sample questions qualitative research interviews

Top 20 Qualitative Research Interview Questions & Answers

Master your responses to Qualitative Research related interview questions with our example questions and answers. Boost your chances of landing the job by learning how to effectively communicate your Qualitative Research capabilities.

Diving into the intricacies of human behavior, thoughts, and experiences is the lifeblood of qualitative research. As a professional in this nuanced field, you are well-versed in the art of gathering rich, descriptive data that can provide deep insights into complex issues. Now, as you prepare to take on new challenges in your career, it’s time to demonstrate not only your expertise in qualitative methodologies but also your ability to think critically and adapt to various research contexts.

Whether you’re interviewing for an academic position, a role within a market research firm, or any other setting where qualitative skills are prized, being prepared with thoughtful responses to potential interview questions can set you apart from other candidates. In this article, we will discuss some of the most common questions asked during interviews for qualitative research roles, offering guidance on how best to articulate your experience and approach to prospective employers.

Common Qualitative Research Interview Questions

1. how do you ensure the credibility of your data in qualitative research.

Ensuring credibility in qualitative research is crucial for the trustworthiness of the findings. By asking about methodological rigor, the interviewer is assessing a candidate’s understanding of strategies such as triangulation, member checking, and maintaining a detailed audit trail, which are essential for substantiating the integrity of qualitative data.

When responding to this question, you should articulate a multi-faceted approach to establishing credibility. Begin by highlighting your understanding of the importance of a well-defined research design and data collection strategy. Explain how you incorporate methods like triangulation, using multiple data sources or perspectives to confirm the consistency of the information obtained. Discuss your process for member checking—obtaining feedback on your findings from the participants themselves—to add another layer of validation. Mention your dedication to keeping a comprehensive audit trail, documenting all stages of the research process, which enables peer scrutiny and adds to the transparency of the study. Emphasize your ongoing commitment to reflexivity, where you continually examine your biases and influence on the research. Through this detailed explanation, you demonstrate a conscientious and systematic approach to safeguarding the credibility of your qualitative research.

Example: “ To ensure the credibility of data in qualitative research, I employ a rigorous research design that is both systematic and reflective. Initially, I establish clear protocols for data collection, which includes in-depth interviews, focus groups, and observations, ensuring that each method is well-suited to the research questions. To enhance the validity of the findings, I apply triangulation, drawing on various data sources, theoretical frameworks, and methodologies to cross-verify the information and interpretations.

During the analysis phase, member checking is a critical step, where I return to participants with a summary of the findings to validate the accuracy and resonance of the interpreted data with their experiences. This not only strengthens the credibility of the results but also enriches the data by incorporating participant insights. Furthermore, I maintain a comprehensive audit trail, meticulously documenting the research process, decisions made, and data transformations. This transparency allows for peer review and ensures that the research can be followed and critiqued by others in the field.

Lastly, reflexivity is integral to my practice. I continuously engage in self-reflection to understand and articulate my biases and assumptions and how they may influence the research process. By doing so, I can mitigate potential impacts on the data and interpretations, ensuring that the findings are a credible representation of the phenomenon under investigation.”

2. Describe a situation where you had to adapt your research methodology due to unforeseen challenges.

When unexpected variables arise, adaptability in research design is vital to maintain the integrity and validity of the study. This question seeks to assess a candidate’s problem-solving skills, flexibility, and resilience in the face of research challenges.

When responding, share a specific instance where you encountered a challenge that impacted your research methodology. Detail the nature of the challenge, the thought process behind your decision to adapt, the steps you took to revise your approach, and the outcome of those changes. Emphasize your critical thinking, your ability to consult relevant literature or peers if necessary, and how your adaptability contributed to the overall success or learning experience of the research project.

Example: “ In a recent qualitative study on community health practices, I encountered a significant challenge when the planned in-person interviews became unfeasible due to a sudden public health concern. The initial methodology was designed around face-to-face interactions to capture rich, detailed narratives. However, with participant safety as a priority, I quickly pivoted to remote data collection methods. After reviewing relevant literature on virtual qualitative research, I adapted the protocol to include video conferencing and phone interviews, ensuring I could still engage deeply with participants. This adaptation required a reevaluation of our ethical considerations, particularly around confidentiality and informed consent in digital formats.

The shift to remote interviews introduced concerns about potential biases, as the change might exclude individuals without access to the necessary technology. To mitigate this, I also offered the option of asynchronous voice recordings or email responses as a means to participate. This inclusive approach not only preserved the integrity of the study but also revealed an unexpected layer of data regarding digital literacy and access in the community. The study’s findings were robust, and the methodology adaptation was reflected upon in the final report, contributing to the discourse on the flexibility and resilience of qualitative research in dynamic contexts.”

3. What strategies do you employ for effective participant observation?

For effective participant observation, a balance between immersion and detachment is necessary to gather in-depth understanding without influencing the natural setting. This method allows the researcher to collect rich, contextual data that surveys or structured interviews might miss.

When responding to this question, highlight your ability to blend in with the participant group to minimize your impact on their behavior. Discuss your skills in active listening, detailed note-taking, and ethical considerations such as informed consent and maintaining confidentiality. Mention any techniques you use to reflect on your observations critically and how you ensure that your presence does not alter the dynamics of the group you are studying. It’s also effective to provide examples from past research where your participant observation led to valuable insights that informed your study’s findings.

Example: “ In participant observation, my primary strategy is to achieve a balance between immersion and detachment. I immerse myself in the environment to gain a deep understanding of the context and participants’ perspectives, while remaining sufficiently detached to observe and analyze behaviors and interactions objectively. To blend in, I adapt to the cultural norms and social cues of the group, which often involves a period of learning and adjustment to minimize my impact on their behavior.

Active listening is central to my approach, allowing me to capture the subtleties of communication beyond verbal exchanges. I complement this with meticulous note-taking, often employing a system of shorthand that enables me to record details without disrupting the flow of interaction. Ethically, I prioritize informed consent and confidentiality, ensuring participants are aware of my role and the study’s purpose. After observations, I engage in reflexive practice, critically examining my own biases and influence on the research setting. This reflexivity was instrumental in a past project where my awareness of my impact on group dynamics led to the discovery of underlying power structures that were not immediately apparent, significantly enriching the study’s findings.”

4. In what ways do you maintain ethical standards while conducting in-depth interviews?

Maintaining ethical standards during in-depth interviews involves respecting participant confidentiality, ensuring informed consent, and being sensitive to power dynamics. Ethical practice in this context is not only about adhering to institutional guidelines but also about fostering an environment where interviewees feel respected and understood.

When responding to this question, it’s vital to articulate a clear understanding of ethical frameworks such as confidentiality and informed consent. Describe specific strategies you employ, such as anonymizing data, obtaining consent through clear communication about the study’s purpose and the participant’s role, and ensuring the interviewee’s comfort and safety during the conversation. Highlight any training or certifications you’ve received in ethical research practices and give examples from past research experiences where you navigated ethical dilemmas successfully. This approach demonstrates your commitment to integrity in the research process and your ability to protect the well-being of your subjects.

Example: “ Maintaining ethical standards during in-depth interviews is paramount to the integrity of the research process. I ensure that all participants are fully aware of the study’s purpose, their role within it, and the ways in which their data will be used. This is achieved through a clear and comprehensive informed consent process. I always provide participants with the option to withdraw from the study at any point without penalty.

To safeguard confidentiality, I employ strategies such as anonymizing data and using secure storage methods. I am also attentive to the comfort and safety of interviewees, creating a respectful and non-threatening interview environment. In situations where sensitive topics may arise, I am trained to handle these with the necessary care and professionalism. For instance, in a past study involving vulnerable populations, I implemented additional privacy measures and worked closely with an ethics review board to navigate the complexities of the research context. My approach is always to prioritize the dignity and rights of the participants, adhering to ethical guidelines and best practices established in the field.”

5. How do you approach coding textual data without personal biases influencing outcomes?

When an interviewer poses a question about coding textual data free from personal biases, they are probing your ability to maintain objectivity and adhere to methodological rigor. This question tests your understanding of qualitative analysis techniques and your awareness of the researcher’s potential to skew data interpretation.

When responding, it’s essential to articulate your familiarity with established coding procedures such as open, axial, or thematic coding. Emphasize your systematic approach to data analysis, which might include multiple rounds of coding, peer debriefing, and maintaining a reflexive journal. Discuss the importance of bracketing your preconceptions during data analysis and how you would seek to validate your coding through methods such as triangulation or member checking. Your answer should convey a balance between a structured approach to coding and an openness to the data’s nuances, demonstrating your commitment to producing unbiased and trustworthy qualitative research findings.

Example: “ In approaching textual data coding, I adhere to a structured yet flexible methodology that mitigates personal bias. Initially, I engage in open coding to categorize data based on its manifest content, allowing patterns to emerge organically. This is followed by axial coding, where I explore connections between categories, and if applicable, thematic coding to identify overarching themes. Throughout this process, I maintain a reflexive journal to document my thought process and potential biases, ensuring transparency and self-awareness.

To ensure the reliability of my coding, I employ peer debriefing sessions, where colleagues scrutinize my coding decisions, challenging assumptions and offering alternative interpretations. This collaborative scrutiny helps to counteract any personal biases that might have crept into the analysis. Additionally, I utilize methods such as triangulation, comparing data across different sources, and member checking, soliciting feedback from participants on the accuracy of the coded data. These strategies collectively serve to validate the coding process and ensure that the findings are a credible representation of the data, rather than a reflection of my preconceptions.”

6. What is your experience with utilizing grounded theory in qualitative studies?

Grounded theory is a systematic methodology that operates almost in a reverse fashion from traditional research. Employers ask about your experience with grounded theory to assess your ability to conduct research that is flexible and adaptable to the data.

When responding, you should outline specific studies or projects where you’ve applied grounded theory. Discuss the nature of the data you worked with, the process of iterative data collection and analysis, and how you developed a theoretical framework as a result. Highlight any challenges you faced and how you overcame them, as well as the outcomes of your research. This will show your practical experience and your ability to engage deeply with qualitative data to extract meaningful theories and conclusions.

Example: “ In applying grounded theory to my qualitative studies, I have embraced its iterative approach to develop a theoretical framework grounded in empirical data. For instance, in a project exploring the coping mechanisms of individuals with chronic illnesses, I conducted in-depth interviews and focus groups, allowing the data to guide the research process. Through constant comparative analysis, I coded the data, identifying core categories and the relationships between them. This emergent coding process was central to refining and saturating the categories, ensuring the development of a robust theory that encapsulated the lived experiences of the participants.

Challenges such as data saturation and ensuring theoretical sensitivity were navigated by maintaining a balance between openness to the data and guiding research questions. The iterative nature of grounded theory facilitated the identification of nuanced coping strategies that were not initially apparent, leading to a theory that emphasized the dynamic interplay between personal agency and social support. The outcome was a substantive theory that not only provided a deeper understanding of the participants’ experiences but also had practical implications for designing support systems for individuals with chronic conditions.”

7. Outline the steps you take when conducting a thematic analysis.

Thematic analysis is a method used to identify, analyze, and report patterns within data, and it requires a systematic approach to ensure validity and reliability. This question assesses whether a candidate can articulate a clear, methodical process that will yield insightful findings from qualitative data.

When responding, you should outline a step-by-step process that begins with familiarization with the data, whereby you immerse yourself in the details, taking notes and highlighting initial ideas. Proceed to generating initial codes across the entire dataset, which involves organizing data into meaningful groups. Then, search for themes by collating codes into potential themes and gathering all data relevant to each potential theme. Review these themes to ensure they work in relation to the coded extracts and the entire dataset, refining them as necessary. Define and name themes, which entails developing a detailed analysis of each theme and determining the essence of what each theme is about. Finally, report the findings, weaving the analytic narrative with vivid examples, within the context of existing literature and the research questions. This methodical response not only showcases your technical knowledge but also demonstrates an organized thought process and the ability to communicate complex procedures clearly.

Example: “ In conducting a thematic analysis, I begin by thoroughly immersing myself in the data, which involves meticulously reading and re-reading the content to gain a deep understanding of its breadth and depth. During this stage, I make extensive notes and begin to mark initial ideas that strike me as potentially significant.

Following familiarization, I generate initial codes systematically across the entire dataset. This coding process is both reflective and interpretative, as it requires me to identify and categorize data segments that are pertinent to the research questions. These codes are then used to organize the data into meaningful groups.

Next, I search for themes by examining the codes and considering how they may combine to form overarching themes. This involves collating all the coded data relevant to each potential theme and considering the interrelationships between codes, themes, and different levels of themes, which may include sub-themes.

The subsequent step is to review these themes, checking them against the dataset to ensure they accurately represent the data. This may involve collapsing some themes into each other, splitting others, and refining the specifics of each theme. The essence of this iterative process is to refine the themes so that they tell a coherent story about the data.

Once the themes are satisfactorily developed, I define and name them. This involves a detailed analysis of each theme and determining what aspect of the data each theme captures. I aim to articulate the nuances within each theme, identifying the story that each tells about the data, and considering how this relates to the broader research questions and literature.

Lastly, I report the findings, weaving together the thematic analysis narrative. This includes selecting vivid examples that compellingly illustrate each theme, discussing how the themes interconnect, and situating them within the context of existing literature and the research questions. This final write-up is not merely about summarizing the data but about telling a story that provides insights into the research topic.”

8. When is it appropriate to use focus groups rather than individual interviews, and why?

Choosing between focus groups and individual interviews depends on the research goals and the nature of the information sought. Focus groups excel in exploring complex behaviors, attitudes, and experiences through the dynamic interaction of participants.

When responding to this question, articulate the strengths of both methods, matching them to specific research scenarios. For focus groups, emphasize your ability to facilitate lively, guided discussions that leverage group dynamics to elicit a breadth of perspectives. For individual interviews, highlight your skill in creating a safe, confidential space where participants can share detailed, personal experiences. Demonstrate strategic thinking by discussing how you would decide on the most suitable method based on the research question, participant characteristics, and the type of data needed to achieve your research objectives.

Example: “ Focus groups are particularly apt when the research question benefits from the interaction among participants, as the group dynamics can stimulate memories, ideas, and experiences that might not surface in one-on-one interviews. They are valuable for exploring the range of opinions or feelings about a topic, allowing researchers to observe consensus formation, the diversity of perspectives, and the reasoning behind attitudes. This method is also efficient for gathering a breadth of data in a limited timeframe. However, it’s crucial to ensure that the topic is suitable for discussion in a group setting and that participants are comfortable speaking in front of others.

Conversely, individual interviews are more appropriate when the subject matter is sensitive or requires deep exploration of personal experiences. They provide a private space for participants to share detailed and nuanced insights without the influence of others, which can be particularly important when discussing topics that may not be openly talked about in a group. The method allows for a tailored approach, where the interviewer can adapt questions based on the participant’s responses, facilitating a depth of understanding that is harder to achieve in a group setting. The decision between the two methods ultimately hinges on the specific needs of the research, the nature of the topic, and the goals of the study.”

9. Detail how you would validate findings from a case study research design.

In case study research, validation is paramount to ensure that interpretations and conclusions are credible. A well-validated case study reinforces the rigor of the research method and bolsters the transferability of its findings to other contexts.

When responding to this question, detail your process, which might include triangulation, where you corroborate findings with multiple data sources or perspectives; member checking, which involves sharing your interpretations with participants for their input; and seeking peer debriefing, where colleagues critique the process and findings. Explain how these methods contribute to the dependability and confirmability of your research, showing that you are not just collecting data but actively engaging with it to construct a solid, defensible narrative.

Example: “ In validating findings from a case study research design, I employ a multi-faceted approach to ensure the dependability and confirmability of the research. Triangulation is a cornerstone of my validation process, where I corroborate evidence from various data sources, such as interviews, observations, and documents. This method allows for cross-validation and helps in constructing a robust narrative by revealing consistencies and discrepancies in the data.

Member checking is another essential step in my process. By sharing my interpretations with participants, I not only honor their perspectives but also enhance the credibility of the findings. This iterative process ensures that the conclusions drawn are reflective of the participants’ experiences and not solely based on my own interpretations.

Lastly, peer debriefing serves as a critical checkpoint. By engaging colleagues who critique the research process and findings, I open the study to external scrutiny, which helps in mitigating any potential biases and enhances the study’s rigor. These colleagues act as devil’s advocates, challenging assumptions and conclusions, thereby strengthening the study’s validity. Collectively, these strategies form a comprehensive approach to validating case study research, ensuring that the findings are well-substantiated and trustworthy.”

10. What measures do you take to ensure the transferability of your qualitative research findings?

When asked about ensuring transferability, the interviewer is assessing your ability to articulate the relevance of your findings beyond the specific context of your study. They want to know if you can critically appraise your research design and methodology.

To respond effectively, you should discuss the thoroughness of your data collection methods, such as purposive sampling, to gather diverse perspectives that enhance the depth of the data. Explain your engagement with participants and the setting to ensure a rich understanding of the phenomenon under study. Highlight your detailed documentation of the research process, including your reflexivity, to allow others to follow your footsteps analytically. Finally, speak about how you communicate the boundaries of your research applicability and how you encourage readers to consider the transferability of findings to their contexts through clear and comprehensive descriptions of your study’s context, participants, and assumptions.

Example: “ In ensuring the transferability of my qualitative research findings, I prioritize a robust and purposive sampling strategy that captures a wide range of perspectives relevant to the research question. This approach not only enriches the data but also provides a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon across varied contexts. By doing so, I lay a foundation for the findings to resonate with similar situations, allowing others to judge the applicability of the results to their own contexts.

I meticulously document the research process, including the setting, participant interactions, and my own reflexivity, to provide a transparent and detailed account of how conclusions were reached. This level of documentation serves as a roadmap for other researchers or practitioners to understand the intricacies of the study and evaluate the potential for transferability. Furthermore, I ensure that my findings are presented with a clear delineation of the context, including any cultural, temporal, or geographic nuances, and discuss the assumptions underpinning the study. By offering this rich, contextualized description, I invite readers to engage critically with the findings and assess their relevance to other settings, thus facilitating a responsible and informed application of the research outcomes.”

11. How do you determine when data saturation has been reached in your study?

Determining data saturation is crucial because it signals when additional data does not yield new insights, ensuring efficient use of resources without compromising the depth of understanding. This question is posed to assess a candidate’s experience and judgment in qualitative research.

When responding to this question, one should highlight their systematic approach to data collection and analysis. Discuss the iterative process of engaging with the data, constantly comparing new information with existing codes and themes. Explain how you monitor for emerging patterns and at what point these patterns become consistent and repeatable, indicating saturation. Mention any specific techniques or criteria you employ, such as the use of thematic analysis or constant comparison methods, and how you document the decision-making process to ensure transparency and validity in your research findings.

Example: “ In determining data saturation, I employ a rigorous and iterative approach to data collection and analysis. As I engage with the data, I continuously compare new information against existing codes and themes, carefully monitoring for the emergence of new patterns or insights. Saturation is approached when the data begins to yield redundant information, and no new themes or codes are emerging from the analysis.

I utilize techniques such as thematic analysis and constant comparison methods to ensure a systematic examination of the data. I document each step of the decision-making process, noting when additional data does not lead to new theme identification or when existing themes are fully fleshed out. This documentation not only serves as a checkpoint for determining saturation but also enhances the transparency and validity of the research findings. Through this meticulous process, I can confidently assert that data saturation has been achieved when the collected data offers a comprehensive understanding of the research phenomenon, with a rich and well-developed thematic structure that accurately reflects the research scope.”

12. Relate an instance where member checking significantly altered your research conclusions.

Member checking serves as a vital checkpoint to ensure accuracy, credibility, and resonance of the data with those it represents. It can reveal misunderstandings or even introduce new insights that substantially shift the study’s trajectory or outcomes.

When responding, candidates should recount a specific project where member checking made a pivotal difference in their findings. They should detail the initial conclusions, how the process of member checking was integrated, what feedback was received, and how it led to a re-evaluation or refinement of the research outcomes. This response showcases the candidate’s methodological rigor, flexibility in incorporating feedback, and dedication to producing research that authentically reflects the voices and experiences of the study’s participants.

Example: “ In a recent qualitative study on community responses to urban redevelopment, initial findings suggested broad support for the initiatives among residents. However, during the member checking phase, when participants reviewed and commented on the findings, a nuanced perspective emerged. Several participants highlighted that their apparent support was, in fact, resignation due to a lack of viable alternatives, rather than genuine enthusiasm for the redevelopment plans.

This feedback prompted a deeper dive into the data, revealing a pattern of resigned acceptance across a significant portion of the interviews. The conclusion was substantially revised to reflect this sentiment, emphasizing the complexity of community responses to redevelopment, which included both cautious optimism and skeptical resignation. This critical insight not only enriched the study’s validity but also had profound implications for policymakers interested in understanding the true sentiment of the affected communities.”

13. What are the key considerations when selecting a sample for phenomenological research?

The selection of a sample in phenomenological research is not about quantity but about the richness and relevance of the data that participants can provide. It requires an intimate knowledge of the research question and a deliberate choice to include participants who have experienced the phenomenon in question.

When responding to this question, it’s essential to emphasize the need for a purposeful sampling strategy that aims to capture a broad spectrum of perspectives on the phenomenon under study. Discuss the importance of sample diversity to ensure the findings are robust and reflect varied experiences. Mention the necessity of establishing clear criteria for participant selection and the willingness to adapt as the research progresses. Highlighting your commitment to ethical considerations, such as informed consent and the respectful treatment of participants’ information, will also demonstrate your thorough understanding of the nuances in qualitative sampling.

Example: “ In phenomenological research, the primary goal is to understand the essence of experiences concerning a particular phenomenon. Therefore, the key considerations for sample selection revolve around identifying individuals who have experienced the phenomenon of interest and can articulate their lived experiences. Purposeful sampling is essential to ensure that the participants chosen can provide rich, detailed accounts that contribute to a deep understanding of the phenomenon.

The diversity of the sample is also crucial. It is important to select participants who represent a range of perspectives within the phenomenon, not just a homogenous group. This might involve considering factors such as age, gender, socio-economic status, or other relevant characteristics that could influence their experiences. While the sample size in phenomenological studies is often small to allow for in-depth analysis, it is vital to ensure that the sample is varied enough to uncover a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon.

