting of people face to face, especially for consultation. It can also be a formal meeting in which one or more …show more content…
As with the advantages of leading research interviews, disadvantages differ with the type of interview. Structured interviews inescapably limit responses and the data obtained may not be consistent if there are errors in the way questions are asked or understood by the respondent. Structured interviews can vary limiting in terms of allowing any real investigation or understanding of the responses given. In highly structured interviews the important changes, in comparison with postal questionnaire completion by the respondent, are that the researcher can explain questions that the respondent does not understand, or provide reminders to help the respondent answer the question. Consistent reminders are agreed beforehand. The sample size for in-depth and unstructured interviews is generally small and may not be representative of a particular population. Some would discuss that it could be difficult to compare the results of in-depth and unstructured interviews in that they may be very specific to a particular