Science and Art of Interviewing

Qualitative interviewing is among the most widely used methods in the social sciences but it is arguably the least understood. In <em>The Science and Art of Interviewing</em> Kathleen Gerson and Sarah Damaske offer clear theoretically informed and empirically rich strategies for conducting interview studies. They present both a rationale and guide to the science-and art-of in-depth interviewing to take readers through all the steps in the research process from the initial stage of formulating a question to the final one of presenting the results. Gerson and Damaske show readers how to develop a research design for interviewing decide on and find an appropriate sample construct a questionnaire conduct probing interviews and analyze the data they collect. At each stage they also provide practical tips about how to address the ever-present but rarely discussed challenges that qualitative researchers routinely encounter particularly emphasizing the relationship between conducting well-crafted research and building powerful social theories. With an engaging accessible style <em>The Science and Art of Interviewing</em> targets a wide range of audiences from upper-level undergraduates and graduate methods courses to students embarking on their dissertations to seasoned researchers at all stages of their careers.<br>