Lastly, ethical considerations are paramount. Participants must give informed consent, understanding the nature of the study and their role in it. The researcher must also be prepared to handle sensitive information with confidentiality and respect, ensuring the participants’ well-being is prioritized throughout the study. Adapting the sample selection criteria as the study progresses is also important, as initial interviews may reveal additional nuances that require the inclusion of further varied perspectives to fully grasp the phenomenon.”

14. Which software tools do you prefer for qualitative data analysis, and for what reasons?

The choice of software tools for qualitative data analysis reflects a researcher’s approach to data synthesis and interpretation. It also indicates their proficiency with technology and their ability to leverage sophisticated features to deepen insights.

When responding, it’s essential to discuss specific features of the software tools you prefer, such as coding capabilities, ease of data management, collaborative features, or the ability to handle large datasets. Explain how these features have enhanced your research outcomes in the past. For example, you might highlight the use of NVivo for its robust coding structure that helped you organize complex data efficiently or Atlas.ti for its intuitive interface and visualization tools that made it easier to detect emerging patterns. Your response should demonstrate your analytical thought process and your commitment to rigorous qualitative analysis.

Example: “ In my qualitative research endeavors, I have found NVivo to be an invaluable tool, primarily due to its advanced coding capabilities and its ability to manage large and complex datasets effectively. The node structure in NVivo facilitates a hierarchical organization of themes, which streamlines the coding process and enhances the reliability of the data analysis. This feature was particularly beneficial in a recent project where the depth and volume of textual data required a robust system to ensure consistency and comprehensiveness in theme development.

Another tool I frequently utilize is Atlas.ti, which stands out for its user-friendly interface and powerful visualization tools. These features are instrumental in identifying and illustrating relationships between themes, thereby enriching the interpretive depth of the analysis. The network views in Atlas.ti have enabled me to construct clear visual representations of the data interconnections, which not only supported my analytical narrative but also facilitated stakeholder understanding and engagement. The combination of these tools, leveraging their respective strengths, has consistently augmented the quality and impact of my qualitative research outcomes.”

15. How do you handle discrepancies between participants’ words and actions in ethnographic research?

Ethnographic research hinges on the researcher’s ability to interpret both verbal and non-verbal data to draw meaningful conclusions. This question allows the interviewer to assess a candidate’s methodological rigor and analytical skills.

When responding, it’s essential to emphasize your systematic approach to reconciling such discrepancies. Discuss the importance of context, the use of triangulation to corroborate findings through multiple data sources, and the strategies you employ to interpret and integrate conflicting information. Highlight your commitment to ethical research practices, the ways you ensure participant understanding and consent, and your experience with reflective practice to mitigate researcher bias. Showcasing your ability to remain flexible and responsive to the data, while maintaining a clear analytical framework, will demonstrate your proficiency in qualitative research.

Example: “ In ethnographic research, discrepancies between participants’ words and actions are not only common but also a valuable source of insight. When I encounter such discrepancies, I first consider the context in which they occur, as it often holds the key to understanding the divergence. Cultural norms, social pressures, or even the presence of the researcher can influence participants’ behaviors and self-reporting. I employ triangulation, utilizing multiple data sources such as interviews, observations, and relevant documents to construct a more comprehensive understanding of the phenomena at hand.

I also engage in reflective practice to examine my own biases and assumptions that might influence data interpretation. By maintaining a stance of cultural humility and being open to the participants’ perspectives, I can better understand the reasons behind their actions and words. When integrating conflicting information, I look for patterns and themes that can reconcile the differences, often finding that they reveal deeper complexities within the social context being studied. Ethical research practices, including ensuring participant understanding and consent, are paramount throughout this process, as they help maintain the integrity of both the data and the relationships with participants.”

16. What role does reflexivity play in your research process?

Reflexivity is an ongoing self-assessment that ensures research findings are not merely a reflection of the researcher’s preconceptions, thereby increasing the credibility and authenticity of the work.

When responding, illustrate your understanding of reflexivity with examples from past research experiences. Discuss how you have actively engaged in reflexivity by questioning your assumptions, how this shaped your research design, and the methods you employed to ensure that your findings were informed by the data rather than your personal beliefs. Demonstrate your commitment to ethical research practice by highlighting how you’ve maintained an open dialogue with your participants and peers to challenge and refine your interpretations.

Example: “ Reflexivity is a cornerstone of my qualitative research methodology, as it allows me to critically examine my own influence on the research process and outcomes. In practice, I maintain a reflexive journal throughout the research process, documenting my preconceptions, emotional responses, and decision-making rationales. This ongoing self-analysis ensures that I remain aware of my potential biases and the ways in which my background and perspectives might shape the data collection and analysis.

For instance, in a recent ethnographic study, I recognized my own cultural assumptions could affect participant interactions. To mitigate this, I incorporated member checking and peer debriefing as integral parts of the research cycle. By actively seeking feedback on my interpretations from both participants and fellow researchers, I was able to challenge my initial readings of the data and uncover deeper, more nuanced insights. This reflexive approach not only enriched the research findings but also upheld the integrity and credibility of the study, fostering a more authentic and ethical representation of the participants’ experiences.”

17. Describe a complex qualitative dataset you’ve managed and how you navigated its challenges.

Managing a complex qualitative dataset requires meticulous organization, a strong grasp of research methods, and the ability to discern patterns and themes amidst a sea of words and narratives. This question evaluates the candidate’s analytical and critical thinking skills.

When responding to this question, you should focus on a specific project that exemplifies your experience with complex qualitative data. Outline the scope of the data, the methods you used for organization and analysis, and the challenges you encountered—such as data coding, thematic saturation, or ensuring reliability and validity. Discuss the strategies you implemented to address these challenges, such as iterative coding, member checking, or triangulation. By providing concrete examples, you demonstrate not only your technical ability but also your methodological rigor and dedication to producing insightful, credible research findings.

Example: “ In a recent project, I managed a complex qualitative dataset that comprised over 50 in-depth interviews, several focus groups, and field notes from participant observation. The data was rich with nuanced perspectives on community health practices, but it presented challenges in ensuring thematic saturation and maintaining a systematic approach to coding across multiple researchers.

To navigate these challenges, I employed a rigorous iterative coding process, utilizing NVivo software to facilitate organization and analysis. Initially, I conducted a round of open coding to identify preliminary themes, followed by axial coding to explore the relationships between these themes. As the dataset was extensive, I also implemented a strategy of constant comparison to refine and merge codes, ensuring thematic saturation was achieved. To enhance the reliability and validity of our findings, I organized regular peer debriefing sessions, where the research team could discuss and resolve discrepancies in coding and interpretation. Additionally, I conducted member checks with a subset of participants, which not only enriched the data but also validated our thematic constructs. This meticulous approach enabled us to develop a robust thematic framework that accurately reflected the complexity of the community’s health practices and informed subsequent policy recommendations.”

18. How do you integrate quantitative data to enhance the richness of a primarily qualitative study?

Integrating quantitative data with qualitative research can add a layer of objectivity, enhance validity, and offer a scalable dimension to the findings. This mixed-methods approach can help in identifying outliers or anomalies in qualitative data.

When responding to this question, a candidate should articulate their understanding of both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies. They should discuss specific techniques such as triangulation, where quantitative data serves as a corroborative tool for qualitative findings, or embedded analysis, where quantitative data provides a backdrop for deep qualitative exploration. The response should also include practical examples of past research scenarios where the candidate successfully merged both data types to strengthen their study, highlighting their ability to create a symbiotic relationship between numbers and narratives for richer, more robust research outcomes.

Example: “ Integrating quantitative data into a qualitative study can significantly enhance the depth and credibility of the research findings. In my experience, I employ triangulation to ensure that themes emerging from qualitative data are not only rich in context but also empirically grounded. For instance, in a study exploring patient satisfaction, while qualitative interviews might reveal nuanced patient experiences, quantitative satisfaction scores can be used to validate and quantify the prevalence of these experiences across a larger population.

Furthermore, I often use quantitative data as a formative tool to guide the qualitative inquiry. By initially analyzing patterns in quantitative data, I can identify areas that require a deeper understanding through qualitative methods. For example, if a survey indicates a trend in consumer behavior, follow-up interviews or focus groups can explore the motivations behind that trend. This embedded analysis approach ensures that qualitative findings are not only contextually informed but also quantitatively relevant, leading to a more comprehensive understanding of the research question.”

19. What is your rationale for choosing narrative inquiry over other qualitative methods in storytelling contexts?

Narrative inquiry delves into individual stories to find broader truths and patterns. This method captures the richness of how people perceive and make sense of their lives, revealing the interplay of various factors in shaping narratives.

When responding, articulate your understanding of narrative inquiry, emphasizing its strengths in capturing lived experiences and its ability to provide a detailed, insider’s view of a phenomenon. Highlight your knowledge of how narrative inquiry can uncover the nuances of storytelling, such as the role of language, emotions, and context, which are essential for a deep understanding of the subject matter. Demonstrate your ability to choose an appropriate research method based on the research question, objectives, and the nature of the data you aim to collect.

Example: “ Narrative inquiry is a powerful qualitative method that aligns exceptionally well with the exploration of storytelling contexts due to its focus on the richness of personal experience and the construction of meaning. By delving into individuals’ stories, narrative inquiry allows researchers to capture the complexities of lived experiences, which are often embedded with emotions, cultural values, and temporal elements that other methods may not fully grasp. The longitudinal nature of narrative inquiry, where stories can be collected and analyzed over time, also offers a dynamic perspective on how narratives evolve, intersect, and influence the storyteller’s identity and worldview.

In choosing narrative inquiry, one is committing to a methodological approach that honors the subjectivity and co-construction of knowledge between the researcher and participants. This approach is particularly adept at uncovering the layers of language use, symbolism, and the interplay of narratives with broader societal discourses. It is this depth and nuance that makes narrative inquiry the method of choice when the research aim is not just to catalog events but to understand the profound implications of storytelling on individual and collective levels. The method’s flexibility in accommodating different narrative forms – be it oral, written, or visual – further underscores its suitability for research that seeks to holistically capture the essence of storytelling within its natural context.”

20. How do you address potential power dynamics that may influence a participant’s responses during interviews?

Recognizing and mitigating the influence of power dynamics is essential to maintain the integrity of the data collected in qualitative research, ensuring that findings reflect the participants’ genuine perspectives.

When responding to this question, one should emphasize their awareness of such dynamics and articulate strategies to minimize their impact. This could include techniques like establishing rapport, using neutral language, ensuring confidentiality, and employing reflexivity—being mindful of one’s own influence on the conversation. Furthermore, demonstrating an understanding of how to create a safe space for open dialogue and acknowledging the importance of participant empowerment can convey a commitment to ethical and effective qualitative research practices.

Example: “ In addressing potential power dynamics, my approach begins with the conscious effort to create an environment of trust and safety. I employ active listening and empathetic engagement to establish rapport, which helps to level the conversational field. I am meticulous in using neutral, non-leading language to avoid inadvertently imposing my own assumptions or perspectives on participants. This is complemented by an emphasis on the voluntary nature of participation and the assurance of confidentiality, which together foster a space where participants feel secure in sharing their authentic experiences.

Reflexivity is a cornerstone of my practice; I continuously self-assess and acknowledge my positionality and its potential influence on the research process. By engaging in this critical self-reflection, I am better equipped to recognize and mitigate any power imbalances that may arise. Moreover, I strive to empower participants by validating their narratives and ensuring that the interview process is not just extractive but also offers them a platform to be heard and to contribute meaningfully to the research. This balanced approach not only enriches the data quality but also adheres to the ethical standards that underpin responsible qualitative research.”

Top 20 Stakeholder Interview Questions & Answers

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83 Qualitative Research Questions & Examples

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Qualitative research questions help you understand consumer sentiment. They’re strategically designed to show organizations how and why people feel the way they do about a brand, product, or service. It looks beyond the numbers and is one of the most telling types of market research a company can do.

The UK Data Service describes this perfectly, saying, “The value of qualitative research is that it gives a voice to the lived experience .”

Read on to see seven use cases and 83 qualitative research questions, with the added bonus of examples that show how to get similar insights faster with Similarweb Research Intelligence.

What is a qualitative research question?

A qualitative research question explores a topic in-depth, aiming to better understand the subject through interviews, observations, and other non-numerical data. Qualitative research questions are open-ended, helping to uncover a target audience’s opinions, beliefs, and motivations.

How to choose qualitative research questions?

Choosing the right qualitative research questions can be incremental to the success of your research and the findings you uncover. Here’s my six-step process for choosing the best qualitative research questions.

• Start by understanding the purpose of your research. What do you want to learn? What outcome are you hoping to achieve?
• Consider who you are researching. What are their experiences, attitudes, and beliefs? How can you best capture these in your research questions ?
• Keep your questions open-ended . Qualitative research questions should not be too narrow or too broad. Aim to ask specific questions to provide meaningful answers but broad enough to allow for exploration.
• Balance your research questions. You don’t want all of your questions to be the same type. Aim to mix up your questions to get a variety of answers.
• Ensure your research questions are ethical and free from bias. Always have a second (and third) person check for unconscious bias.
• Consider the language you use. Your questions should be written in a way that is clear and easy to understand. Avoid using jargon , acronyms, or overly technical language.

Types of qualitative research questions

For a question to be considered qualitative, it usually needs to be open-ended. However, as I’ll explain, there can sometimes be a slight cross-over between quantitative and qualitative research questions.

Open-ended questions

These allow for a wide range of responses and can be formatted with multiple-choice answers or a free-text box to collect additional details. The next two types of qualitative questions are considered open questions, but each has its own style and purpose.

• Probing questions are used to delve deeper into a respondent’s thoughts, such as “Can you tell me more about why you feel that way?”
• Comparative questions ask people to compare two or more items, such as “Which product do you prefer and why?” These qualitative questions are highly useful for understanding brand awareness , competitive analysis , and more.

Closed-ended questions

These ask respondents to choose from a predetermined set of responses, such as “On a scale of 1-5, how satisfied are you with the new product?” While they’re traditionally quantitative, adding a free text box that asks for extra comments into why a specific rating was chosen will provide qualitative insights alongside their respective quantitative research question responses.

• Ranking questions get people to rank items in order of preference, such as “Please rank these products in terms of quality.” They’re advantageous in many scenarios, like product development, competitive analysis, and brand awareness.
• Likert scale questions ask people to rate items on a scale, such as “On a scale of 1-5, how satisfied are you with the new product?” Ideal for placement on websites and emails to gather quick, snappy feedback.

Qualitative research question examples

There are many applications of qualitative research and lots of ways you can put your findings to work for the success of your business. Here’s a summary of the most common use cases for qualitative questions and examples to ask.

Qualitative questions for identifying customer needs and motivations

These types of questions help you find out why customers choose products or services and what they are looking for when making a purchase.

• What factors do you consider when deciding to buy a product?
• What would make you choose one product or service over another?
• What are the most important elements of a product that you would buy?
• What features do you look for when purchasing a product?
• What qualities do you look for in a company’s products?
• Do you prefer localized or global brands when making a purchase?
• How do you determine the value of a product?
• What do you think is the most important factor when choosing a product?
• How do you decide if a product or service is worth the money?
• Do you have any specific expectations when purchasing a product?
• Do you prefer to purchase products or services online or in person?
• What kind of customer service do you expect when buying a product?
• How do you decide when it is time to switch to a different product?
• Where do you research products before you decide to buy?
• What do you think is the most important customer value when making a purchase?

Qualitative research questions to enhance customer experience

Use these questions to reveal insights into how customers interact with a company’s products or services and how those experiences can be improved.

• What aspects of our product or service do customers find most valuable?
• How do customers perceive our customer service?
• What factors are most important to customers when purchasing?
• What do customers think of our brand?
• What do customers think of our current marketing efforts?
• How do customers feel about the features and benefits of our product?
• How do customers feel about the price of our product or service?
• How could we improve the customer experience?
• What do customers think of our website or app?
• What do customers think of our customer support?
• What could we do to make our product or service easier to use?
• What do customers think of our competitors?
• What is your preferred way to access our site?
• How do customers feel about our delivery/shipping times?
• What do customers think of our loyalty programs?

Qualitative research question example for customer experience

• ‍♀️ Question: What is your preferred way to access our site?
• Insight sought: How mobile-dominant are consumers? Should you invest more in mobile optimization or mobile marketing?
• Challenges with traditional qualitative research methods: While using this type of question is ideal if you have a large database to survey when placed on a site or sent to a limited customer list, it only gives you a point-in-time perspective from a limited group of people.
• A new approach: You can get better, broader insights quicker with Similarweb Digital Research Intelligence. To fully inform your research, you need to know preferences at the industry or market level.
• ⏰ Time to insight: 30 seconds
• ✅ How it’s done: Similarweb offers multiple ways to answer this question without going through a lengthy qualitative research process. 

First, I’m going to do a website market analysis of the banking credit and lending market in the finance sector to get a clearer picture of industry benchmarks.

Here, I can view device preferences across any industry or market instantly. It shows me the device distribution for any country across any period. This clearly answers the question of how mobile dominate my target audience is , with 59.79% opting to access site via a desktop vs. 40.21% via mobile

I then use the trends section to show me the exact split between mobile and web traffic for each key player in my space. Let’s say I’m about to embark on a competitive campaign that targets customers of Chase and Bank of America ; I can see both their audiences are highly desktop dominant compared with others in their space .

Qualitative question examples for developing new products or services

Research questions like this can help you understand customer pain points and give you insights to develop products that meet those needs.

• What is the primary reason you would choose to purchase a product from our company?
• How do you currently use products or services that are similar to ours?
• Is there anything that could be improved with products currently on the market?
• What features would you like to see added to our products?
• How do you prefer to contact a customer service team?
• What do you think sets our company apart from our competitors?
• What other product or service offerings would like to see us offer?
• What type of information would help you make decisions about buying a product?
• What type of advertising methods are most effective in getting your attention?
• What is the biggest deterrent to purchasing products from us?

Qualitative research question example for service development

• ‍♀️ Question: What type of advertising methods are most effective in getting your attention?
• Insight sought: The marketing channels and/or content that performs best with a target audience .
• Challenges with traditional qualitative research methods: When using qualitative research surveys to answer questions like this, the sample size is limited, and bias could be at play.
• A better approach: The most authentic insights come from viewing real actions and results that take place in the digital world. No questions or answers are needed to uncover this intel, and the information you seek is readily available in less than a minute.
• ⏰ Time to insight: 5 minutes
• ✅ How it’s done: There are a few ways to approach this. You can either take an industry-wide perspective or hone in on specific competitors to unpack their individual successes. Here, I’ll quickly show a snapshot with a whole market perspective.

Using the market analysis element of Similarweb Digital Intelligence, I select my industry or market, which I’ve kept as banking and credit. A quick click into marketing channels shows me which channels drive the highest traffic in my market. Taking direct traffic out of the equation, for now, I can see that referrals and organic traffic are the two highest-performing channels in this market.

Similarweb allows me to view the specific referral partners and pages across these channels. 

Looking closely at referrals in this market, I’ve chosen chase.com and its five closest rivals . I select referrals in the channel traffic element of marketing channels. I see that Capital One is a clear winner, gaining almost 25 million visits due to referral partnerships.

Next, I get to see exactly who is referring traffic to Capital One and the total traffic share for each referrer. I can see the growth as a percentage and how that has changed, along with an engagement score that rates the average engagement level of that audience segment. This is particularly useful when deciding on which new referral partnerships to pursue.  

Once I’ve identified the channels and campaigns that yield the best results, I can then use Similarweb to dive into the various ad creatives and content that have the greatest impact.

These ads are just a few of those listed in the creatives section from my competitive website analysis of Capital One. You can filter this list by the specific campaign, publishers, and ad networks to view those that matter to you most. You can also discover video ad creatives in the same place too.

In just five minutes ⏰ 

• I’ve captured audience loyalty statistics across my market
• Spotted the most competitive players
• Identified the marketing channels my audience is most responsive to
• I know which content and campaigns are driving the highest traffic volume
• I’ve created a target list for new referral partners and have been able to prioritize this based on results and engagement figures from my rivals
• I can see the types of creatives that my target audience is responding to, giving me ideas for ways to generate effective copy for future campaigns

Qualitative questions to determine pricing strategies

Companies need to make sure pricing stays relevant and competitive. Use these questions to determine customer perceptions on pricing and develop pricing strategies to maximize profits and reduce churn.

• How do you feel about our pricing structure?
• How does our pricing compare to other similar products?
• What value do you feel you get from our pricing?
• How could we make our pricing more attractive?
• What would be an ideal price for our product?
• Which features of our product that you would like to see priced differently?
• What discounts or deals would you like to see us offer?
• How do you feel about the amount you have to pay for our product?

Get Faster Answers to Qualitative Research Questions with Similarweb Today

Qualitative research question example for determining pricing strategies

• ‍♀️ Question: What discounts or deals would you like to see us offer?
• Insight sought: The promotions or campaigns that resonate with your target audience.
• Challenges with traditional qualitative research methods: Consumers don’t always recall the types of ads or campaigns they respond to. Over time, their needs and habits change. Your sample size is limited to those you ask, leaving a huge pool of unknowns at play.
• A better approach: While qualitative insights are good to know, you get the most accurate picture of the highest-performing promotion and campaigns by looking at data collected directly from the web. These analytics are real-world, real-time, and based on the collective actions of many, instead of the limited survey group you approach. By getting a complete picture across an entire market, your decisions are better informed and more aligned with current market trends and behaviors.
• ✅ How it’s done: Similarweb’s Popular Pages feature shows the content, products, campaigns, and pages with the highest growth for any website. So, if you’re trying to unpack the successes of others in your space and find out what content resonates with a target audience, there’s a far quicker way to get answers to these questions with Similarweb.

Here, I’m using Capital One as an example site. I can see trending pages on their site showing the largest increase in page views. Other filters include campaign, best-performing, and new–each of which shows you page URLs, share of traffic, and growth as a percentage. This page is particularly useful for staying on top of trending topics , campaigns, and new content being pushed out in a market by key competitors.

