WEEK 8 - interview

• Interviewing


  An interactional communication process between two parties, at least one of whom has a predetermined and serious purpose, that involves the asking and answering of questions
• Essential Characteristics Of Interviews

  • Two Parties
  • Purpose and Structure
  • Interactional
  • Questions
• Traditional Forms of Interviewing

  • Information Giving Interviews
  • Information Gathering Interviews
  • Selection Interviews
  • Performance Review
  • Counseling
  • Persuasion
• Non-Traditional Forms of Interviewing

  • The Telephone Interview
  • Online Interviews or E-Interviews
  • The Videoconference Interview
  • E-Mail
  • Webinars
  • The Virtual Interview
• Online Interviews and Multimethod Research
• Collecting Qualitative Data Online
• Interviewing is an interactional communication between two parties, at least one of whom has a predetermined and serious purpose, that involves the asking and answering of questions
• There is a big difference between skilled and unskilled interviewers and interviewees, and the skilled ones know that practice makes perfect only if you know what you are practicing
• The first essential step in developing and improving interviewing skills is to understand the deceptively complex interviewing process and its many interacting variables
• Two Parties in the Interview

  • Each party consists of unique and complex individuals
  • Both must act together if the interview is to be successful
  • The parties are connected interpersonally because each has a stake in the outcome of the interview
  • Each interview contributes to a relational history
• Relational Dimensions


  • Similarity
  • Inclusion
  • Affection
  • Control
  • Trust
• Both parties speak and listen from time to time, are likely to ask and answer questions, and take on the roles of interviewer and interviewee
• Two fundamental approaches to interviewing

  • Directive: the interviewer establishes the purpose of the interview and attempts to control the pace and direction
  • Nondirective: the interviewer allows the interviewee to take the lead in determining the purpose, pace, and direction of the interview
• Dimensions of relationships critical to interviews

  • Similarity
  • Inclusion
  • Affection
  • Control
  • Trust
• Similarity


  Shared cultural norms and values, education, experiences, personality traits, beliefs, and expectations
• Inclusion


  Shared motivation to take part actively as speakers and listeners, questioners, and respondents
• Affection


  Shared like and respect for one another and a marked degree of warmth and friendship
• Control


  Shared participation in a continuous process, and shared responsibility for success or failure
• Trust


  Shared trust that the other party is honest, sincere, reliable, truthful, fair, even-tempered, and of high ethical standards
• Approaches to interviewing


  • Directive
  • Nondirective
• Directive approach


  The interviewer establishes the purpose of the interview and attempts to control the pacing, climate, and formality of the interview
• Nondirective approach


  The interviewee has significant control over subject matter, length of answers, interview climate, and formality
• Combination of approaches


  • Be flexible and adaptable when selecting approaches
  • The roles we play should guide but not dictate approaches
  • Adherence to societal roles and expectations may produce an ineffective interview
• Perceptions that drive interactions

  • Perceptions of self
  • Perceptions of the other party
  • How the other party perceives us
  • How the other party perceives self
• Perceptions of self


  • What we perceive ourselves to be may be more important than what we are
  • We see ourselves differently under different circumstances
  • Self-esteem is closely related to self-worth
• Perceptions of the other party

  • How you perceive the other affects how you approach an interview and how you react during the interview
  • Perceptions are a two-way process
  • Allow interactions to alter or reinforce perceptions
• Levels of interactions


  • Level 1: Avoid judgments, attitudes, and feelings; are safe and nonthreatening
  • Level 2: Require trust and risk-taking; more revealing of ideas, feelings, and information
  • Level 3: Involve full disclosure of feelings, beliefs, attitudes, and perceptions; deal with intimate and controversial areas of inquiry
• Gender, culture, and interactions

  • Women disclose more freely than men
  • Culture may dictate what we disclose and to whom
  • Positive and negative face are universal motives
• Verbal interactions


  • Words are arbitrary connections of letters that serve as symbols for people, things, events, ideas, beliefs, and feelings
  • The use and misuse of words can cause problems in an interview
  • The arbitrary nature of language, not the misuse of it, causes most problems
• Nonverbal signals


  • Eye contact
  • Facial expressions
  • Winks
  • Touches
  • Glances
• Nonverbal interactions


  • A single behavioral act may convey a message
  • A combination of nonverbal acts may enhance the impact of the message
  • Body movements, gestures, and posture show dynamism or lack of it
  • Any behavioral act may be interpreted in a meaningful way by the other party
  • Your message may be intentional or unintentional, accurate or inaccurate, but it will be interpreted
• Verbal and nonverbal intertwined

  • The nonverbal often compliments the verbal
  • The nonverbal may reinforce words
  • The nonverbal may act as a substitute for words
• Feedback


  • Feedback is immediate and pervasive in interviews
  • You can detect critical feedback and assess how an interview is progressing by observing and listening to what is and is not taking place or being said
  • Do not read too much into small nonverbal actions and changes
  • Good listening skills are essential
• Types of listening


  • Listening for comprehension
  • Listening for empathy
  • Listening for evaluation
  • Listening for resolution
• Listening for comprehension


  The intent is to understand content
• Listening for empathy


  The intent is to understand the other party
• Listening for evaluation


  The intent is to judge content and actions
• Listening for resolution


  The intent is to resolve problems
• Variables that impact interviews

  • Time of day, week, and year
  • Place
  • Surroundings
• Initiating the interview


  • Either party may initiate an interview
  • The situation may determine who initiates an interview and with whom
  • Enhance the climate by initiating it directly and informing the interviewee about the purpose, nature, and use of the information to be exchanged