Qualitative research questions for product development teams

It’s vital to stay in touch with changing consumer needs. These questions can also be used for new product or service development, but this time, it’s from the perspective of a product manager or development team. 

• What are customers’ primary needs and wants for this product?
• What do customers think of our current product offerings?
• What is the most important feature or benefit of our product?
• How can we improve our product to meet customers’ needs better?
• What do customers like or dislike about our competitors’ products?
• What do customers look for when deciding between our product and a competitor’s?
• How have customer needs and wants for this product changed over time?
• What motivates customers to purchase this product?
• What is the most important thing customers want from this product?
• What features or benefits are most important when selecting a product?
• What do customers perceive to be our product’s pros and cons?
• What would make customers switch from a competitor’s product to ours?
• How do customers perceive our product in comparison to similar products?
• What do customers think of our pricing and value proposition?
• What do customers think of our product’s design, usability, and aesthetics?

Qualitative questions examples to understand customer segments

Market segmentation seeks to create groups of consumers with shared characteristics. Use these questions to learn more about different customer segments and how to target them with tailored messaging.

• What motivates customers to make a purchase?
• How do customers perceive our brand in comparison to our competitors?
• How do customers feel about our product quality?
• How do customers define quality in our products?
• What factors influence customers’ purchasing decisions ?
• What are the most important aspects of customer service?
• What do customers think of our customer service?
• What do customers think of our pricing?
• How do customers rate our product offerings?
• How do customers prefer to make purchases (online, in-store, etc.)?

Qualitative research question example for understanding customer segments

• ‍♀️ Question: Which social media channels are you most active on?
• Insight sought: Formulate a social media strategy . Specifically, the social media channels most likely to succeed with a target audience.
• Challenges with traditional qualitative research methods: Qualitative research question responses are limited to those you ask, giving you a limited sample size. Questions like this are usually at risk of some bias, and this may not be reflective of real-world actions.
• A better approach: Get a complete picture of social media preferences for an entire market or specific audience belonging to rival firms. Insights are available in real-time, and are based on the actions of many, not a select group of participants. Data is readily available, easy to understand, and expandable at a moment’s notice.
• ✅ How it’s done: Using Similarweb’s website analysis feature, you can get a clear breakdown of social media stats for your audience using the marketing channels element. It shows the percentage of visits from each channel to your site, respective growth, and specific referral pages by each platform. All data is expandable, meaning you can select any platform, period, and region to drill down and get more accurate intel, instantly.

This example shows me Bank of America’s social media distribution, with YouTube , Linkedin , and Facebook taking the top three spots, and accounting for almost 80% of traffic being driven from social media.

When doing any type of market research, it’s important to benchmark performance against industry averages and perform a social media competitive analysis to verify rival performance across the same channels.

Qualitative questions to inform competitive analysis

Organizations must assess market sentiment toward other players to compete and beat rival firms. Whether you want to increase market share , challenge industry leaders , or reduce churn, understanding how people view you vs. the competition is key.

• What is the overall perception of our competitors’ product offerings in the market?
• What attributes do our competitors prioritize in their customer experience?
• What strategies do our competitors use to differentiate their products from ours?
• How do our competitors position their products in relation to ours?
• How do our competitors’ pricing models compare to ours?
• What do consumers think of our competitors’ product quality?
• What do consumers think of our competitors’ customer service?
• What are the key drivers of purchase decisions in our market?
• What is the impact of our competitors’ marketing campaigns on our market share ? 10. How do our competitors leverage social media to promote their products?

Qualitative research question example for competitive analysis

• ‍♀️ Question: What other companies do you shop with for x?
• Insight sought: W ho are your competitors? Which of your rival’s sites do your customers visit? How loyal are consumers in your market?
• Challenges with traditional qualitative research methods:  Sample size is limited, and customers could be unwilling to reveal which competitors they shop with, or how often they around. Where finances are involved, people can act with reluctance or bias, and be unwilling to reveal other suppliers they do business with.
• A better approach: Get a complete picture of your audience’s loyalty, see who else they shop with, and how many other sites they visit in your competitive group. Find out the size of the untapped opportunity and which players are doing a better job at attracting unique visitors – without having to ask people to reveal their preferences.
• ✅ How it’s done: Similarweb website analysis shows you the competitive sites your audience visits, giving you access to data that shows cross-visitation habits, audience loyalty, and untapped potential in a matter of minutes.

Using the audience interests element of Similarweb website analysis, you can view the cross-browsing behaviors of a website’s audience instantly. You can see a matrix that shows the percentage of visitors on a target site and any rival site they may have visited.

With the Similarweb audience overlap feature, view the cross-visitation habits of an audience across specific websites. In this example, I chose chase.com and its four closest competitors to review. For each intersection, you see the number of unique visitors and the overall proportion of each site’s audience it represents. It also shows the volume of unreached potential visitors.

Here, you can see a direct comparison of the audience loyalty represented in a bar graph. It shows a breakdown of each site’s audience based on how many other sites they have visited. Those sites with the highest loyalty show fewer additional sites visited.

From the perspective of chase.com, I can see 47% of their visitors do not visit rival sites. 33% of their audience visited 1 or more sites in this group, 14% visited 2 or more sites, 4% visited 3 or more sites, and just 0.8% viewed all sites in this comparison. 

How to answer qualitative research questions with Similarweb

Similarweb Research Intelligence drastically improves market research efficiency and time to insight. Both of these can impact the bottom line and the pace at which organizations can adapt and flex when markets shift, and rivals change tactics.

Outdated practices, while still useful, take time . And with a quicker, more efficient way to garner similar insights, opting for the fast lane puts you at a competitive advantage.

With a birds-eye view of the actions and behaviors of companies and consumers across a market , you can answer certain research questions without the need to plan, do, and review extensive qualitative market research .

Wrapping up

Qualitative research methods have been around for centuries. From designing the questions to finding the best distribution channels, collecting and analyzing findings takes time to get the insights you need. Similarweb Digital Research Intelligence drastically improves efficiency and time to insight. Both of which impact the bottom line and the pace at which organizations can adapt and flex when markets shift.

Similarweb’s suite of digital intelligence solutions offers unbiased, accurate, honest insights you can trust for analyzing any industry, market, or audience.

• Methodologies used for data collection are robust, transparent, and trustworthy.
• Clear presentation of data via an easy-to-use, intuitive platform.
• It updates dynamically–giving you the freshest data about an industry or market.
• Data is available via an API – so you can plug into platforms like Tableau or PowerBI to streamline your analyses.
• Filter and refine results according to your needs.

Are quantitative or qualitative research questions best?

Both have their place and purpose in market research. Qualitative research questions seek to provide details, whereas quantitative market research gives you numerical statistics that are easier and quicker to analyze. You get more flexibility with qualitative questions, and they’re non-directional.

What are the advantages of qualitative research?

Qualitative research is advantageous because it allows researchers to better understand their subject matter by exploring people’s attitudes, behaviors, and motivations in a particular context. It also allows researchers to uncover new insights that may not have been discovered with quantitative research methods.

What are some of the challenges of qualitative research?

Qualitative research can be time-consuming and costly, typically involving in-depth interviews and focus groups. Additionally, there are challenges associated with the reliability and validity of the collected data, as there is no universal standard for interpreting the results.

by Liz March

Digital Research Specialist

Liz March has 15 years of experience in content creation. She enjoys the outdoors, F1, and reading, and is pursuing a BSc in Environmental Science.

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How to conduct qualitative interviews (tips and best practices)

Last updated

18 May 2023

Reviewed by

Miroslav Damyanov

However, conducting qualitative interviews can be challenging, even for seasoned researchers. Poorly conducted interviews can lead to inaccurate or incomplete data, significantly compromising the validity and reliability of your research findings.

When planning to conduct qualitative interviews, you must adequately prepare yourself to get the most out of your data. Fortunately, there are specific tips and best practices that can help you conduct qualitative interviews effectively.

• What is a qualitative interview?

A qualitative interview is a research technique used to gather in-depth information about people's experiences, attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions. Unlike a structured questionnaire or survey, a qualitative interview is a flexible, conversational approach that allows the interviewer to delve into the interviewee's responses and explore their insights and experiences.

In a qualitative interview, the researcher typically develops a set of open-ended questions that provide a framework for the conversation. However, the interviewer can also adapt to the interviewee's responses and ask follow-up questions to understand their experiences and views better.

• How to conduct interviews in qualitative research

Conducting interviews involves a well-planned and deliberate process to collect accurate and valid data. 

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to conduct interviews in qualitative research, broken down into three stages:

1. Before the interview

The first step in conducting a qualitative interview is determining your research question . This will help you identify the type of participants you need to recruit . Once you have your research question, you can start recruiting participants by identifying potential candidates and contacting them to gauge their interest in participating in the study. 

After that, it's time to develop your interview questions. These should be open-ended questions that will elicit detailed responses from participants. You'll also need to get consent from the participants, ideally in writing, to ensure that they understand the purpose of the study and their rights as participants. Finally, choose a comfortable and private location to conduct the interview and prepare the interview guide.

2. During the interview

Start by introducing yourself and explaining the purpose of the study. Establish a rapport by putting the participants at ease and making them feel comfortable. Use the interview guide to ask the questions, but be flexible and ask follow-up questions to gain more insight into the participants' responses. 

Take notes during the interview, and ask permission to record the interview for transcription purposes. Be mindful of the time, and cover all the questions in the interview guide.

3. After the interview

Once the interview is over, transcribe the interview if you recorded it. If you took notes, review and organize them to make sure you capture all the important information. Then, analyze the data you collected by identifying common themes and patterns. Use the findings to answer your research question. 

Finally, debrief with the participants to thank them for their time, provide feedback on the study, and answer any questions they may have.

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• What kinds of questions should you ask in a qualitative interview?

Qualitative interviews involve asking questions that encourage participants to share their experiences, opinions, and perspectives on a particular topic. These questions are designed to elicit detailed and nuanced responses rather than simple yes or no answers.

Effective questions in a qualitative interview are generally open-ended and non-leading. They avoid presuppositions or assumptions about the participant's experience and allow them to share their views in their own words. 

In customer research , you might ask questions such as:

What motivated you to choose our product/service over our competitors?

How did you first learn about our product/service?

Can you walk me through your experience with our product/service?

What improvements or changes would you suggest for our product/service?

Have you recommended our product/service to others, and if so, why?

The key is to ask questions relevant to the research topic and allow participants to share their experiences meaningfully and informally. 

• How to determine the right qualitative interview participants

Choosing the right participants for a qualitative interview is a crucial step in ensuring the success and validity of the research . You need to consider several factors to determine the right participants for a qualitative interview. These may include:

Relevant experiences : Participants should have experiences related to the research topic that can provide valuable insights.

Diversity : Aim to include diverse participants to ensure the study's findings are representative and inclusive.

Access : Identify participants who are accessible and willing to participate in the study.

Informed consent : Participants should be fully informed about the study's purpose, methods, and potential risks and benefits and be allowed to provide informed consent.

You can use various recruitment methods, such as posting ads in relevant forums, contacting community organizations or social media groups, or using purposive sampling to identify participants who meet specific criteria.

• How to make qualitative interview subjects comfortable

Making participants comfortable during a qualitative interview is essential to obtain rich, detailed data. Participants are more likely to share their experiences openly when they feel at ease and not judged. 

Here are some ways to make interview subjects comfortable:

Explain the purpose of the study

Start the interview by explaining the research topic and its importance. The goal is to give participants a sense of what to expect.

Create a comfortable environment

Conduct the interview in a quiet, private space where the participant feels comfortable. Turn off any unnecessary electronics that can create distractions. Ensure your equipment works well ahead of time. Arrive at the interview on time. If you conduct a remote interview, turn on your camera and mute all notetakers and observers.

Build rapport

Greet the participant warmly and introduce yourself. Show interest in their responses and thank them for their time.

Use open-ended questions

Ask questions that encourage participants to elaborate on their thoughts and experiences.

Listen attentively

Resist the urge to multitask . Pay attention to the participant's responses, nod your head, or make supportive comments to show you’re interested in their answers. Avoid interrupting them.

Avoid judgment

Show respect and don't judge the participant's views or experiences. Allow the participant to speak freely without feeling judged or ridiculed.

Offer breaks

If needed, offer breaks during the interview, especially if the topic is sensitive or emotional.

Creating a comfortable environment and establishing rapport with the participant fosters an atmosphere of trust and encourages open communication. This helps participants feel at ease and willing to share their experiences.

• How to analyze a qualitative interview

Analyzing a qualitative interview involves a systematic process of examining the data collected to identify patterns, themes, and meanings that emerge from the responses. 

Here are some steps on how to analyze a qualitative interview:

1. Transcription

The first step is transcribing the interview into text format to have a written record of the conversation. This step is essential to ensure that you can refer back to the interview data and identify the important aspects of the interview.

2. Data reduction

Once you’ve transcribed the interview, read through it to identify key themes, patterns, and phrases emerging from the data. This process involves reducing the data into more manageable pieces you can easily analyze.

The next step is to code the data by labeling sections of the text with descriptive words or phrases that reflect the data's content. Coding helps identify key themes and patterns from the interview data.

4. Categorization

After coding, you should group the codes into categories based on their similarities. This process helps to identify overarching themes or sub-themes that emerge from the data.

5. Interpretation

You should then interpret the themes and sub-themes by identifying relationships, contradictions, and meanings that emerge from the data. Interpretation involves analyzing the themes in the context of the research question .

6. Comparison

The next step is comparing the data across participants or groups to identify similarities and differences. This step helps to ensure that the findings aren’t just specific to one participant but can be generalized to the wider population.

7. Triangulation

To ensure the findings are valid and reliable, you should use triangulation by comparing the findings with other sources, such as observations or interview data.

8. Synthesis

The final step is synthesizing the findings by summarizing the key themes and presenting them clearly and concisely. This step involves writing a report that presents the findings in a way that is easy to understand, using quotes and examples from the interview data to illustrate the themes.

• Tips for transcribing a qualitative interview

Transcribing a qualitative interview is a crucial step in the research process. It involves converting the audio or video recording of the interview into written text. 

Here are some tips for transcribing a qualitative interview:

Use transcription software

Transcription software can save time and increase accuracy by automatically transcribing audio or video recordings.

Listen carefully

When manually transcribing, listen carefully to the recording to ensure clarity. Pause and rewind the recording as necessary.

Use appropriate formatting

Use a consistent format for transcribing, such as marking pauses, overlaps, and interruptions. Indicate non-verbal cues such as laughter, sighs, or changes in tone.

Edit for clarity

Edit the transcription to ensure clarity and readability. Use standard grammar and punctuation, correct misspellings, and remove filler words like "um" and "ah."

Proofread and edit

Verify the accuracy of the transcription by listening to the recording again and reviewing the notes taken during the interview.

Use timestamps

Add timestamps to the transcription to reference specific interview sections.

Transcribing a qualitative interview can be time-consuming, but it’s essential to ensure the accuracy of the data collected. Following these tips can produce high-quality transcriptions useful for analysis and reporting.

• Why are interview techniques in qualitative research effective?

Unlike quantitative research methods, which rely on numerical data, qualitative research seeks to understand the richness and complexity of human experiences and perspectives. 

Interview techniques involve asking open-ended questions that allow participants to express their views and share their stories in their own words. This approach can help researchers to uncover unexpected or surprising insights that may not have been discovered through other research methods.

Interview techniques also allow researchers to establish rapport with participants, creating a comfortable and safe space for them to share their experiences. This can lead to a deeper level of trust and candor, leading to more honest and authentic responses.

• What are the weaknesses of qualitative interviews?

Qualitative interviews are an excellent research approach when used properly, but they have their drawbacks. 

The weaknesses of qualitative interviews include the following:

Subjectivity and personal biases

Qualitative interviews rely on the researcher's interpretation of the interviewee's responses. The researcher's biases or preconceptions can affect how the questions are framed and how the responses are interpreted, which can influence results.

Small sample size

The sample size in qualitative interviews is often small, which can limit the generalizability of the results to the larger population.

Data quality

The quality of data collected during interviews can be affected by various factors, such as the interviewee's mood, the setting of the interview, and the interviewer's skills and experience.

Socially desirable responses

Interviewees may provide responses that they believe are socially acceptable rather than truthful or genuine.

Conducting qualitative interviews can be expensive, especially if the researcher must travel to different locations to conduct the interviews.

Time-consuming

The data analysis process can be time-consuming and labor-intensive, as researchers need to transcribe and analyze the data manually.

Despite these weaknesses, qualitative interviews remain a valuable research tool . You can take steps to mitigate the impact of these weaknesses by incorporating the perspectives of other researchers or participants in the analysis process, using multiple data sources , and critically analyzing your biases and assumptions.

Mastering the art of qualitative interviews is an essential skill for businesses looking to gain deep insights into their customers' needs , preferences, and behaviors. By following the tips and best practices outlined in this article, you can conduct interviews that provide you with rich data that you can use to make informed decisions about your products, services, and marketing strategies. 

Remember that effective communication, active listening, and proper analysis are critical components of successful qualitative interviews. By incorporating these practices into your customer research, you can gain a competitive edge and build stronger customer relationships.

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Qualitative Research Questions: Gain Powerful Insights + 25 Examples

We review the basics of qualitative research questions, including their key components, how to craft them effectively, & 25 example questions.

Einstein was many things—a physicist, a philosopher, and, undoubtedly, a mastermind. He also had an incredible way with words. His quote, "Everything that can be counted does not necessarily count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted," is particularly poignant when it comes to research. 

Some inquiries call for a quantitative approach, for counting and measuring data in order to arrive at general conclusions. Other investigations, like qualitative research, rely on deep exploration and understanding of individual cases in order to develop a greater understanding of the whole. That’s what we’re going to focus on today.

Qualitative research questions focus on the "how" and "why" of things, rather than the "what". They ask about people's experiences and perceptions , and can be used to explore a wide range of topics.

The following article will discuss the basics of qualitative research questions, including their key components, and how to craft them effectively. You'll also find 25 examples of effective qualitative research questions you can use as inspiration for your own studies.

Let’s get started!

What are qualitative research questions, and when are they used?

When researchers set out to conduct a study on a certain topic, their research is chiefly directed by an overarching question . This question provides focus for the study and helps determine what kind of data will be collected.

By starting with a question, we gain parameters and objectives for our line of research. What are we studying? For what purpose? How will we know when we’ve achieved our goals?

Of course, some of these questions can be described as quantitative in nature. When a research question is quantitative, it usually seeks to measure or calculate something in a systematic way.

For example:

• How many people in our town use the library?
• What is the average income of families in our city?
• How much does the average person weigh?

Other research questions, however—and the ones we will be focusing on in this article—are qualitative in nature. Qualitative research questions are open-ended and seek to explore a given topic in-depth.

According to the Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry , “Qualitative research aims to address questions concerned with developing an understanding of the meaning and experience dimensions of humans’ lives and social worlds.”

This type of research can be used to gain a better understanding of people’s thoughts, feelings and experiences by “addressing questions beyond ‘what works’, towards ‘what works for whom when, how and why, and focusing on intervention improvement rather than accreditation,” states one paper in Neurological Research and Practice .

Qualitative questions often produce rich data that can help researchers develop hypotheses for further quantitative study.

• What are people’s thoughts on the new library?
• How does it feel to be a first-generation student at our school?
• How do people feel about the changes taking place in our town?

As stated by a paper in Human Reproduction , “...‘qualitative’ methods are used to answer questions about experience, meaning, and perspective, most often from the standpoint of the participant. These data are usually not amenable to counting or measuring.”

Both quantitative and qualitative questions have their uses; in fact, they often complement each other. A well-designed research study will include a mix of both types of questions in order to gain a fuller understanding of the topic at hand.

If you would like to recruit unlimited participants for qualitative research for free and only pay for the interview you conduct, try using Respondent  today. 

Crafting qualitative research questions for powerful insights

Now that we have a basic understanding of what qualitative research questions are and when they are used, let’s take a look at how you can begin crafting your own.

According to a study in the International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, there is a certain process researchers should follow when crafting their questions, which we’ll explore in more depth.

1. Beginning the process 

Start with a point of interest or curiosity, and pose a draft question or ‘self-question’. What do you want to know about the topic at hand? What is your specific curiosity? You may find it helpful to begin by writing several questions.

For example, if you’re interested in understanding how your customer base feels about a recent change to your product, you might ask: 

• What made you decide to try the new product?
• How do you feel about the change?
• What do you think of the new design/functionality?
• What benefits do you see in the change?

2. Create one overarching, guiding question 

At this point, narrow down the draft questions into one specific question. “Sometimes, these broader research questions are not stated as questions, but rather as goals for the study.”

As an example of this, you might narrow down these three questions: 

into the following question: 

• What are our customers’ thoughts on the recent change to our product?

3. Theoretical framing 

As you read the relevant literature and apply theory to your research, the question should be altered to achieve better outcomes. Experts agree that pursuing a qualitative line of inquiry should open up the possibility for questioning your original theories and altering the conceptual framework with which the research began.

If we continue with the current example, it’s possible you may uncover new data that informs your research and changes your question. For instance, you may discover that customers’ feelings about the change are not just a reaction to the change itself, but also to how it was implemented. In this case, your question would need to reflect this new information: 

• How did customers react to the process of the change, as well as the change itself?

4. Ethical considerations 

A study in the International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education stresses that ethics are “a central issue when a researcher proposes to study the lives of others, especially marginalized populations.” Consider how your question or inquiry will affect the people it relates to—their lives and their safety. Shape your question to avoid physical, emotional, or mental upset for the focus group.

In analyzing your question from this perspective, if you feel that it may cause harm, you should consider changing the question or ending your research project. Perhaps you’ve discovered that your question encourages harmful or invasive questioning, in which case you should reformulate it.

5. Writing the question 

The actual process of writing the question comes only after considering the above points. The purpose of crafting your research questions is to delve into what your study is specifically about” Remember that qualitative research questions are not trying to find the cause of an effect, but rather to explore the effect itself.

Your questions should be clear, concise, and understandable to those outside of your field. In addition, they should generate rich data. The questions you choose will also depend on the type of research you are conducting: 

• If you’re doing a phenomenological study, your questions might be open-ended, in order to allow participants to share their experiences in their own words.
• If you’re doing a grounded-theory study, your questions might be focused on generating a list of categories or themes.
• If you’re doing ethnography, your questions might be about understanding the culture you’re studying.

Whenyou have well-written questions, it is much easier to develop your research design and collect data that accurately reflects your inquiry.

In writing your questions, it may help you to refer to this simple flowchart process for constructing questions:

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25 examples of expertly crafted qualitative research questions

It's easy enough to cover the theory of writing a qualitative research question, but sometimes it's best if you can see the process in practice. In this section, we'll list 25 examples of B2B and B2C-related qualitative questions.

Let's begin with five questions. We'll show you the question, explain why it's considered qualitative, and then give you an example of how it can be used in research.

1. What is the customer's perception of our company's brand?

Qualitative research questions are often open-ended and invite respondents to share their thoughts and feelings on a subject. This question is qualitative because it seeks customer feedback on the company's brand. 

This question can be used in research to understand how customers feel about the company's branding, what they like and don't like about it, and whether they would recommend it to others.

2. Why do customers buy our product?

This question is also qualitative because it seeks to understand the customer's motivations for purchasing a product. It can be used in research to identify the reasons  customers buy a certain product, what needs or desires the product fulfills for them, and how they feel about the purchase after using the product.

3. How do our customers interact with our products?

Again, this question is qualitative because it seeks to understand customer behavior. In this case, it can be used in research to see how customers use the product, how they interact with it, and what emotions or thoughts the product evokes in them.

4. What are our customers' biggest frustrations with our products?

By seeking to understand customer frustrations, this question is qualitative and can provide valuable insights. It can be used in research to help identify areas in which the company needs to make improvements with its products.

5. How do our customers feel about our customer service?

Rather than asking why customers like or dislike something, this question asks how they feel. This qualitative question can provide insights into customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction with a company. 

This type of question can be used in research to understand what customers think of the company's customer service and whether they feel it meets their needs.

20 more examples to refer to when writing your question

Now that you’re aware of what makes certain questions qualitative, let's move into 20 more examples of qualitative research questions:

• How do your customers react when updates are made to your app interface?
• How do customers feel when they complete their purchase through your ecommerce site?
• What are your customers' main frustrations with your service?
• How do people feel about the quality of your products compared to those of your competitors?
• What motivates customers to refer their friends and family members to your product or service?
• What are the main benefits your customers receive from using your product or service?
• How do people feel when they finish a purchase on your website?
• What are the main motivations behind customer loyalty to your brand?
• How does your app make people feel emotionally?
• For younger generations using your app, how does it make them feel about themselves?
• What reputation do people associate with your brand?
• How inclusive do people find your app?
• In what ways are your customers' experiences unique to them?
• What are the main areas of improvement your customers would like to see in your product or service?
• How do people feel about their interactions with your tech team?
• What are the top five reasons people use your online marketplace?
• How does using your app make people feel in terms of connectedness?
• What emotions do people experience when they're using your product or service?
• Aside from the features of your product, what else about it attracts customers?
• How does your company culture make people feel?

As you can see, these kinds of questions are completely open-ended. In a way, they allow the research and discoveries made along the way to direct the research. The questions are merely a starting point from which to explore.

This video offers tips on how to write good qualitative research questions, produced by Qualitative Research Expert, Kimberly Baker.

Wrap-up: crafting your own qualitative research questions.

Over the course of this article, we've explored what qualitative research questions are, why they matter, and how they should be written. Hopefully you now have a clear understanding of how to craft your own.

Remember, qualitative research questions should always be designed to explore a certain experience or phenomena in-depth, in order to generate powerful insights. As you write your questions, be sure to keep the following in mind:

• Are you being inclusive of all relevant perspectives?
• Are your questions specific enough to generate clear answers?
• Will your questions allow for an in-depth exploration of the topic at hand?
• Do the questions reflect your research goals and objectives?

If you can answer "yes" to all of the questions above, and you've followed the tips for writing qualitative research questions we shared in this article, then you're well on your way to crafting powerful queries that will yield valuable insights.

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Asking the right questions in the right way is the key to research success. That’s true for not just the discussion guide but for every step of a research project. Following are 100+ questions that will take you from defining your research objective through  screening and participant discussions.

Fill out the form below to access free e-book! 

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Chapter 11. Interviewing

Introduction.

Interviewing people is at the heart of qualitative research. It is not merely a way to collect data but an intrinsically rewarding activity—an interaction between two people that holds the potential for greater understanding and interpersonal development. Unlike many of our daily interactions with others that are fairly shallow and mundane, sitting down with a person for an hour or two and really listening to what they have to say is a profound and deep enterprise, one that can provide not only “data” for you, the interviewer, but also self-understanding and a feeling of being heard for the interviewee. I always approach interviewing with a deep appreciation for the opportunity it gives me to understand how other people experience the world. That said, there is not one kind of interview but many, and some of these are shallower than others. This chapter will provide you with an overview of interview techniques but with a special focus on the in-depth semistructured interview guide approach, which is the approach most widely used in social science research.

An interview can be variously defined as “a conversation with a purpose” ( Lune and Berg 2018 ) and an attempt to understand the world from the point of view of the person being interviewed: “to unfold the meaning of peoples’ experiences, to uncover their lived world prior to scientific explanations” ( Kvale 2007 ). It is a form of active listening in which the interviewer steers the conversation to subjects and topics of interest to their research but also manages to leave enough space for those interviewed to say surprising things. Achieving that balance is a tricky thing, which is why most practitioners believe interviewing is both an art and a science. In my experience as a teacher, there are some students who are “natural” interviewers (often they are introverts), but anyone can learn to conduct interviews, and everyone, even those of us who have been doing this for years, can improve their interviewing skills. This might be a good time to highlight the fact that the interview is a product between interviewer and interviewee and that this product is only as good as the rapport established between the two participants. Active listening is the key to establishing this necessary rapport.

Patton ( 2002 ) makes the argument that we use interviews because there are certain things that are not observable. In particular, “we cannot observe feelings, thoughts, and intentions. We cannot observe behaviors that took place at some previous point in time. We cannot observe situations that preclude the presence of an observer. We cannot observe how people have organized the world and the meanings they attach to what goes on in the world. We have to ask people questions about those things” ( 341 ).

Types of Interviews

There are several distinct types of interviews. Imagine a continuum (figure 11.1). On one side are unstructured conversations—the kind you have with your friends. No one is in control of those conversations, and what you talk about is often random—whatever pops into your head. There is no secret, underlying purpose to your talking—if anything, the purpose is to talk to and engage with each other, and the words you use and the things you talk about are a little beside the point. An unstructured interview is a little like this informal conversation, except that one of the parties to the conversation (you, the researcher) does have an underlying purpose, and that is to understand the other person. You are not friends speaking for no purpose, but it might feel just as unstructured to the “interviewee” in this scenario. That is one side of the continuum. On the other side are fully structured and standardized survey-type questions asked face-to-face. Here it is very clear who is asking the questions and who is answering them. This doesn’t feel like a conversation at all! A lot of people new to interviewing have this ( erroneously !) in mind when they think about interviews as data collection. Somewhere in the middle of these two extreme cases is the “ semistructured” interview , in which the researcher uses an “interview guide” to gently move the conversation to certain topics and issues. This is the primary form of interviewing for qualitative social scientists and will be what I refer to as interviewing for the rest of this chapter, unless otherwise specified.

Informal (unstructured conversations). This is the most “open-ended” approach to interviewing. It is particularly useful in conjunction with observational methods (see chapters 13 and 14). There are no predetermined questions. Each interview will be different. Imagine you are researching the Oregon Country Fair, an annual event in Veneta, Oregon, that includes live music, artisan craft booths, face painting, and a lot of people walking through forest paths. It’s unlikely that you will be able to get a person to sit down with you and talk intensely about a set of questions for an hour and a half. But you might be able to sidle up to several people and engage with them about their experiences at the fair. You might have a general interest in what attracts people to these events, so you could start a conversation by asking strangers why they are here or why they come back every year. That’s it. Then you have a conversation that may lead you anywhere. Maybe one person tells a long story about how their parents brought them here when they were a kid. A second person talks about how this is better than Burning Man. A third person shares their favorite traveling band. And yet another enthuses about the public library in the woods. During your conversations, you also talk about a lot of other things—the weather, the utilikilts for sale, the fact that a favorite food booth has disappeared. It’s all good. You may not be able to record these conversations. Instead, you might jot down notes on the spot and then, when you have the time, write down as much as you can remember about the conversations in long fieldnotes. Later, you will have to sit down with these fieldnotes and try to make sense of all the information (see chapters 18 and 19).

Interview guide ( semistructured interview ). This is the primary type employed by social science qualitative researchers. The researcher creates an “interview guide” in advance, which she uses in every interview. In theory, every person interviewed is asked the same questions. In practice, every person interviewed is asked mostly the same topics but not always the same questions, as the whole point of a “guide” is that it guides the direction of the conversation but does not command it. The guide is typically between five and ten questions or question areas, sometimes with suggested follow-ups or prompts . For example, one question might be “What was it like growing up in Eastern Oregon?” with prompts such as “Did you live in a rural area? What kind of high school did you attend?” to help the conversation develop. These interviews generally take place in a quiet place (not a busy walkway during a festival) and are recorded. The recordings are transcribed, and those transcriptions then become the “data” that is analyzed (see chapters 18 and 19). The conventional length of one of these types of interviews is between one hour and two hours, optimally ninety minutes. Less than one hour doesn’t allow for much development of questions and thoughts, and two hours (or more) is a lot of time to ask someone to sit still and answer questions. If you have a lot of ground to cover, and the person is willing, I highly recommend two separate interview sessions, with the second session being slightly shorter than the first (e.g., ninety minutes the first day, sixty minutes the second). There are lots of good reasons for this, but the most compelling one is that this allows you to listen to the first day’s recording and catch anything interesting you might have missed in the moment and so develop follow-up questions that can probe further. This also allows the person being interviewed to have some time to think about the issues raised in the interview and go a little deeper with their answers.

Standardized questionnaire with open responses ( structured interview ). This is the type of interview a lot of people have in mind when they hear “interview”: a researcher comes to your door with a clipboard and proceeds to ask you a series of questions. These questions are all the same whoever answers the door; they are “standardized.” Both the wording and the exact order are important, as people’s responses may vary depending on how and when a question is asked. These are qualitative only in that the questions allow for “open-ended responses”: people can say whatever they want rather than select from a predetermined menu of responses. For example, a survey I collaborated on included this open-ended response question: “How does class affect one’s career success in sociology?” Some of the answers were simply one word long (e.g., “debt”), and others were long statements with stories and personal anecdotes. It is possible to be surprised by the responses. Although it’s a stretch to call this kind of questioning a conversation, it does allow the person answering the question some degree of freedom in how they answer.

Survey questionnaire with closed responses (not an interview!). Standardized survey questions with specific answer options (e.g., closed responses) are not really interviews at all, and they do not generate qualitative data. For example, if we included five options for the question “How does class affect one’s career success in sociology?”—(1) debt, (2) social networks, (3) alienation, (4) family doesn’t understand, (5) type of grad program—we leave no room for surprises at all. Instead, we would most likely look at patterns around these responses, thinking quantitatively rather than qualitatively (e.g., using regression analysis techniques, we might find that working-class sociologists were twice as likely to bring up alienation). It can sometimes be confusing for new students because the very same survey can include both closed-ended and open-ended questions. The key is to think about how these will be analyzed and to what level surprises are possible. If your plan is to turn all responses into a number and make predictions about correlations and relationships, you are no longer conducting qualitative research. This is true even if you are conducting this survey face-to-face with a real live human. Closed-response questions are not conversations of any kind, purposeful or not.

In summary, the semistructured interview guide approach is the predominant form of interviewing for social science qualitative researchers because it allows a high degree of freedom of responses from those interviewed (thus allowing for novel discoveries) while still maintaining some connection to a research question area or topic of interest. The rest of the chapter assumes the employment of this form.

Creating an Interview Guide

Your interview guide is the instrument used to bridge your research question(s) and what the people you are interviewing want to tell you. Unlike a standardized questionnaire, the questions actually asked do not need to be exactly what you have written down in your guide. The guide is meant to create space for those you are interviewing to talk about the phenomenon of interest, but sometimes you are not even sure what that phenomenon is until you start asking questions. A priority in creating an interview guide is to ensure it offers space. One of the worst mistakes is to create questions that are so specific that the person answering them will not stray. Relatedly, questions that sound “academic” will shut down a lot of respondents. A good interview guide invites respondents to talk about what is important to them, not feel like they are performing or being evaluated by you.

Good interview questions should not sound like your “research question” at all. For example, let’s say your research question is “How do patriarchal assumptions influence men’s understanding of climate change and responses to climate change?” It would be worse than unhelpful to ask a respondent, “How do your assumptions about the role of men affect your understanding of climate change?” You need to unpack this into manageable nuggets that pull your respondent into the area of interest without leading him anywhere. You could start by asking him what he thinks about climate change in general. Or, even better, whether he has any concerns about heatwaves or increased tornadoes or polar icecaps melting. Once he starts talking about that, you can ask follow-up questions that bring in issues around gendered roles, perhaps asking if he is married (to a woman) and whether his wife shares his thoughts and, if not, how they negotiate that difference. The fact is, you won’t really know the right questions to ask until he starts talking.

There are several distinct types of questions that can be used in your interview guide, either as main questions or as follow-up probes. If you remember that the point is to leave space for the respondent, you will craft a much more effective interview guide! You will also want to think about the place of time in both the questions themselves (past, present, future orientations) and the sequencing of the questions.

Researcher Note

Suggestion : As you read the next three sections (types of questions, temporality, question sequence), have in mind a particular research question, and try to draft questions and sequence them in a way that opens space for a discussion that helps you answer your research question.

Type of Questions

Experience and behavior questions ask about what a respondent does regularly (their behavior) or has done (their experience). These are relatively easy questions for people to answer because they appear more “factual” and less subjective. This makes them good opening questions. For the study on climate change above, you might ask, “Have you ever experienced an unusual weather event? What happened?” Or “You said you work outside? What is a typical summer workday like for you? How do you protect yourself from the heat?”

Opinion and values questions , in contrast, ask questions that get inside the minds of those you are interviewing. “Do you think climate change is real? Who or what is responsible for it?” are two such questions. Note that you don’t have to literally ask, “What is your opinion of X?” but you can find a way to ask the specific question relevant to the conversation you are having. These questions are a bit trickier to ask because the answers you get may depend in part on how your respondent perceives you and whether they want to please you or not. We’ve talked a fair amount about being reflective. Here is another place where this comes into play. You need to be aware of the effect your presence might have on the answers you are receiving and adjust accordingly. If you are a woman who is perceived as liberal asking a man who identifies as conservative about climate change, there is a lot of subtext that can be going on in the interview. There is no one right way to resolve this, but you must at least be aware of it.

Feeling questions are questions that ask respondents to draw on their emotional responses. It’s pretty common for academic researchers to forget that we have bodies and emotions, but people’s understandings of the world often operate at this affective level, sometimes unconsciously or barely consciously. It is a good idea to include questions that leave space for respondents to remember, imagine, or relive emotional responses to particular phenomena. “What was it like when you heard your cousin’s house burned down in that wildfire?” doesn’t explicitly use any emotion words, but it allows your respondent to remember what was probably a pretty emotional day. And if they respond emotionally neutral, that is pretty interesting data too. Note that asking someone “How do you feel about X” is not always going to evoke an emotional response, as they might simply turn around and respond with “I think that…” It is better to craft a question that actually pushes the respondent into the affective category. This might be a specific follow-up to an experience and behavior question —for example, “You just told me about your daily routine during the summer heat. Do you worry it is going to get worse?” or “Have you ever been afraid it will be too hot to get your work accomplished?”

Knowledge questions ask respondents what they actually know about something factual. We have to be careful when we ask these types of questions so that respondents do not feel like we are evaluating them (which would shut them down), but, for example, it is helpful to know when you are having a conversation about climate change that your respondent does in fact know that unusual weather events have increased and that these have been attributed to climate change! Asking these questions can set the stage for deeper questions and can ensure that the conversation makes the same kind of sense to both participants. For example, a conversation about political polarization can be put back on track once you realize that the respondent doesn’t really have a clear understanding that there are two parties in the US. Instead of asking a series of questions about Republicans and Democrats, you might shift your questions to talk more generally about political disagreements (e.g., “people against abortion”). And sometimes what you do want to know is the level of knowledge about a particular program or event (e.g., “Are you aware you can discharge your student loans through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program?”).

Sensory questions call on all senses of the respondent to capture deeper responses. These are particularly helpful in sparking memory. “Think back to your childhood in Eastern Oregon. Describe the smells, the sounds…” Or you could use these questions to help a person access the full experience of a setting they customarily inhabit: “When you walk through the doors to your office building, what do you see? Hear? Smell?” As with feeling questions , these questions often supplement experience and behavior questions . They are another way of allowing your respondent to report fully and deeply rather than remain on the surface.

Creative questions employ illustrative examples, suggested scenarios, or simulations to get respondents to think more deeply about an issue, topic, or experience. There are many options here. In The Trouble with Passion , Erin Cech ( 2021 ) provides a scenario in which “Joe” is trying to decide whether to stay at his decent but boring computer job or follow his passion by opening a restaurant. She asks respondents, “What should Joe do?” Their answers illuminate the attraction of “passion” in job selection. In my own work, I have used a news story about an upwardly mobile young man who no longer has time to see his mother and sisters to probe respondents’ feelings about the costs of social mobility. Jessi Streib and Betsy Leondar-Wright have used single-page cartoon “scenes” to elicit evaluations of potential racial discrimination, sexual harassment, and classism. Barbara Sutton ( 2010 ) has employed lists of words (“strong,” “mother,” “victim”) on notecards she fans out and asks her female respondents to select and discuss.

Background/Demographic Questions

You most definitely will want to know more about the person you are interviewing in terms of conventional demographic information, such as age, race, gender identity, occupation, and educational attainment. These are not questions that normally open up inquiry. [1] For this reason, my practice has been to include a separate “demographic questionnaire” sheet that I ask each respondent to fill out at the conclusion of the interview. Only include those aspects that are relevant to your study. For example, if you are not exploring religion or religious affiliation, do not include questions about a person’s religion on the demographic sheet. See the example provided at the end of this chapter.

Temporality

Any type of question can have a past, present, or future orientation. For example, if you are asking a behavior question about workplace routine, you might ask the respondent to talk about past work, present work, and ideal (future) work. Similarly, if you want to understand how people cope with natural disasters, you might ask your respondent how they felt then during the wildfire and now in retrospect and whether and to what extent they have concerns for future wildfire disasters. It’s a relatively simple suggestion—don’t forget to ask about past, present, and future—but it can have a big impact on the quality of the responses you receive.

Question Sequence

Having a list of good questions or good question areas is not enough to make a good interview guide. You will want to pay attention to the order in which you ask your questions. Even though any one respondent can derail this order (perhaps by jumping to answer a question you haven’t yet asked), a good advance plan is always helpful. When thinking about sequence, remember that your goal is to get your respondent to open up to you and to say things that might surprise you. To establish rapport, it is best to start with nonthreatening questions. Asking about the present is often the safest place to begin, followed by the past (they have to know you a little bit to get there), and lastly, the future (talking about hopes and fears requires the most rapport). To allow for surprises, it is best to move from very general questions to more particular questions only later in the interview. This ensures that respondents have the freedom to bring up the topics that are relevant to them rather than feel like they are constrained to answer you narrowly. For example, refrain from asking about particular emotions until these have come up previously—don’t lead with them. Often, your more particular questions will emerge only during the course of the interview, tailored to what is emerging in conversation.

Once you have a set of questions, read through them aloud and imagine you are being asked the same questions. Does the set of questions have a natural flow? Would you be willing to answer the very first question to a total stranger? Does your sequence establish facts and experiences before moving on to opinions and values? Did you include prefatory statements, where necessary; transitions; and other announcements? These can be as simple as “Hey, we talked a lot about your experiences as a barista while in college.… Now I am turning to something completely different: how you managed friendships in college.” That is an abrupt transition, but it has been softened by your acknowledgment of that.

Probes and Flexibility

Once you have the interview guide, you will also want to leave room for probes and follow-up questions. As in the sample probe included here, you can write out the obvious probes and follow-up questions in advance. You might not need them, as your respondent might anticipate them and include full responses to the original question. Or you might need to tailor them to how your respondent answered the question. Some common probes and follow-up questions include asking for more details (When did that happen? Who else was there?), asking for elaboration (Could you say more about that?), asking for clarification (Does that mean what I think it means or something else? I understand what you mean, but someone else reading the transcript might not), and asking for contrast or comparison (How did this experience compare with last year’s event?). “Probing is a skill that comes from knowing what to look for in the interview, listening carefully to what is being said and what is not said, and being sensitive to the feedback needs of the person being interviewed” ( Patton 2002:374 ). It takes work! And energy. I and many other interviewers I know report feeling emotionally and even physically drained after conducting an interview. You are tasked with active listening and rearranging your interview guide as needed on the fly. If you only ask the questions written down in your interview guide with no deviations, you are doing it wrong. [2]

The Final Question

Every interview guide should include a very open-ended final question that allows for the respondent to say whatever it is they have been dying to tell you but you’ve forgotten to ask. About half the time they are tired too and will tell you they have nothing else to say. But incredibly, some of the most honest and complete responses take place here, at the end of a long interview. You have to realize that the person being interviewed is often discovering things about themselves as they talk to you and that this process of discovery can lead to new insights for them. Making space at the end is therefore crucial. Be sure you convey that you actually do want them to tell you more, that the offer of “anything else?” is not read as an empty convention where the polite response is no. Here is where you can pull from that active listening and tailor the final question to the particular person. For example, “I’ve asked you a lot of questions about what it was like to live through that wildfire. I’m wondering if there is anything I’ve forgotten to ask, especially because I haven’t had that experience myself” is a much more inviting final question than “Great. Anything you want to add?” It’s also helpful to convey to the person that you have the time to listen to their full answer, even if the allotted time is at the end. After all, there are no more questions to ask, so the respondent knows exactly how much time is left. Do them the courtesy of listening to them!

Conducting the Interview

Once you have your interview guide, you are on your way to conducting your first interview. I always practice my interview guide with a friend or family member. I do this even when the questions don’t make perfect sense for them, as it still helps me realize which questions make no sense, are poorly worded (too academic), or don’t follow sequentially. I also practice the routine I will use for interviewing, which goes something like this:

• Introduce myself and reintroduce the study
• Provide consent form and ask them to sign and retain/return copy
• Ask if they have any questions about the study before we begin
• Ask if I can begin recording
• Ask questions (from interview guide)
• Turn off the recording device
• Ask if they are willing to fill out my demographic questionnaire
• Collect questionnaire and, without looking at the answers, place in same folder as signed consent form
• Thank them and depart

A note on remote interviewing: Interviews have traditionally been conducted face-to-face in a private or quiet public setting. You don’t want a lot of background noise, as this will make transcriptions difficult. During the recent global pandemic, many interviewers, myself included, learned the benefits of interviewing remotely. Although face-to-face is still preferable for many reasons, Zoom interviewing is not a bad alternative, and it does allow more interviews across great distances. Zoom also includes automatic transcription, which significantly cuts down on the time it normally takes to convert our conversations into “data” to be analyzed. These automatic transcriptions are not perfect, however, and you will still need to listen to the recording and clarify and clean up the transcription. Nor do automatic transcriptions include notations of body language or change of tone, which you may want to include. When interviewing remotely, you will want to collect the consent form before you meet: ask them to read, sign, and return it as an email attachment. I think it is better to ask for the demographic questionnaire after the interview, but because some respondents may never return it then, it is probably best to ask for this at the same time as the consent form, in advance of the interview.

What should you bring to the interview? I would recommend bringing two copies of the consent form (one for you and one for the respondent), a demographic questionnaire, a manila folder in which to place the signed consent form and filled-out demographic questionnaire, a printed copy of your interview guide (I print with three-inch right margins so I can jot down notes on the page next to relevant questions), a pen, a recording device, and water.

After the interview, you will want to secure the signed consent form in a locked filing cabinet (if in print) or a password-protected folder on your computer. Using Excel or a similar program that allows tables/spreadsheets, create an identifying number for your interview that links to the consent form without using the name of your respondent. For example, let’s say that I conduct interviews with US politicians, and the first person I meet with is George W. Bush. I will assign the transcription the number “INT#001” and add it to the signed consent form. [3] The signed consent form goes into a locked filing cabinet, and I never use the name “George W. Bush” again. I take the information from the demographic sheet, open my Excel spreadsheet, and add the relevant information in separate columns for the row INT#001: White, male, Republican. When I interview Bill Clinton as my second interview, I include a second row: INT#002: White, male, Democrat. And so on. The only link to the actual name of the respondent and this information is the fact that the consent form (unavailable to anyone but me) has stamped on it the interview number.

Many students get very nervous before their first interview. Actually, many of us are always nervous before the interview! But do not worry—this is normal, and it does pass. Chances are, you will be pleasantly surprised at how comfortable it begins to feel. These “purposeful conversations” are often a delight for both participants. This is not to say that sometimes things go wrong. I often have my students practice several “bad scenarios” (e.g., a respondent that you cannot get to open up; a respondent who is too talkative and dominates the conversation, steering it away from the topics you are interested in; emotions that completely take over; or shocking disclosures you are ill-prepared to handle), but most of the time, things go quite well. Be prepared for the unexpected, but know that the reason interviews are so popular as a technique of data collection is that they are usually richly rewarding for both participants.

One thing that I stress to my methods students and remind myself about is that interviews are still conversations between people. If there’s something you might feel uncomfortable asking someone about in a “normal” conversation, you will likely also feel a bit of discomfort asking it in an interview. Maybe more importantly, your respondent may feel uncomfortable. Social research—especially about inequality—can be uncomfortable. And it’s easy to slip into an abstract, intellectualized, or removed perspective as an interviewer. This is one reason trying out interview questions is important. Another is that sometimes the question sounds good in your head but doesn’t work as well out loud in practice. I learned this the hard way when a respondent asked me how I would answer the question I had just posed, and I realized that not only did I not really know how I would answer it, but I also wasn’t quite as sure I knew what I was asking as I had thought.

—Elizabeth M. Lee, Associate Professor of Sociology at Saint Joseph’s University, author of Class and Campus Life , and co-author of Geographies of Campus Inequality

How Many Interviews?

Your research design has included a targeted number of interviews and a recruitment plan (see chapter 5). Follow your plan, but remember that “ saturation ” is your goal. You interview as many people as you can until you reach a point at which you are no longer surprised by what they tell you. This means not that no one after your first twenty interviews will have surprising, interesting stories to tell you but rather that the picture you are forming about the phenomenon of interest to you from a research perspective has come into focus, and none of the interviews are substantially refocusing that picture. That is when you should stop collecting interviews. Note that to know when you have reached this, you will need to read your transcripts as you go. More about this in chapters 18 and 19.

Your Final Product: The Ideal Interview Transcript

A good interview transcript will demonstrate a subtly controlled conversation by the skillful interviewer. In general, you want to see replies that are about one paragraph long, not short sentences and not running on for several pages. Although it is sometimes necessary to follow respondents down tangents, it is also often necessary to pull them back to the questions that form the basis of your research study. This is not really a free conversation, although it may feel like that to the person you are interviewing.

Final Tips from an Interview Master

Annette Lareau is arguably one of the masters of the trade. In Listening to People , she provides several guidelines for good interviews and then offers a detailed example of an interview gone wrong and how it could be addressed (please see the “Further Readings” at the end of this chapter). Here is an abbreviated version of her set of guidelines: (1) interview respondents who are experts on the subjects of most interest to you (as a corollary, don’t ask people about things they don’t know); (2) listen carefully and talk as little as possible; (3) keep in mind what you want to know and why you want to know it; (4) be a proactive interviewer (subtly guide the conversation); (5) assure respondents that there aren’t any right or wrong answers; (6) use the respondent’s own words to probe further (this both allows you to accurately identify what you heard and pushes the respondent to explain further); (7) reuse effective probes (don’t reinvent the wheel as you go—if repeating the words back works, do it again and again); (8) focus on learning the subjective meanings that events or experiences have for a respondent; (9) don’t be afraid to ask a question that draws on your own knowledge (unlike trial lawyers who are trained never to ask a question for which they don’t already know the answer, sometimes it’s worth it to ask risky questions based on your hypotheses or just plain hunches); (10) keep thinking while you are listening (so difficult…and important); (11) return to a theme raised by a respondent if you want further information; (12) be mindful of power inequalities (and never ever coerce a respondent to continue the interview if they want out); (13) take control with overly talkative respondents; (14) expect overly succinct responses, and develop strategies for probing further; (15) balance digging deep and moving on; (16) develop a plan to deflect questions (e.g., let them know you are happy to answer any questions at the end of the interview, but you don’t want to take time away from them now); and at the end, (17) check to see whether you have asked all your questions. You don’t always have to ask everyone the same set of questions, but if there is a big area you have forgotten to cover, now is the time to recover ( Lareau 2021:93–103 ).

Sample: Demographic Questionnaire

ASA Taskforce on First-Generation and Working-Class Persons in Sociology – Class Effects on Career Success

Supplementary Demographic Questionnaire

Thank you for your participation in this interview project. We would like to collect a few pieces of key demographic information from you to supplement our analyses. Your answers to these questions will be kept confidential and stored by ID number. All of your responses here are entirely voluntary!

What best captures your race/ethnicity? (please check any/all that apply)

• White (Non Hispanic/Latina/o/x)
• Black or African American
• Hispanic, Latino/a/x of Spanish
• Asian or Asian American
• American Indian or Alaska Native
• Middle Eastern or North African
• Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
• Other : (Please write in: ________________)

What is your current position?

• Grad Student
• Full Professor

Please check any and all of the following that apply to you:

• I identify as a working-class academic
• I was the first in my family to graduate from college
• I grew up poor

What best reflects your gender?

• Transgender female/Transgender woman
• Transgender male/Transgender man
• Gender queer/ Gender nonconforming

Anything else you would like us to know about you?

Example: Interview Guide

In this example, follow-up prompts are italicized.  Note the sequence of questions.  That second question often elicits an entire life history , answering several later questions in advance.

Introduction Script/Question

Thank you for participating in our survey of ASA members who identify as first-generation or working-class.  As you may have heard, ASA has sponsored a taskforce on first-generation and working-class persons in sociology and we are interested in hearing from those who so identify.  Your participation in this interview will help advance our knowledge in this area.

• The first thing we would like to as you is why you have volunteered to be part of this study? What does it mean to you be first-gen or working class?  Why were you willing to be interviewed?
• How did you decide to become a sociologist?
• Can you tell me a little bit about where you grew up? ( prompts: what did your parent(s) do for a living?  What kind of high school did you attend?)
• Has this identity been salient to your experience? (how? How much?)
• How welcoming was your grad program? Your first academic employer?
• Why did you decide to pursue sociology at the graduate level?
• Did you experience culture shock in college? In graduate school?
• Has your FGWC status shaped how you’ve thought about where you went to school? debt? etc?
• Were you mentored? How did this work (not work)?  How might it?
• What did you consider when deciding where to go to grad school? Where to apply for your first position?
• What, to you, is a mark of career success? Have you achieved that success?  What has helped or hindered your pursuit of success?
• Do you think sociology, as a field, cares about prestige?
• Let’s talk a little bit about intersectionality. How does being first-gen/working class work alongside other identities that are important to you?
• What do your friends and family think about your career? Have you had any difficulty relating to family members or past friends since becoming highly educated?
• Do you have any debt from college/grad school? Are you concerned about this?  Could you explain more about how you paid for college/grad school?  (here, include assistance from family, fellowships, scholarships, etc.)
• (You’ve mentioned issues or obstacles you had because of your background.) What could have helped?  Or, who or what did? Can you think of fortuitous moments in your career?
• Do you have any regrets about the path you took?
• Is there anything else you would like to add? Anything that the Taskforce should take note of, that we did not ask you about here?

Further Readings

Britten, Nicky. 1995. “Qualitative Interviews in Medical Research.” BMJ: British Medical Journal 31(6999):251–253. A good basic overview of interviewing particularly useful for students of public health and medical research generally.

Corbin, Juliet, and Janice M. Morse. 2003. “The Unstructured Interactive Interview: Issues of Reciprocity and Risks When Dealing with Sensitive Topics.” Qualitative Inquiry 9(3):335–354. Weighs the potential benefits and harms of conducting interviews on topics that may cause emotional distress. Argues that the researcher’s skills and code of ethics should ensure that the interviewing process provides more of a benefit to both participant and researcher than a harm to the former.

Gerson, Kathleen, and Sarah Damaske. 2020. The Science and Art of Interviewing . New York: Oxford University Press. A useful guidebook/textbook for both undergraduates and graduate students, written by sociologists.

Kvale, Steiner. 2007. Doing Interviews . London: SAGE. An easy-to-follow guide to conducting and analyzing interviews by psychologists.

Lamont, Michèle, and Ann Swidler. 2014. “Methodological Pluralism and the Possibilities and Limits of Interviewing.” Qualitative Sociology 37(2):153–171. Written as a response to various debates surrounding the relative value of interview-based studies and ethnographic studies defending the particular strengths of interviewing. This is a must-read article for anyone seriously engaging in qualitative research!

Pugh, Allison J. 2013. “What Good Are Interviews for Thinking about Culture? Demystifying Interpretive Analysis.” American Journal of Cultural Sociology 1(1):42–68. Another defense of interviewing written against those who champion ethnographic methods as superior, particularly in the area of studying culture. A classic.

Rapley, Timothy John. 2001. “The ‘Artfulness’ of Open-Ended Interviewing: Some considerations in analyzing interviews.” Qualitative Research 1(3):303–323. Argues for the importance of “local context” of data production (the relationship built between interviewer and interviewee, for example) in properly analyzing interview data.

Weiss, Robert S. 1995. Learning from Strangers: The Art and Method of Qualitative Interview Studies . New York: Simon and Schuster. A classic and well-regarded textbook on interviewing. Because Weiss has extensive experience conducting surveys, he contrasts the qualitative interview with the survey questionnaire well; particularly useful for those trained in the latter.

• I say “normally” because how people understand their various identities can itself be an expansive topic of inquiry. Here, I am merely talking about collecting otherwise unexamined demographic data, similar to how we ask people to check boxes on surveys. ↵
• Again, this applies to “semistructured in-depth interviewing.” When conducting standardized questionnaires, you will want to ask each question exactly as written, without deviations! ↵
• I always include “INT” in the number because I sometimes have other kinds of data with their own numbering: FG#001 would mean the first focus group, for example. I also always include three-digit spaces, as this allows for up to 999 interviews (or, more realistically, allows for me to interview up to one hundred persons without having to reset my numbering system). ↵

A method of data collection in which the researcher asks the participant questions; the answers to these questions are often recorded and transcribed verbatim. There are many different kinds of interviews - see also semistructured interview , structured interview , and unstructured interview .

A document listing key questions and question areas for use during an interview.  It is used most often for semi-structured interviews.  A good interview guide may have no more than ten primary questions for two hours of interviewing, but these ten questions will be supplemented by probes and relevant follow-ups throughout the interview.  Most IRBs require the inclusion of the interview guide in applications for review.  See also interview and  semi-structured interview .

A data-collection method that relies on casual, conversational, and informal interviewing.  Despite its apparent conversational nature, the researcher usually has a set of particular questions or question areas in mind but allows the interview to unfold spontaneously.  This is a common data-collection technique among ethnographers.  Compare to the semi-structured or in-depth interview .

A form of interview that follows a standard guide of questions asked, although the order of the questions may change to match the particular needs of each individual interview subject, and probing “follow-up” questions are often added during the course of the interview.  The semi-structured interview is the primary form of interviewing used by qualitative researchers in the social sciences.  It is sometimes referred to as an “in-depth” interview.  See also interview and  interview guide .

The cluster of data-collection tools and techniques that involve observing interactions between people, the behaviors, and practices of individuals (sometimes in contrast to what they say about how they act and behave), and cultures in context.  Observational methods are the key tools employed by ethnographers and Grounded Theory .

Follow-up questions used in a semi-structured interview  to elicit further elaboration.  Suggested prompts can be included in the interview guide  to be used/deployed depending on how the initial question was answered or if the topic of the prompt does not emerge spontaneously.

A form of interview that follows a strict set of questions, asked in a particular order, for all interview subjects.  The questions are also the kind that elicits short answers, and the data is more “informative” than probing.  This is often used in mixed-methods studies, accompanying a survey instrument.  Because there is no room for nuance or the exploration of meaning in structured interviews, qualitative researchers tend to employ semi-structured interviews instead.  See also interview.

The point at which you can conclude data collection because every person you are interviewing, the interaction you are observing, or content you are analyzing merely confirms what you have already noted.  Achieving saturation is often used as the justification for the final sample size.

An interview variant in which a person’s life story is elicited in a narrative form.  Turning points and key themes are established by the researcher and used as data points for further analysis.

Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods Copyright © 2023 by Allison Hurst is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Key Takeaways: 

• Qualitative interviews provide in-depth insights from individual respondents, and are useful when follow-up or clarification is needed
• Clarity of objectives and audience is essential to gathering actionable insights from your qualitative research project
• Build a strong researcher-respondent relationship to elicit honest and engaged responses

Qualitative research uses in-depth interviews to gain rich non-numerical data from individuals. This data helps researchers understand concepts, opinions, and personal experiences. Interviews are an excellent method to discover the “why” behind people’s preferences or behaviors, but they require a thoughtful approach.

Continue reading as we explore use cases and define the steps to follow for a successful qualitative interview.

In this Article:

When Should I Use Qualitative Interviews? Conducting a Successful Qualitative Interview – Step by Step Guide

1. Determine Your Objective 2. Understand Your Audience 3. Design Appropriate Questions 4. Organize and Prepare for the Interview 5. Conduct the Interview 6. Transcribe and Analyze Responses 7. Learn, Adapt, and Evolve Your Interviews

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When Should I Use Qualitative Interviews?

Qualitative research is used to obtain context and describe underlying factors. It describes “how” and “why.”

Perhaps a business wants to understand what product features are most or least important to each target segment. They could ask:

“Between product A and product B, how would the features in each product influence your buying decision?”

This creates an opportunity for the respondent to reveal what features are personally important and unimportant for them. In an interview setting, researchers can go deeper into why these features are important, and how important each feature is in comparison to others.

Qualitative interviews are best when:

• You need in-depth insights
• You want answers to a range of follow-up questions, building on prior responses
• Your questions require significant explanation and reasoning
• You explore complex and confusing topics with respondents
• You want to understand what drives consumer decisions
• You want to hear the unique voice of your audience first-hand

Conducting a Successful Qualitative Interview – Step by Step Guide

Knowing when to use a qualitative interview is a great first step, but now you need to understand how best to conduct one. Our experts share a range of steps to follow as you embark on a qualitative interview and best practices for each.

1. Determine Your Objective

What are you trying to understand? The answer to this is critical in guiding your qualitative research process.

Some common examples:

• Understand consumer perceptions of products, services, or brand
• Reveal strengths and weaknesses in product or service portfolios
• Understand consumer buying behaviors
• Test the usability of a website or digital service
• Emotional reactions to packaging design and marketing assets

2. Understand Your Audience

Who is your target audience for this project? Have a clear understanding of who you need to hear from to meet your research objective.

Here are some examples of objectives, and the sample that is most suited to each:

• If you want to understand how existing customers perceive the quality of your products, you need a sample of existing customers.
• If you want to understand why consumers choose competitor products over yours, you need a sample of non-customers who buy products from your primary competitor.
• If you want to understand how the average person perceives your brand, you need a combination of existing customers, non-customers with awareness of your brand, and unaware non-customers.

3. Design Appropriate Questions

The questions you ask must align with the objectives of your research without being leading or introducing bias.

Here are some best practices when designing research questions:

• Keep questions open-ended. This increases the depth of insight obtained.
• Follow a structure. For instance, a tree diagram where every question has pre-determined follow-up questions based on anticipated answers. A planned structure increases the quality and validity of responses and reduces distractions.
• Design questions that simplify data collection and analysis. Format the responses collected to be compatible with your tools during data ingestion.
• Keep it simple. Focus on clarity when designing research questions to improve respondent understanding and engagement.

4. Organize and Prepare for the Interview

Relationships are essential to the interview process. Preparation beforehand helps build the respondent-researcher relationship. This relationship creates trust and elicits more honest and in-depth answers from participants. Here are some ways to prepare for an interview:

• Give respondents as much information as possible—such as question lists and question intent. Put this into an interview handbook to improve engagement and effectiveness.
• Conduct the interview in a suitable environment with minimal distractions and stressors.
• Have the necessary materials to record information.
• Interview yourself to identify and fix problems before you start interviewing others.

5. Conduct the Interview

With a structure in place, researchers have a clear plan of action throughout the interview.

During the interview, stay attuned to emotional reactions and body language with the following techniques:

• Create a relaxed atmosphere. Ask respondents about their lives, work, and passions to establish a connection.
• Give respondents your full attention. An engaged researcher encourages an engaged respondent. Plus, they gave up their personal time to help you out.
• Read body language. Is the respondent crossing their arms, looking down to the floor, or not making eye contact? These reactions may signal discomfort or anxiety, offering an opportunity to build rapport.
• Follow the questions but be flexible when listening. Deviations from the script may lead to unexpected and valuable insights.

6. Transcribe and Analyze Responses

Convert recorded audio responses to text. Decide early which tool or solution will work best for your needs.

Similarly, researchers may need to annotate video responses to describe behaviors and surrounding context before analysis; e.g., this person gritted their teeth during that response, that person’s vocal tone was anxious and uncertain, etc.

Transcribe responses into a format ready for analysis upon ingestion into your business intelligence tools.

7. Learn, Adapt, and Evolve Your Interviews

Each interview is an opportunity to improve the process. Take time after a project to evaluate how it went.

What did you learn about the process? Was it easy or confusing? Was the respondent comfortable or on edge? Did you get the responses you needed?

Scrutinize your interview approach. Look for ways to improve and innovate the process for better outcomes next time.

Now, you should have a good idea of when to use and how to approach qualitative interviews.

Sago has decades of experience across both quantitative and qualitative research. Our experts find interviews ideal for in-depth qualitative insights that guide new product and service development or improve market positioning for existing offerings. We offer both in-person facilities and online spaces to conduct qualitative interviews.

If you still have questions, get in touch with Sago for help with your next research project.

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How to carry out great interviews in qualitative research.

11 min read An interview is one of the most versatile methods used in qualitative research. Here’s what you need to know about conducting great qualitative interviews.

What is a qualitative research interview?

Qualitative research interviews are a mainstay among q ualitative research techniques, and have been in use for decades either as a primary data collection method or as an adjunct to a wider research process. A qualitative research interview is a one-to-one data collection session between a researcher and a participant. Interviews may be carried out face-to-face, over the phone or via video call using a service like Skype or Zoom.

There are three main types of qualitative research interview – structured, unstructured or semi-structured.

• Structured interviews Structured interviews are based around a schedule of predetermined questions and talking points that the researcher has developed. At their most rigid, structured interviews may have a precise wording and question order, meaning that they can be replicated across many different interviewers and participants with relatively consistent results.
• Unstructured interviews Unstructured interviews have no predetermined format, although that doesn’t mean they’re ad hoc or unplanned. An unstructured interview may outwardly resemble a normal conversation, but the interviewer will in fact be working carefully to make sure the right topics are addressed during the interaction while putting the participant at ease with a natural manner.
• Semi-structured interviews Semi-structured interviews are the most common type of qualitative research interview, combining the informality and rapport of an unstructured interview with the consistency and replicability of a structured interview. The researcher will come prepared with questions and topics, but will not need to stick to precise wording. This blended approach can work well for in-depth interviews.

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What are the pros and cons of interviews in qualitative research?

As a qualitative research method interviewing is hard to beat, with applications in social research, market research, and even basic and clinical pharmacy. But like any aspect of the research process, it’s not without its limitations. Before choosing qualitative interviewing as your research method, it’s worth weighing up the pros and cons.

Pros of qualitative interviews:

• provide in-depth information and context
• can be used effectively when their are low numbers of participants
• provide an opportunity to discuss and explain questions
• useful for complex topics
• rich in data – in the case of in-person or video interviews , the researcher can observe body language and facial expression as well as the answers to questions

Cons of qualitative interviews:

• can be time-consuming to carry out
• costly when compared to some other research methods
• because of time and cost constraints, they often limit you to a small number of participants
• difficult to standardize your data across different researchers and participants unless the interviews are very tightly structured
• As the Open University of Hong Kong notes, qualitative interviews may take an emotional toll on interviewers

Qualitative interview guides

Semi-structured interviews are based on a qualitative interview guide, which acts as a road map for the researcher. While conducting interviews, the researcher can use the interview guide to help them stay focused on their research questions and make sure they cover all the topics they intend to.

An interview guide may include a list of questions written out in full, or it may be a set of bullet points grouped around particular topics. It can prompt the interviewer to dig deeper and ask probing questions during the interview if appropriate.

Consider writing out the project’s research question at the top of your interview guide, ahead of the interview questions. This may help you steer the interview in the right direction if it threatens to head off on a tangent.

Avoid bias in qualitative research interviews

According to Duke University , bias can create significant problems in your qualitative interview.

• Acquiescence bias is common to many qualitative methods, including focus groups. It occurs when the participant feels obliged to say what they think the researcher wants to hear. This can be especially problematic when there is a perceived power imbalance between participant and interviewer. To counteract this, Duke University’s experts recommend emphasizing the participant’s expertise in the subject being discussed, and the value of their contributions.
• Interviewer bias is when the interviewer’s own feelings about the topic come to light through hand gestures, facial expressions or turns of phrase. Duke’s recommendation is to stick to scripted phrases where this is an issue, and to make sure researchers become very familiar with the interview guide or script before conducting interviews, so that they can hone their delivery.

What kinds of questions should you ask in a qualitative interview?

The interview questions you ask need to be carefully considered both before and during the data collection process. As well as considering the topics you’ll cover, you will need to think carefully about the way you ask questions.

Open-ended interview questions – which cannot be answered with a ‘yes’ ‘no’ or ‘maybe’ – are recommended by many researchers as a way to pursue in depth information.

An example of an open-ended question is “What made you want to move to the East Coast?” This will prompt the participant to consider different factors and select at least one. Having thought about it carefully, they may give you more detailed information about their reasoning.

A closed-ended question , such as “Would you recommend your neighborhood to a friend?” can be answered without too much deliberation, and without giving much information about personal thoughts, opinions and feelings.

Follow-up questions can be used to delve deeper into the research topic and to get more detail from open-ended questions. Examples of follow-up questions include:

• What makes you say that?
• What do you mean by that?
• Can you tell me more about X?
• What did/does that mean to you?

As well as avoiding closed-ended questions, be wary of leading questions. As with other qualitative research techniques such as surveys or focus groups, these can introduce bias in your data. Leading questions presume a certain point of view shared by the interviewer and participant, and may even suggest a foregone conclusion.

An example of a leading question might be: “You moved to New York in 1990, didn’t you?” In answering the question, the participant is much more likely to agree than disagree. This may be down to acquiescence bias or a belief that the interviewer has checked the information and already knows the correct answer.

Other leading questions involve adjectival phrases or other wording that introduces negative or positive connotations about a particular topic. An example of this kind of leading question is: “Many employees dislike wearing masks to work. How do you feel about this?” It presumes a positive opinion and the participant may be swayed by it, or not want to contradict the interviewer.

Harvard University’s guidelines for qualitative interview research add that you shouldn’t be afraid to ask embarrassing questions – “if you don’t ask, they won’t tell.” Bear in mind though that too much probing around sensitive topics may cause the interview participant to withdraw. The Harvard guidelines recommend leaving sensitive questions til the later stages of the interview when a rapport has been established.

More tips for conducting qualitative interviews

Observing a participant’s body language can give you important data about their thoughts and feelings. It can also help you decide when to broach a topic, and whether to use a follow-up question or return to the subject later in the interview.

Be conscious that the participant may regard you as the expert, not themselves. In order to make sure they express their opinions openly, use active listening skills like verbal encouragement and paraphrasing and clarifying their meaning to show how much you value what they are saying.

Remember that part of the goal is to leave the interview participant feeling good about volunteering their time and their thought process to your research. Aim to make them feel empowered , respected and heard.

Unstructured interviews can demand a lot of a researcher, both cognitively and emotionally. Be sure to leave time in between in-depth interviews when scheduling your data collection to make sure you maintain the quality of your data, as well as your own well-being .

Recording and transcribing interviews

Historically, recording qualitative research interviews and then transcribing the conversation manually would have represented a significant part of the cost and time involved in research projects that collect qualitative data.

Fortunately, researchers now have access to digital recording tools, and even speech-to-text technology that can automatically transcribe interview data using AI and machine learning. This type of tool can also be used to capture qualitative data from qualitative research (focus groups,ect.) making this kind of social research or market research much less time consuming.

Data analysis

Qualitative interview data is unstructured, rich in content and difficult to analyze without the appropriate tools. Fortunately, machine learning and AI can once again make things faster and easier when you use qualitative methods like the research interview.

Text analysis tools and natural language processing software can ‘read’ your transcripts and voice data and identify patterns and trends across large volumes of text or speech. They can also perform khttps://www.qualtrics.com/experience-management/research/sentiment-analysis/

which assesses overall trends in opinion and provides an unbiased overall summary of how participants are feeling.

Another feature of text analysis tools is their ability to categorize information by topic, sorting it into groupings that help you organize your data according to the topic discussed.

All in all, interviews are a valuable technique for qualitative research in business, yielding rich and detailed unstructured data. Historically, they have only been limited by the human capacity to interpret and communicate results and conclusions, which demands considerable time and skill.

When you combine this data with AI tools that can interpret it quickly and automatically, it becomes easy to analyze and structure, dovetailing perfectly with your other business data. An additional benefit of natural language analysis tools is that they are free of subjective biases, and can replicate the same approach across as much data as you choose. By combining human research skills with machine analysis, qualitative research methods such as interviews are more valuable than ever to your business.

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Introduction to Research Methods

6 qualitative research and interviews.

So we’ve described doing a survey and collecting quantitative data. But not all questions can best be answered by a survey. A survey is great for understanding what people think (for example), but not why they think what they do. If your research is intending to understand the underlying motivations or reasons behind peoples actions, or to build a deeper understanding on the background of a subject, an interview may be the more appropriate data collection method.

Interviews are a method of data collection that consist of two or more people exchanging information through a structured process of questions and answers. Questions are designed by the researcher to thoughtfully collect in-depth information on a topic or set of topics as related to the central research question. Interviews typically occur in-person, although good interviews can also be conducted remotely via the phone or video conferencing. Unlike surveys, interviews give the opportunity to ask follow-up questions and thoughtfully engage with participants on the spot (rather than the anonymous and impartial format of survey research).

And surveys can be used in qualitative or quantitative research – though they’re more typically a qualitative technique. In-depth interviews , containing open-ended questions and structured by an interview guide . One can also do a standardized interview with closed-ended questions (i.e. answer options) that are structured by an interview schedule as part of quantitative research. While these are called interviews they’re far closer to surveys, so we wont cover them again in this chapter. The terms used for in-depth interviews we’ll cover in the next section.

6.1 Interviews

In-depth interviews allow participants to describe experiences in their own words (a primary strength of the interview format). Strong in-depth interviews will include many open-ended questions that allow participants to respond in their own words, share new ideas, and lead the conversation in different directions. The purpose of open-ended questions and in-depth interviews is to hear as much as possible in the person’s own voice, to collect new information and ideas, and to achieve a level of depth not possible in surveys or most other forms of data collection.

Typically, an interview guide is used to create a soft structure for the conversation and is an important preparation tool for the researcher. You can not go into an interview unprepared and just “wing it”; what the interview guide allows you to do is map out a framework, order of topics, and may include specific questions to use during the interview. Generally, the interview guide is thought of as just that — a guide to use in order to keep the interview focused. It is not set in stone and a skilled researcher can change the order of questions or topics in an interviews based on the organic conversation flow.

Depending on the experience and skill level of the researcher, an interview guide can be as simple as a list of topics to cover. However, for consistency and quality of research, the interviewer may want to take the time to at least practice writing out questions in advance to ensure that phrasing and word choices are as clear, objective, and focused as possible. It’s worth remembering that working out the wording of questions in advance allows researchers to ensure more consistency across interview. The interview guide below, taken from the wonderful and free textbook Principles of Sociological Inquiry , shows an interview guide that just has topics.

Alternatively, you can use a more detailed guide that lists out possible questions, as shown below. A more detailed guide is probably better for an interviewer that has less experience, or is just beginning to work on a given topic.

The purpose of an interview guide is to help ask effective questions and to support the process of acquiring the best possible data for your research. Topics and questions should be organized thematically, and in a natural progression that will allow the conversation to flow and deepen throughout the course of the interview. Often, researchers will attempt to memorize or partially memorize the interview guide, in order to be more fully present with the participant during the conversation.

6.2 Asking good Questions

Remember, the purposes of interviews is to go more in-depth with an individual than is possible with a generalized survey. For this reason, it is important to use the guide as a starting point but not to be overly tethered to it during the actual interview process. You may get stuck when respondents give you shorter answers than you expect, or don’t provide the type of depth that you need for your research. Often, you may want to probe for more specifics. Think about using follow up questions like “How does/did that affect you?” or “How does X make you feel?” and “Tell me about a time where X…”

For example, if I was researching the relationship between pets and mental health, some strong open-ended questions might be: * How does your pet typically make you feel when you wake up in the morning? * How does your pet generally affect your mood when you arrive home in the evening? * Tell me about a time when your pet had a significant impact on your emotional state.

Questions framed in this manner leave plenty of room for the respondent to answer in their own words, as opposed to leading and/or truncated questions, such as: * Does being with your pet make you happy? * After a bad day, how much does seeing your pet improve your mood? * Tell me about how important your pet is to your mental health.

These questions assume outcomes and will not result in high quality research. Researchers should always avoid asking leading questions that give away an expected answer or suggest particular responses. For instance, if I ask “we need to spend more on public schools, don’t you think?” the respondent is more likely to agree regardless of their own thoughts. Some wont, but humans generally have a strong natural desire to be agreeable. That’s why leaving your questions neutral and open so that respondents can speak to their experiences and views is critical.

6.3 Analyzing Interview Data

Writing good questions and interviewing respondents are just the first steps of the interview process. After these stages, the researcher still has a lot of work to do to collect usable data from the interview. The researcher must spend time coding and analyzing the interview to retrieve this data. Just doing an interview wont produce data. Think about how many conversations you have everyday, and none of those are leaving you swimming in data.

Hopefully you can record your interviews. Recording your interviews will allow you the opportunity to transcribe them word for word later. If you can’t record the interview you’ll need to take detailed notes so that you can reconstruct what you heard later. Do not trust yourself to “just remember” the conversation. You’re collecting data, precious data that you’re spending time and energy to collect. Treat it as important and valuable. Remember our description of the methodology section from Chapter 2, you need to maintain a chain of custody on your data. If you just remembered the interview, you could be accused of making up the results. Your interview notes and the recording become part of that chain of custody to prove to others that your interviews were real and that your results are accurate.

Assuming you recorded your interview, the first step in the analysis process is transcribing the interview. A transcription is a written record of every word in an interview. Transcriptions can either be completed by the researcher or by a hired worker, though it is good practice for the researcher to transcribe the interview him or herself. Researchers should keep the following points in mind regarding transcriptions: * The interview should take place in a quiet location with minimal background noise to produce a clear recording; * Transcribing interviews is a time-consuming process and may take two to three times longer than the actual interview; * Transcriptions provide a more precise record of the interview than hand written notes and allow the interviewer to focus during the interview.

After transcribing the interview, the next step is to analyze the responses. Coding is the main form of analysis used for interviews and involves studying a transcription to identify important themes. These themes are categorized into codes, which are words or phrases that denote an idea.

You’ll typically being with several codes in mind that are generated by key ideas you week seeking in the questions, but you can also being by using open coding to understand the results. An open coding process involves reading through the transcript multiple times and paying close attention to each line of the text to discover noteworthy concepts. During the open coding process, the researcher keeps an open mind to find any codes that may be relevant to the research topic.

After the open coding process is complete, focused coding can begin. Focused coding takes a closer look at the notes compiled during the open coding stage to merge common codes and define what the codes mean in the context of the research project.

Imagine a researcher is conducting interviews to learn about various people’s experiences of childhood in New Orleans. The following example shows several codes that this researcher extrapolated from an interview with one of their subjects.

6.4 Using interview data

The next chapter will address ways to identify people to interview, but most of the remainder of the book will address how to analyze quantitative data. That shouldn’t be taken as a sign that quantitative data is better, or that it’s easier to use interview data. Because in an interview the researcher must interpret the words of others it is often more challenging to identify your findings and clearly answer your research question. However, quantitative data is more common, and there are more different things you can do with it, so we spend a lot of the textbook focusing on it.

I’ll work through one more example of using interview data though. It takes a lot of practice to be a good and skilled interviewer. What I show below is a brief excerpt of an interview I did, and how that data was used in a resulting paper I wrote. These aren’t the only way you can use interview data, but it’s an example of what the intermediary and final product might look like.

The overall project these are drawn from was concerned with minor league baseball stadiums, but the specific part I’m pulling from here was studying the decline and rejuvenation of downtown around those stadiums in several cities. You’ll see that I’m using the words of the respondent fairly directly, because that’s my data. But I’m not just relying on one respondent and trusting them, I did a few dozen interviews in order to understand the commonalities in people’s perspectives to build a narrative around my research question.

Excerpt from Notes

Excerpt from Resulting Paper

How many interviews are necessary? It actually doesn’t take many. What you want to observe in your interviews is theoretical saturation , where the codes you use in the transcript begin to appear across conversations and groups. If different people disagree that’s fine, but what you want to understand is the commonalities across peoples perspectives. Most research on the subject says that with 8 interviews you’ll typically start to see a decline in new information gathered. That doesn’t mean you won’t get new words , but you’ll stop hearing completely unique perspectives or gain novel insights. At that point, where you’ve ‘heard it all before’ you can stop, because you’ve probably identified the answer to the questions you were trying to research.

6.5 Ensuring Anonymity

One significant ethical concern with interviews, that also applies to surveys, is making sure that respondents maintain anonymity. In either form of data collection you may be asking respondents deeply personal questions, that if exposed may cause legal, personal, or professional harm. Notice that in the excerpt of the paper above the respondents are only identified by an id I assigned (Louisville D) and their career, rather than their name. I can only include the excerpt of the interview notes above because there are no details that might lead to them being identified.

You may want to report details about a person to contextualize the data you gathered, but you should always ensure that no one can be identified from your research. For instance, if you were doing research on racism at large companies, you may want to preface people’s comments by their race, as there is a good chance that white and minority employees would feel differently about the issues. However, if you preface someones comments by saying they’re a minority manager, that may violate their anonymity. Even if you don’t state what company you did interviews with, that may be enough detail for their co-workers to identify them if there are few minority managers at the company. As such, always think long and hard about whether there is any way that the participation of respondents may be exposed.

6.6 Why not both?

We’ve discussed surveys and interviews as different methods the last two chapters, but they can also complement each other.

For instance, let’s say you’re curious to study people who change opinions on abortion, either going from support to opposition or vice versa. You could use a survey to understand the prevalence of changing opinions, i.e. what percentage of people in your city have changed their views. That would help to establish whether this is a prominent issue, or whether it’s a rare phenomenon. But it would be difficult to understand from the survey what makes people change their views. You could add an open ended question for anyone that said they changed their opinion, but many people won’t respond and few will provide the level of detail necessary to understand their motivations. Interviews with people that have changed their opinions would give you an opportunity to explore how their experiences and beliefs have changed in combination with their views towards abortion.

6.7 Summary

In the last two chapters we’ve discussed the two most prominent methods of data collection in the social sciences: surveys and interviews. What we haven’t discussed though is how to identify the people you’ll collect data from; that’s called a sampling strategy. In the next chapter

Qualitative Research 101: Interviewing

5 Common Mistakes To Avoid When Undertaking Interviews

By: David Phair (PhD) and Kerryn Warren (PhD) | March 2022

Undertaking interviews is potentially the most important step in the qualitative research process. If you don’t collect useful, useable data in your interviews, you’ll struggle through the rest of your dissertation or thesis.  Having helped numerous students with their research over the years, we’ve noticed some common interviewing mistakes that first-time researchers make. In this post, we’ll discuss five costly interview-related mistakes and outline useful strategies to avoid making these.

Overview: 5 Interviewing Mistakes

• Not having a clear interview strategy /plan
• Not having good interview techniques /skills
• Not securing a suitable location and equipment
• Not having a basic risk management plan
• Not keeping your “ golden thread ” front of mind

1. Not having a clear interview strategy

The first common mistake that we’ll look at is that of starting the interviewing process without having first come up with a clear interview strategy or plan of action. While it’s natural to be keen to get started engaging with your interviewees, a lack of planning can result in a mess of data and inconsistency between interviews.

There are several design choices to decide on and plan for before you start interviewing anyone. Some of the most important questions you need to ask yourself before conducting interviews include:

• What are the guiding research aims and research questions of my study?
• Will I use a structured, semi-structured or unstructured interview approach?
• How will I record the interviews (audio or video)?
• Who will be interviewed and by whom ?
• What ethics and data law considerations do I need to adhere to?
• How will I analyze my data? 

Let’s take a quick look at some of these.

The core objective of the interviewing process is to generate useful data that will help you address your overall research aims. Therefore, your interviews need to be conducted in a way that directly links to your research aims, objectives and research questions (i.e. your “golden thread”). This means that you need to carefully consider the questions you’ll ask to ensure that they align with and feed into your golden thread. If any question doesn’t align with this, you may want to consider scrapping it.

Another important design choice is whether you’ll use an unstructured, semi-structured or structured interview approach . For semi-structured interviews, you will have a list of questions that you plan to ask and these questions will be open-ended in nature. You’ll also allow the discussion to digress from the core question set if something interesting comes up. This means that the type of information generated might differ a fair amount between interviews.

Contrasted to this, a structured approach to interviews is more rigid, where a specific set of closed questions is developed and asked for each interviewee in exactly the same order. Closed questions have a limited set of answers, that are often single-word answers. Therefore, you need to think about what you’re trying to achieve with your research project (i.e. your research aims) and decided on which approach would be best suited in your case.

It is also important to plan ahead with regards to who will be interviewed and how. You need to think about how you will approach the possible interviewees to get their cooperation, who will conduct the interviews, when to conduct the interviews and how to record the interviews. For each of these decisions, it’s also essential to make sure that all ethical considerations and data protection laws are taken into account.

Finally, you should think through how you plan to analyze the data (i.e., your qualitative analysis method) generated by the interviews. Different types of analysis rely on different types of data, so you need to ensure you’re asking the right types of questions and correctly guiding your respondents.

Simply put, you need to have a plan of action regarding the specifics of your interview approach before you start collecting data. If not, you’ll end up drifting in your approach from interview to interview, which will result in inconsistent, unusable data.

2. Not having good interview technique

While you’re generally not expected to become you to be an expert interviewer for a dissertation or thesis, it is important to practice good interview technique and develop basic interviewing skills .

Let’s go through some basics that will help the process along.

Firstly, before the interview , make sure you know your interview questions well and have a clear idea of what you want from the interview. Naturally, the specificity of your questions will depend on whether you’re taking a structured, semi-structured or unstructured approach, but you still need a consistent starting point . Ideally, you should develop an interview guide beforehand (more on this later) that details your core question and links these to the research aims, objectives and research questions.

Before you undertake any interviews, it’s a good idea to do a few mock interviews with friends or family members. This will help you get comfortable with the interviewer role, prepare for potentially unexpected answers and give you a good idea of how long the interview will take to conduct. In the interviewing process, you’re likely to encounter two kinds of challenging interviewees ; the two-word respondent and the respondent who meanders and babbles. Therefore, you should prepare yourself for both and come up with a plan to respond to each in a way that will allow the interview to continue productively.

To begin the formal interview , provide the person you are interviewing with an overview of your research. This will help to calm their nerves (and yours) and contextualize the interaction. Ultimately, you want the interviewee to feel comfortable and be willing to be open and honest with you, so it’s useful to start in a more casual, relaxed fashion and allow them to ask any questions they may have. From there, you can ease them into the rest of the questions.

As the interview progresses , avoid asking leading questions (i.e., questions that assume something about the interviewee or their response). Make sure that you speak clearly and slowly , using plain language and being ready to paraphrase questions if the person you are interviewing misunderstands. Be particularly careful with interviewing English second language speakers to ensure that you’re both on the same page.

Engage with the interviewee by listening to them carefully and acknowledging that you are listening to them by smiling or nodding. Show them that you’re interested in what they’re saying and thank them for their openness as appropriate. This will also encourage your interviewee to respond openly.

Need a helping hand?

3. Not securing a suitable location and quality equipment

Where you conduct your interviews and the equipment you use to record them both play an important role in how the process unfolds. Therefore, you need to think carefully about each of these variables before you start interviewing.

Poor location: A bad location can result in the quality of your interviews being compromised, interrupted, or cancelled. If you are conducting physical interviews, you’ll need a location that is quiet, safe, and welcoming . It’s very important that your location of choice is not prone to interruptions (the workplace office is generally problematic, for example) and has suitable facilities (such as water, a bathroom, and snacks).

If you are conducting online interviews , you need to consider a few other factors. Importantly, you need to make sure that both you and your respondent have access to a good, stable internet connection and electricity. Always check before the time that both of you know how to use the relevant software and it’s accessible (sometimes meeting platforms are blocked by workplace policies or firewalls). It’s also good to have alternatives in place (such as WhatsApp, Zoom, or Teams) to cater for these types of issues.

Poor equipment: Using poor-quality recording equipment or using equipment incorrectly means that you will have trouble transcribing, coding, and analyzing your interviews. This can be a major issue , as some of your interview data may go completely to waste if not recorded well. So, make sure that you use good-quality recording equipment and that you know how to use it correctly.

To avoid issues, you should always conduct test recordings before every interview to ensure that you can use the relevant equipment properly. It’s also a good idea to spot check each recording afterwards, just to make sure it was recorded as planned. If your equipment uses batteries, be sure to always carry a spare set.

4. Not having a basic risk management plan

Many possible issues can arise during the interview process. Not planning for these issues can mean that you are left with compromised data that might not be useful to you. Therefore, it’s important to map out some sort of risk management plan ahead of time, considering the potential risks, how you’ll minimize their probability and how you’ll manage them if they materialize.

Common potential issues related to the actual interview include cancellations (people pulling out), delays (such as getting stuck in traffic), language and accent differences (especially in the case of poor internet connections), issues with internet connections and power supply. Other issues can also occur in the interview itself. For example, the interviewee could drift off-topic, or you might encounter an interviewee who does not say much at all.

You can prepare for these potential issues by considering possible worst-case scenarios and preparing a response for each scenario. For instance, it is important to plan a backup date just in case your interviewee cannot make it to the first meeting you scheduled with them. It’s also a good idea to factor in a 30-minute gap between your interviews for the instances where someone might be late, or an interview runs overtime for other reasons. Make sure that you also plan backup questions that could be used to bring a respondent back on topic if they start rambling, or questions to encourage those who are saying too little.

In general, it’s best practice to plan to conduct more interviews than you think you need (this is called oversampling ). Doing so will allow you some room for error if there are interviews that don’t go as planned, or if some interviewees withdraw. If you need 10 interviews, it is a good idea to plan for 15. Likely, a few will cancel , delay, or not produce useful data.

5. Not keeping your golden thread front of mind

We touched on this a little earlier, but it is a key point that should be central to your entire research process. You don’t want to end up with pages and pages of data after conducting your interviews and realize that it is not useful to your research aims . Your research aims, objectives and research questions – i.e., your golden thread – should influence every design decision and should guide the interview process at all times. 

A useful way to avoid this mistake is by developing an interview guide before you begin interviewing your respondents. An interview guide is a document that contains all of your questions with notes on how each of the interview questions is linked to the research question(s) of your study. You can also include your research aims and objectives here for a more comprehensive linkage. 

You can easily create an interview guide by drawing up a table with one column containing your core interview questions . Then add another column with your research questions , another with expectations that you may have in light of the relevant literature and another with backup or follow-up questions . As mentioned, you can also bring in your research aims and objectives to help you connect them all together. If you’d like, you can download a copy of our free interview guide here .

Recap: Qualitative Interview Mistakes

In this post, we’ve discussed 5 common costly mistakes that are easy to make in the process of planning and conducting qualitative interviews.

To recap, these include:

If you have any questions about these interviewing mistakes, drop a comment below. Alternatively, if you’re interested in getting 1-on-1 help with your thesis or dissertation , check out our dissertation coaching service or book a free initial consultation with one of our friendly Grad Coaches.

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• Types of Interviews in Research | Guide & Examples

Types of Interviews in Research | Guide & Examples

Published on March 10, 2022 by Tegan George . Revised on June 22, 2023.

An interview is a qualitative research method that relies on asking questions in order to collect data . Interviews involve two or more people, one of whom is the interviewer asking the questions.

There are several types of interviews, often differentiated by their level of structure.

• Structured interviews have predetermined questions asked in a predetermined order.
• Unstructured interviews are more free-flowing.
• Semi-structured interviews fall in between.

Interviews are commonly used in market research, social science, and ethnographic research .

Table of contents

What is a structured interview, what is a semi-structured interview, what is an unstructured interview, what is a focus group, examples of interview questions, advantages and disadvantages of interviews, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about types of interviews.

Structured interviews have predetermined questions in a set order. They are often closed-ended, featuring dichotomous (yes/no) or multiple-choice questions. While open-ended structured interviews exist, they are much less common. The types of questions asked make structured interviews a predominantly quantitative tool.

Asking set questions in a set order can help you see patterns among responses, and it allows you to easily compare responses between participants while keeping other factors constant. This can mitigate   research biases and lead to higher reliability and validity. However, structured interviews can be overly formal, as well as limited in scope and flexibility.

• You feel very comfortable with your topic. This will help you formulate your questions most effectively.
• You have limited time or resources. Structured interviews are a bit more straightforward to analyze because of their closed-ended nature, and can be a doable undertaking for an individual.
• Your research question depends on holding environmental conditions between participants constant.

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Semi-structured interviews are a blend of structured and unstructured interviews. While the interviewer has a general plan for what they want to ask, the questions do not have to follow a particular phrasing or order.

Semi-structured interviews are often open-ended, allowing for flexibility, but follow a predetermined thematic framework, giving a sense of order. For this reason, they are often considered “the best of both worlds.”

However, if the questions differ substantially between participants, it can be challenging to look for patterns, lessening the generalizability and validity of your results.

• You have prior interview experience. It’s easier than you think to accidentally ask a leading question when coming up with questions on the fly. Overall, spontaneous questions are much more difficult than they may seem.
• Your research question is exploratory in nature. The answers you receive can help guide your future research.

An unstructured interview is the most flexible type of interview. The questions and the order in which they are asked are not set. Instead, the interview can proceed more spontaneously, based on the participant’s previous answers.

Unstructured interviews are by definition open-ended. This flexibility can help you gather detailed information on your topic, while still allowing you to observe patterns between participants.

However, so much flexibility means that they can be very challenging to conduct properly. You must be very careful not to ask leading questions, as biased responses can lead to lower reliability or even invalidate your research.

• You have a solid background in your research topic and have conducted interviews before.
• Your research question is exploratory in nature, and you are seeking descriptive data that will deepen and contextualize your initial hypotheses.
• Your research necessitates forming a deeper connection with your participants, encouraging them to feel comfortable revealing their true opinions and emotions.

A focus group brings together a group of participants to answer questions on a topic of interest in a moderated setting. Focus groups are qualitative in nature and often study the group’s dynamic and body language in addition to their answers. Responses can guide future research on consumer products and services, human behavior, or controversial topics.

Focus groups can provide more nuanced and unfiltered feedback than individual interviews and are easier to organize than experiments or large surveys . However, their small size leads to low external validity and the temptation as a researcher to “cherry-pick” responses that fit your hypotheses.

• Your research focuses on the dynamics of group discussion or real-time responses to your topic.
• Your questions are complex and rooted in feelings, opinions, and perceptions that cannot be answered with a “yes” or “no.”
• Your topic is exploratory in nature, and you are seeking information that will help you uncover new questions or future research ideas.

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Depending on the type of interview you are conducting, your questions will differ in style, phrasing, and intention. Structured interview questions are set and precise, while the other types of interviews allow for more open-endedness and flexibility.

Here are some examples.

• Semi-structured
• Unstructured
• Focus group
• Do you like dogs? Yes/No
• Do you associate dogs with feeling: happy; somewhat happy; neutral; somewhat unhappy; unhappy
• If yes, name one attribute of dogs that you like.
• If no, name one attribute of dogs that you don’t like.
• What feelings do dogs bring out in you?
• When you think more deeply about this, what experiences would you say your feelings are rooted in?

Interviews are a great research tool. They allow you to gather rich information and draw more detailed conclusions than other research methods, taking into consideration nonverbal cues, off-the-cuff reactions, and emotional responses.

However, they can also be time-consuming and deceptively challenging to conduct properly. Smaller sample sizes can cause their validity and reliability to suffer, and there is an inherent risk of interviewer effect arising from accidentally leading questions.

Here are some advantages and disadvantages of each type of interview that can help you decide if you’d like to utilize this research method.

If you want to know more about statistics , methodology , or research bias , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• Student’s  t -distribution
• Normal distribution
• Null and Alternative Hypotheses
• Chi square tests
• Confidence interval
• Quartiles & Quantiles
• Cluster sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Data cleansing
• Reproducibility vs Replicability
• Peer review
• Prospective cohort study

Research bias

• Implicit bias
• Cognitive bias
• Placebo effect
• Hawthorne effect
• Hindsight bias
• Affect heuristic
• Social desirability bias

The four most common types of interviews are:

• Structured interviews : The questions are predetermined in both topic and order. 
• Semi-structured interviews : A few questions are predetermined, but other questions aren’t planned.
• Unstructured interviews : None of the questions are predetermined.
• Focus group interviews : The questions are presented to a group instead of one individual.

The interviewer effect is a type of bias that emerges when a characteristic of an interviewer (race, age, gender identity, etc.) influences the responses given by the interviewee.

There is a risk of an interviewer effect in all types of interviews , but it can be mitigated by writing really high-quality interview questions.

Social desirability bias is the tendency for interview participants to give responses that will be viewed favorably by the interviewer or other participants. It occurs in all types of interviews and surveys , but is most common in semi-structured interviews , unstructured interviews , and focus groups .

Social desirability bias can be mitigated by ensuring participants feel at ease and comfortable sharing their views. Make sure to pay attention to your own body language and any physical or verbal cues, such as nodding or widening your eyes.

This type of bias can also occur in observations if the participants know they’re being observed. They might alter their behavior accordingly.

A focus group is a research method that brings together a small group of people to answer questions in a moderated setting. The group is chosen due to predefined demographic traits, and the questions are designed to shed light on a topic of interest. It is one of 4 types of interviews .

Quantitative research deals with numbers and statistics, while qualitative research deals with words and meanings.

Quantitative methods allow you to systematically measure variables and test hypotheses . Qualitative methods allow you to explore concepts and experiences in more detail.

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• Interviews as a Method for Qualitative Research (video) This short video summarizes why interviews can serve as useful data in qualitative research.  
• InterViews by Steinar Kvale  Interviewing is an essential tool in qualitative research and this introduction to interviewing outlines both the theoretical underpinnings and the practical aspects of the process. After examining the role of the interview in the research process, Steinar Kvale considers some of the key philosophical issues relating to interviewing: the interview as conversation, hermeneutics, phenomenology, concerns about ethics as well as validity, and postmodernism. Having established this framework, the author then analyzes the seven stages of the interview process - from designing a study to writing it up.  
• Practical Evaluation by Michael Quinn Patton  Surveys different interviewing strategies, from, a) informal/conversational, to b) interview guide approach, to c) standardized and open-ended, to d) closed/quantitative. Also discusses strategies for wording questions that are open-ended, clear, sensitive, and neutral, while supporting the speaker. Provides suggestions for probing and maintaining control of the interview process, as well as suggestions for recording and transcription.  
• The SAGE Handbook of Interview Research by Amir B. Marvasti (Editor); James A. Holstein (Editor); Jaber F. Gubrium (Editor); Karyn D. McKinney (Editor)  The new edition of this landmark volume emphasizes the dynamic, interactional, and reflexive dimensions of the research interview. Contributors highlight the myriad dimensions of complexity that are emerging as researchers increasingly frame the interview as a communicative opportunity as much as a data-gathering format. The book begins with the history and conceptual transformations of the interview, which is followed by chapters that discuss the main components of interview practice. Taken together, the contributions to The SAGE Handbook of Interview Research: The Complexity of the Craft encourage readers simultaneously to learn the frameworks and technologies of interviewing and to reflect on the epistemological foundations of the interview craft.
• International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry They host an annual confrerence at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, which aims to facilitate the development of qualitative research methods across a wide variety of academic disciplines, among other initiatives.
• METHODSPACE An online home of the research methods community, where practicing researchers share how to make research easier.
• Social Research Association, UK The SRA is the membership organisation for social researchers in the UK and beyond. It supports researchers via training, guidance, publications, research ethics, events, branches, and careers.
• Social Science Research Council The SSRC administers fellowships and research grants that support the innovation and evaluation of new policy solutions. They convene researchers and stakeholders to share evidence-based policy solutions and incubate new research agendas, produce online knowledge platforms and technical reports that catalog research-based policy solutions, and support mentoring programs that broaden problem-solving research opportunities.
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Chapter 13: Interviews

Danielle Berkovic

Learning outcomes

Upon completion of this chapter, you should be able to:

• Understand when to use interviews in qualitative research.
• Develop interview questions for an interview guide.
• Understand how to conduct an interview.

What are interviews?

An interviewing method is the most commonly used data collection technique in qualitative research. 1 The purpose of an interview is to explore the experiences, understandings, opinions and motivations of research participants. 2 Interviews are conducted one-on-one with the researcher and the participant. Interviews are most appropriate when seeking to understand a participant’s subjective view of an experience and are also considered suitable for the exploration of sensitive topics.

What are the different types of interviews?

There are four main types of interviews:

• Key stakeholder: A key stakeholder interview aims to explore one issue in detail with a person of interest or importance concerning the research topic. 3 Key stakeholder interviews seek the views of experts on some cultural, political or health aspects of the community, beyond their personal beliefs or actions. An example of a key stakeholder is the Chief Health Officer of Victoria (Australia’s second-most populous state) who oversaw the world’s longest lockdowns in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Dyad: A dyad interview aims to explore one issue in a level of detail with a dyad (two people). This form of interviewing is used when one participant of the dyad may need some support or is not wholly able to articulate themselves (e.g. people with cognitive impairment, or children). Independence is acknowledged and the interview is analysed as a unit. 4
• Narrative: A narrative interview helps individuals tell their stories, and prioritises their own perspectives and experiences using the language that they prefer. 5 This type of interview has been widely used in social research but is gaining prominence in health research to better understand person-centred care, for example, negotiating exercise and food abstinence whilst living with Type 2 diabetes. 6,7
• Life history: A life history interview allows the researcher to explore a person’s individual and subjective experiences within a history of the time framework. 8 Life history interviews challenge the researcher to understand how people’s current attitudes, behaviours and choices are influenced by previous experiences or trauma. Life history interviews have been conducted with Holocaust survivors 9 and youth who have been forcibly recruited to war. 10

Table 13.4 provides a summary of four studies, each adopting one of these types of interviews.

Interviewing techniques

There are two main interview techniques:

• Semi-structured: Semi-structured interviewing aims to explore a few issues in moderate detail, to expand the researcher’s knowledge at some level. 11 Semi-structured interviews give the researcher the advantage of remaining reasonably objective while enabling participants to share their perspectives and opinions. The researcher should create an interview guide with targeted open questions to direct the interview. As examples, semi-structured interviews have been used to extend knowledge of why women might gain excess weight during pregnancy, 12 and to update guidelines for statin uptake. 13
• In-depth: In-depth interviewing aims to explore a person’s subjective experiences and feelings about a particular topic. 14 In-depth interviews are often used to explore emotive (e.g. end-of-life care) 15 and complex (e.g. adolescent pregnancy) topics. 16 The researcher should create an interview guide with selected open questions to ask of the participant, but the participant should guide the direction of the interview more than in a semi-structured setting. In-depth interviews value participants’ lived experiences and are frequently used in phenomenology studies (as described in Chapter 6) .

When to use the different types of interview s

The type of interview a researcher uses should be determined by the study design, the research aims and objectives, and participant demographics. For example, if conducting a descriptive study, semi-structured interviews may be the best method of data collection. As explained in Chapter 5 , descriptive studies seek to describe phenomena, rather than to explain or interpret the data. A semi-structured interview, which seeks to expand upon some level of existing knowledge, will likely best facilitate this.

Similarly, if conducting a phenomenological study, in-depth interviews may be the best method of data collection. As described in Chapter 6 , the key concept of phenomenology is the individual. The emphasis is on the lived experience of that individual and the person’s sense-making of those experiences. Therefore, an in-depth interview is likely best placed to elicit that rich data.

While some interview types are better suited to certain study designs, there are no restrictions on the type of interview that may be used. For example, semi-structured interviews provide an excellent accompaniment to trial participation (see Chapter 11 about mixed methods), and key stakeholder interviews, as part of an action research study, can be used to define priorities, barriers and enablers to implementation.

How do I write my interview questions?

An interview aims to explore the experiences, understandings, opinions and motivations of research participants. The general rule is that the interviewee should speak for 80 per cent of the interview, and the interviewer should only be asking questions and clarifying responses, for about 20 per cent of the interview. This percentage may differ depending on the interview type; for example, a semi-structured interview involves the researcher asking more questions than in an in-depth interview. Still, to facilitate free-flowing responses, it is important to use open-ended language to encourage participants to be expansive in their responses. Examples of open-ended terms include questions that start with ‘who’, ‘how’ and ‘where’.

The researcher should avoid closed-ended questions that can be answered with yes or no, and limit conversation. For example, asking a participant ‘Did you have this experience?’ can elicit a simple ‘yes’, whereas asking them to ‘Describe your experience’, will likely encourage a narrative response. Table 13.1 provides examples of terminology to include and avoid in developing interview questions.

Table 13.1. Interview question formats to use and avoid

How long should my interview be?

There is no rule about how long an interview should take. Different types of interviews will likely run for different periods of time, but this also depends on the research question/s and the type of participant. For example, given that a semi-structured interview is seeking to expand on some previous knowledge, the interview may need no longer than 30 minutes, or up to one hour. An in-depth interview seeks to explore a topic in a greater level of detail and therefore, at a minimum, would be expected to last an hour. A dyad interview may be as short as 15 minutes (e.g. if the dyad is a person with dementia and a family member or caregiver) or longer, depending on the pairing.

Designing your interview guide

To figure out what questions to ask in an interview guide, the researcher may consult the literature, speak to experts (including people with lived experience) about the research and draw on their current knowledge. The topics and questions should be mapped to the research question/s, and the interview guide should be developed well in advance of commencing data collection. This enables time and opportunity to pilot-test the interview guide. The pilot interview provides an opportunity to explore the language and clarity of questions, the order and flow of the guide and to determine whether the instructions are clear to participants both before and after the interview. It can be beneficial to pilot-test the interview guide with someone who is not familiar with the research topic, to make sure that the language used is easily understood (and will be by participants, too). The study design should be used to determine the number of questions asked and the duration of the interview should guide the extent of the interview guide. The participant type may also determine the extent of the interview guide; for example, clinicians tend to be time-poor and therefore shorter, focused interviews are optimal. An interview guide is also likely to be shorter for a descriptive study than a phenomenological or ethnographic study, given the level of detail required. Chapter 5 outlined a descriptive study in which participants who had undergone percutaneous coronary intervention were interviewed. The interview guide consisted of four main questions and subsequent probing questions, linked to the research questions (see Table 13.2). 17

Table 13.2. Interview guide for a descriptive study

Table 13.3 is an example of a larger and more detailed interview guide, designed for the qualitative component of a mixed-methods study aiming to examine the work and financial effects of living with arthritis as a younger person. The questions are mapped to the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health, which measures health and disability at individual and population levels. 18

Table 13.3. Detailed interview guide

It is important to create an interview guide, for the following reasons:

• The researcher should be familiar with their research questions.
• Using an interview guide will enable the incorporation of feedback from the piloting process.
• It is difficult to predict how participants will respond to interview questions. They may answer in a way that is anticipated or they may provide unanticipated insights that warrant follow-up. An interview guide (a physical or digital copy) enables the researcher to note these answers and follow-up with appropriate inquiry.
• Participants will likely have provided heterogeneous answers to certain questions. The interview guide enables the researcher to note similarities and differences across various interviews, which may be important in data analysis.
• Even experienced qualitative researchers get nervous before an interview! The interview guide provides a safety net if the researcher forgets their questions or needs to anticipate the next question.

Setting up the interview

In the past, most interviews were conducted in person or by telephone. Emerging technologies promote easier access to research participation (e.g. by people living in rural or remote communities, or for people with mobility limitations). Even in metropolitan settings, many interviews are now conducted electronically (e.g. using videoconferencing platforms). Regardless of your interview setting, it is essential that the interview environment is comfortable for the participant. This process can begin as soon as potential participants express interest in your research. Following are some tips from the literature and our own experiences of leading interviews:

• Answer questions and set clear expectations . Participating in research is not an everyday task. People do not necessarily know what to expect during a research interview, and this can be daunting. Give people as much information as possible, answer their questions about the research and set clear expectations about what the interview will entail and how long it is expected to last. Let them know that the interview will be recorded for transcription and analysis purposes. Consider sending the interview questions a few days before the interview. This gives people time and space to reflect on their experiences, consider their responses to questions and to provide informed consent for their participation.
• Consider your setting . If conducting the interview in person, consider the location and room in which the interview will be held. For example, if in a participant’s home, be mindful of their private space. Ask if you should remove your shoes before entering their home. If they offer refreshments (which in our experience many participants do), accept it with gratitude if possible. These considerations apply beyond the participant’s home; if using a room in an office setting, consider privacy and confidentiality, accessibility and potential for disruption. Consider the temperature as well as the furniture in the room, who may be able to overhear conversations and who may walk past. Similarly, if interviewing by phone or online, take time to assess the space, and if in a house or office that is not quiet or private, use headphones as needed.
• Build rapport. The research topic may be important to participants from a professional perspective, or they may have deep emotional connections to the topic of interest. Regardless of the nature of the interview, it is important to remember that participants are being asked to open up to an interviewer who is likely to be a stranger. Spend some time with participants before the interview, to make sure that they are comfortable. Engage in some general conversation, and ask if they have any questions before you start. Remember that it is not a normal part of someone’s day to participate in research. Make it an enjoyable and/or meaningful experience for them, and it will enhance the data that you collect.
• Let participants guide you. Oftentimes, the ways in which researchers and participants describe the same phenomena are different. In the interview, reflect the participant’s language. Make sure they feel heard and that they are willing and comfortable to speak openly about their experiences. For example, our research involves talking to older adults about their experience of falls. We noticed early in this research that participants did not use the word ‘fall’ but would rather use terms such as ‘trip’, ‘went over’ and ‘stumbled’. As interviewers we adopted the participant’s language into our questions.
• Listen consistently and express interest. An interview is more complex than a simple question-and-answer format. The best interview data comes from participants feeling comfortable and confident to share their stories. By the time you are completing the 20th interview, it can be difficult to maintain the same level of concentration as with the first interview. Try to stay engaged: nod along with your participants, maintain eye contact, murmur in agreement and sympathise where warranted.
• The interviewer is both the data collector and the data collection instrument. The data received is only as good as the questions asked. In qualitative research, the researcher influences how participants answer questions. It is important to remain reflexive and aware of how your language, body language and attitude might influence the interview. Being rested and prepared will enhance the quality of the questions asked and hence the data collected.
• Avoid excessive use of ‘why’. It can be challenging for participants to recall why they felt a certain way or acted in a particular manner. Try to avoid asking ‘why’ questions too often, and instead adopt some of the open language described earlier in the chapter.

After your interview

When you have completed your interview, thank the participant and let them know they can contact you if they have any questions or follow-up information they would like to provide. If the interview has covered sensitive topics or the participant has become distressed throughout the interview, make sure that appropriate referrals and follow-up are provided (see section 6).

Download the recording from your device and make sure it is saved in a secure location that can only be accessed by people on the approved research team (see Chapters 35 and 36).

It is important to know what to do immediately after each interview is completed. Interviews should be transcribed – that is, reproduced verbatim for data analysis. Transcribing data is an important step in the process of analysis, but it is very time-consuming; transcribing a 60-minute interview can take up to 8 hours. Data analysis is discussed in Section 4.

Table 13.4. Examples of the four types of interviews

Interviews are the most common data collection technique in qualitative research. There are four main types of interviews; the one you choose will depend on your research question, aims and objectives. It is important to formulate open-ended interview questions that are understandable and easy for participants to answer. Key considerations in setting up the interview will enhance the quality of the data obtained and the experience of the interview for the participant and the researcher.

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• Olorunsaiye CZ, Degge HM, Ubanyi TO, Achema TA, Yaya S. “It’s like being involved in a car crash”: teen pregnancy narratives of adolescents and young adults in Jos, Nigeria. Int Health . 2022;14(6):562-571. doi:10.1093/inthealth/ihab069
• Ayton DR, Barker AL, Peeters G, et al. Exploring patient-reported outcomes following percutaneous coronary intervention: A qualitative study. Health Expect .  2018;21(2):457-465. doi:10.1111/hex.12636
• World Health Organization. International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). WHO. https://www.who.int/standards/classifications/international-classification-of-functioning-disability-and-health#:~:text=ICF%20is%20the%20WHO%20framework,and%20measure%20health%20and%20disability.
• Cuthbertson J, Rodriguez-Llanes JM, Robertson A, Archer F. Current and Emerging Disaster Risks Perceptions in Oceania: Key Stakeholders Recommendations for Disaster Management and Resilience Building. Int J Environ Res Public Health .  2019;16(3)doi:10.3390/ijerph16030460
• Bannon SM, Grunberg VA, Reichman M, et al. Thematic Analysis of Dyadic Coping in Couples With Young-Onset Dementia. JAMA Netw Open .  2021;4(4):e216111. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.6111
• McGranahan R, Jakaite Z, Edwards A, Rennick-Egglestone S, Slade M, Priebe S. Living with Psychosis without Mental Health Services: A Narrative Interview Study. BMJ Open .  2021;11(7):e045661. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2020-045661
• Gutiérrez-García AI, Solano-Ruíz C, Siles-González J, Perpiñá-Galvañ J. Life Histories and Lifelines: A Methodological Symbiosis for the Study of Female Genital Mutilation. Int J Qual Methods . 2021;20doi:10.1177/16094069211040969

Qualitative Research – a practical guide for health and social care researchers and practitioners Copyright © 2023 by Danielle Berkovic is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Research, Record, and Transcribe Better

Preparing Questions for a Qualitative Research Interview

Updated on: June 22, 2024

A qualitative research interview is an invaluable tool for researchers. Whether one’s studying social phenomena, exploring personal narratives, or investigating complex issues, interviews offer a means to gain unique insights. 

“The quality of the data collected in a qualitative research interview is highly dependent on the quality and appropriateness of the questions asked.”

But how do you prepare the right questions to ensure your interviews yield rich data? In this guide, we’ll explore the types of qualitative research interviews and provide tips for crafting effective questions.

Table of Contents

Types of Qualitative Research Interviews

Before diving into question preparation, it’s important to select the type of qualitative research interview that’s best suited for the study at hand.

There are three types of qualitative research interviews:

Structured Interviews 

Structured interviews involve asking the same set of pre-written questions to every participant. This approach ensures consistency, making it easier to compare data between participants or groups later.

When conducting structured interviews, keep these guidelines in mind:

• Pre-written Questions : All questions, including probes, should be meticulously written in advance.
• Detailed Questions : Questions should be detailed enough to be used verbatim during interviews.
• Consistent Sequence : The sequence of questions should be pre-decided and consistent across interviews.

Example of a Structured Interview Question

Question : Thinking back to your childhood days in Chelsea, can you remember what kind of local music was popular at the time?

• Why do you think it was so popular?
• Where was it played?
• Were there other popular genres?

Structured interviews are ideal when you need uniform data collection across all participants. They are common in large-scale studies or when comparing responses quantitatively.

Read more: Advantages & Disadvantages of Structured Interviews

Semi-structured Interviews 

The second type of qualitative interviews are semi-structured interviews. In these interviews, the  interview guide outlines the topics to be explored, but the actual questions are not pre-written.

This approach allows interviewers the freedom to phrase questions spontaneously and explore topics in more depth.

Example of a Semi-Structured Interview Question

Question : What problems did the participant face growing up in the community?

• Education-related.
• Related to their immediate family.
• Related to the community in general.

Semi-structured interviews strike a balance between flexibility and structure. They offer a framework within which interviewers can adapt questions to participants’ responses, making them suitable for in-depth exploration.

Unstructured Interviews 

In unstructured interviews, often referred to as  informal conversational interviews , are characterized by a lack of formal guidelines, predefined questions, or sequencing.

Questions emerge during the interview based on the conversation’s flow and the interviewee’s observations. Consequently, each unstructured interview is unique, and questions may evolve over time.

Unstructured interviews are highly exploratory and can lead to unexpected insights. They are particularly valuable when studying complex or novel phenomena where predefined questions may limit understanding.

Deciding What Information You Need

Once you’ve chosen the type of interview that suits your research study, the next step is to decide what information you need to collect.

Patton’s six types of questions offer a framework for shaping your inquiries:

• Behavior or Experience : Explore participants’ actions and experiences.
• Opinion or Belief : Probe participants’ beliefs, attitudes, and opinions.
• Feelings : Delve into the emotional aspects of participants’ experiences.
• Knowledge : Assess participants’ understanding and awareness of a topic.
• Sensory : Investigate how participants perceive and interact with their environment.
• Background or Demographic : Collect information about participants’ personal characteristics and histories.

Based on these categories, create a list of the specific information you aim to collect through the interview. This step ensures that your questions align with your research objectives.

Writing the Qualitative Research Interview Questions

After deciding the type of interview and nature of information you’d like to gather, the next step is to write the actual questions. 

Using Open-Ended Questions

Open-ended questions are the backbone of qualitative research interviews. They encourage participants to share their experiences and thoughts in-depth, providing rich, detailed data.

Avoid ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions, as they limit responses. Instead, use open-ended questions that grant participants the freedom to express themselves. Here are some examples – 

Examples of Open-Ended Questions

How do you feel about working at ABC Corp. during your initial years there?

• Encourages participants to share their emotions and experiences.

Can you describe the attitudes and approach to work of the other people working with you at the time?

• Invites participants to reflect on their colleagues’ behaviors and attitudes.

Tell me more about your relationship with your peers.

• Encourages participants to provide narrative insights into their relationships.

Read More: 100 Open-Ended Qualitative Interview Questions

Going from Unstructured to Structured Questions

Unstructured Questions allow the interviewee to guide the conversation, letting them focus on what they think is most important.

These questions make the interview longer, but also provide richer and deeper insight.

Examples of Unstructured Questions

• Tell me about your experience working at [xxx].
• What did it feel like to live in that neighborhood?
• What stood out to you as the defining characteristic of that neighborhood?

Examples of Structured Questions

• What are some ways people dealt with the health issues caused by excessive chemical industries in the neighborhood?
• As an employee at ABC Corp. during the time, did you observe any specific actions taken by the employers to address the issue?

Probing Questions

Probing questions are used to get more information about an answer or clarify something. They help interviewers dig deeper, clarify responses, and gain a more comprehensive understanding.

Examples of Probing Questions

Tell me more about that.

• Encourages participants to elaborate on their previous response.

And how did you feel about that?

• Invites participants to share their emotional reactions.

What do you mean when you say [xxx]?

• Seeks clarification on ambiguous or complex statements.

Probing questions enhance the depth and clarity of the data collected, however they should be used judiciously to avoid overwhelming participants.

A General Last Question

As your interview approaches its conclusion, it’s beneficial to have a general last question that allows the interviewee to share any additional thoughts or opinions they feel are relevant.

For instance, you might ask:

Thank you for all that valuable information. Is there anything else you’d like to add before we end?

This open-ended question provides participants with a final opportunity to express themselves fully, ensuring that no critical insights are left unshared.

Preparing questions for qualitative research interviews requires a thoughtful approach that considers the interview type, desired information, and the balance between structured and unstructured questioning.

Here’s a great guide from the Harvard University on the subject.

Read More: How to Transcribe an Interview – A Complete Guide

• Choosing the Right Setting for a Qualitative Research Interview
• 5 Ways Researchers can Transcribe from Audio to Text

Reader Interactions

hlabishi says

April 8, 2015 at 12:37 pm

I found the information valuable. It will assist me a lot with my research work.

Harpinder says

June 8, 2015 at 10:40 pm

I am going for my pilot study. Above information is really valuable for me. Thank you.

September 28, 2015 at 10:21 am

thank you for Patton’s 6 types of questions related to: 1. Behavior or experience. 2. Opinion or belief. 3. Feelings. 4. Knowledge. 5. Sensory. 6. Background or demographic. Really helpful

IBRAHIM A. ALIYU says

October 7, 2015 at 6:04 pm

Very interesting and good guides, thanks a lot

Dumisani says

July 31, 2017 at 7:55 am

Very informative. Thank you

Yongama says

June 5, 2018 at 11:57 pm

this is a good information and it helped me

Joshua Nonwo says

June 3, 2019 at 11:02 pm

vital information that really help me to do my research. thank you so much.

June 12, 2019 at 7:36 pm

Thanks a lot. Example of structured interview broadens My mind in formulating my structured research question. Indeed very helpful.

mwiine says

November 29, 2019 at 6:31 am

thanx, a lot. the information will guide me in my research.

Kayayoo isaac says

November 29, 2019 at 7:54 am

Thanks for the information, it was very much helpful to me in the area of data collection.

leslie says

December 27, 2019 at 4:29 pm

very useful thanks.

louisevbanz says

January 20, 2020 at 3:19 pm

I’d like put the writers of this in my references. May I ask who the writers are and what year was this published? Thank you very much.

Daniel says

June 1, 2020 at 6:21 pm

Thank you very much. Helpful information in my preparations for structured interviews for my research .

abby kamwana says

December 8, 2020 at 9:03 am

This is the information i was looking for thank you so much!.

Cosmas W.K. Mereku (Prof.) says

June 15, 2021 at 8:59 am

I am teaching 42 MPhil and 6 PhD postgraduate music students research methods this academic year. Your guide to qualitative research interview questions has been very useful. Because the students are in different disciplines (music education, music composition, ethnomusicology and performance), all the types of questions discussed have been very useful. Thank you very much.

Gerald Ibrahim b. says

June 16, 2021 at 12:45 pm

One of my best article ever read..thanks alot this may help me in completing my research report…

Corazon T. Balulao says

March 1, 2022 at 7:47 am

Thank you so much for sharing with us it helps me a lot doing mt basic research

antoinette says

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this was very helpful

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The Ultimate Guide to Transcribing Qualitative Research Interviews

Learn how to transcribe interviews in qualitative research with ease. This guide covers the process of transcribing interviews for qualitative research, best practices, benefits, and challenges. We will also discuss some of the best tools for transcribing interviews in qualitative research.

Imagine capturing lightning in a bottle. That's what transcribing interviews in qualitative research is like. It's the art of turning fleeting conversations into lasting, analyzable data.

But why do researchers spend hours typing up talks? It's more than just record-keeping. Transcription captures the essence of conversations - words, tone, pauses, and unspoken cues. This process is key to uncover deep insights and drawing meaningful conclusions.

If you’re wondering “how to transcribe data in qualitative research”, you’ve landed at the right place. This guide will walk you through the transcription process, offering tips and helping you sidestep common pitfalls. Whether you're a seasoned pro or just starting, you'll find practical ways to sharpen your skills.

What is qualitative research?

Qualitative research is a method used to explore and understand human behavior, experiences, and social phenomena. Unlike quantitative research, which deals with numbers and statistics, qualitative research focuses on words, stories, and observations.

In qualitative studies, researchers often use interviews to gather data. These interviews help uncover the 'why' and 'how' behind people's actions and thoughts. The goal is to gain deep insights into complex issues that can't be easily measured with numbers alone.

Key features of qualitative research include:

• Open-ended questions: Researchers ask questions that allow participants to express their thoughts freely.
• Flexibility: The research design can change as new information emerges.
• Rich, descriptive data: Results are often presented as detailed narratives rather than charts or graphs.
• Small sample sizes: Qualitative studies often focus on fewer participants but explore their experiences in depth.
• Subjectivity: Researchers acknowledge their biases and how they might affect the study.

What is qualitative data transcription?

Qualitative data transcription specifically refers to converting spoken words from research events such as interviews or focus groups into written text. It often employs verbatim transcription, which involves writing down every word exactly as spoken, including pauses and non-verbal sounds.

What type of transcription is used in qualitative research?

In qualitative research, the most common types are verbatim and intelligent transcription. Verbatim captures everything exactly as spoken, while intelligent transcription focuses on content by omitting unnecessary filler words or correcting grammar.

Types of transcription

There are three main types of transcription:

• Verbatim: Captures everything, including filler words and pauses.
• Intelligent Verbatim: Keeps the essence but removes fillers and false starts.
• Edited Transcription: Cleans up the text further, correcting grammar and reorganizing for clarity.

Techniques for transcription

Transcription can be done through various methods. The basic approach is to listen and type, playing the audio and typing what is heard. Transcription software can make the process faster and easier, offering features like automatic timestamps or AI-assisted transcription. Some researchers use a foot pedal method, which allows control of audio playback without taking hands off the keyboard.

Applications of transcription in qualitative research

Transcription is crucial in various qualitative research contexts. In interview analysis, it allows researchers to examine individual responses in detail. For focus group discussions, transcripts help capture multiple viewpoints and group dynamics. In observational research, transcribing audio notes helps create detailed field notes. Transcripts form a key part of case study data and are valuable in ethnographic research for preserving field conversations.

What are the benefits of transcribing interviews for qualitative research?

Transcribing interviews offers numerous benefits:

• Easy data review: Written transcripts can be quickly skimmed and searched
• Pattern identification: Researchers can more easily identify patterns and themes in text form
• Precise quoting: Accurate transcripts enable precise quoting of participants
• Facilitates sharing: Transcripts make it easier to share findings with other researchers
• Permanent record: Transcripts create a permanent, easily storable record of research data

Challenges of transcribing interviews for qualitative research

Transcription presents several challenges:

• Time-consuming: Often takes 4-6 hours for every hour of audio
• Audio quality issues: Poor audio can hinder accurate transcription
• Non-verbal cue capture: Difficult to represent in text form, potentially leading to loss of context
• Consistency maintenance: Tricky to maintain, especially with multiple transcribers
• Sensitive content handling: Requires extra care and can be mentally draining

Regulatory and privacy considerations

When transcribing for research, protecting participant confidentiality and complying with data protection laws are essential. This involves removing identifying details, using pseudonyms, and securely storing data. Researchers must obtain explicit consent, inform participants about data use, and ensure participants' rights to access or delete their data. Secure storage, limited access, and ethical handling of sensitive information are crucial aspects of the transcription process.

What is the best way to transcribe interviews?

Transcribing interviews for qualitative research is a key step in qualitative research. The best way to transcribe depends on your project needs and resources. Here are some tips:

• Choose the right tools 

Using the right tools can significantly impact the transcription process. Invest in good-quality headphones to hear every word and nuance in the recording. Transcription software with playback controls, such as adjustable speeds and foot pedal compatibility, can speed up your work. Popular tools like Express Scribe or Otter.ai help streamline this process, especially when handling long interviews.

• Decide on verbatim or intelligent transcription 

The choice between verbatim and intelligent transcription depends on your research focus. Verbatim transcription captures every sound, including fillers and non-verbal cues, ideal for analyzing speech patterns or emotions while intelligent transcription focuses on content, omitting fillers for cleaner, more readable text. 

• Create a consistent format 

Consistency in format is key for a smooth analysis later on. Use a standard layout for all transcripts, including speaker labels, timestamps, and clear paragraphing. For instance, label each speaker as "Interviewer" and "Participant" or by name if needed. This helps when you’re coding data later, allowing you to trace back comments to specific moments in the interview.

• Take breaks 

Transcription is a mentally intensive task, especially for longer interviews. Listening to recordings repeatedly while typing out every detail can be exhausting. Taking regular breaks helps maintain focus and accuracy. A good rule of thumb is to take a 10-minute break after 30–45 minutes of transcribing. This prevents errors from creeping in due to fatigue.

• Review and edit 

Once the transcript is done, it’s crucial to review it for any mistakes or missed content. Playback the recording while reading along with your transcript to ensure nothing important is omitted. Checking for proper punctuation, correct speaker identification, and clarity helps improve the transcript’s overall quality. This step ensures that your transcript is an accurate reflection of the original interview.

How to transcribe interviews in qualitative research?

In this section, we will discuss everything related to how to transcribe data in qualitative research. 

• How to transcribe an interview qualitative research sample? 

Transcribing a qualitative interview involves listening to the audio and writing down the conversation verbatim. Begin by ensuring a quiet space and breaking the audio into manageable sections. Focus on capturing the participants’ words, including pauses, filler words, and emotions. You may use transcription software for assistance, but review the text manually for accuracy.

• How do you transcribe a qualitative interview?

To transcribe a qualitative interview, play the audio in small sections, pausing frequently to capture the exact words of the interviewee and interviewer. Include verbal nuances, hesitations, and filler words, as they may offer insights. Proofread the transcription to ensure completeness and accuracy, reflecting the natural flow of conversation.

• How to transcribe an interview in qualitative research?

Transcribing an interview in qualitative research requires converting spoken language from audio into written form. Start by playing the interview audio and carefully transcribing it verbatim, including pauses, repeated phrases, and non-verbal sounds. Researchers may also choose to omit filler words or irrelevant speech depending on the research purpose.

• How to transcribe audio to text for qualitative research?

To transcribe audio to text for qualitative research, first, play the audio and transcribe it word-for-word using either manual typing or transcription software. Make sure to capture every detail, including intonations and non-verbal cues like laughter. Once done, review the text for accuracy and format it according to your research needs.

• How to transcribe manually? 

Manual transcription involves listening to an audio recording and typing out the conversation or speech by hand. Use a word processor, and pause the audio frequently to ensure accuracy. It's a time-consuming but precise process, especially useful when you need to capture subtle details, emotions, or context in qualitative research.

Tools for creating automatic transcriptions

Now that you understand how to transcribe data in qualitative research, let's move on to some tools that can make this process easier. These tools save time and improve accuracy and consistency in the transcription process. 

1. Streamlining qualitative research with Looppanel

Looppanel is a state-of-the-art tool designed for transcribing interviews for qualitative research. The platform comes with a user-friendly interface and simplifies the qualitative research process. It offers a range of features that can significantly streamline your workflow, from interview scheduling to automatic transcription and analysis.

Pricing: Free, with paid plans starting at $30 Per month.

• Create your workspace

Open Looppanel and signup using your credentials. Create your workspace and add your team members (if any). 

• Conduct interviews

With Looppanel, you can conduct interviews directly through the platform. Just enter your meeting link on the top right corner of your workspace and hit “Start recording.”

The platform supports video calls and screen sharing, making it ideal for remote qualitative research. The platform also allows for real-time note-taking during the interview.

• Automatic transcription

Once your interview is complete, Looppanel's AI-powered transcription service goes to work. It quickly generates accurate transcripts of your interviews, saving you the time and effort of manual transcription.

• Transcript review and editing

After the automatic transcription is complete, you can review and edit the transcript directly in Looppanel. This allows you to correct any errors and add any additional context or notes.

• Collaboration and analysis

You can also highlight key quotes, add tags, and create clips from your interviews. These features make it easy to identify themes and patterns across multiple interviews.

• Exporting and sharing

Once you've completed your analysis, you can easily export your findings or share them with team members directly through Looppanel.

Looppanel's intuitive interface and comprehensive feature set make it a powerful tool for qualitative researchers looking to streamline their process from start to finish.

2. Dovetail

Dovetail is another robust platform that offers a suite of tools for qualitative researchers. It stands out for its focus on collaborative analysis and rich data visualization capabilities.

Pricing: $29 Per Month

• Import audio and video files with automatic, accurate transcription.
• Multiple team members can code and analyze transcripts collaboratively in real time.
• Organize data using hierarchical tags for detailed analysis.
• Automatically generate charts and graphs to spot patterns and trends.
• Export data in various formats or create interactive presentations directly from the platform.

3. Atlas.ti

Atlas.ti is a well-established name in qualitative data analysis software, known for its comprehensive feature set and robust analytical capabilities.

Pricing: License starting from $48 per 6 months.

Here's what Atlas.ti offers:

• Handles various data types, including text, audio, video, and social media.
• Supports transcription directly within the software, syncing with the original media.
• Offers advanced coding with codes, subcodes, and in-vivo coding for detailed analysis.
• Visualize relationships between codes, quotes, and memos using the network view.
• Use the query tool to combine codes and uncover deeper insights.
• Identify patterns with the co-occurrence explorer to find connections in your data.

How do you present qualitative data in a manuscript?

Presenting qualitative data effectively is key to a strong manuscript. Let's dive deeper into some strategies:

• Use clear headings

Organize your findings under clear, descriptive headings. This helps readers navigate your results easily. For example, use headings like "Participant Experiences" or "Emerging Themes" to guide your readers.

• Balance narrative and quotes

Blend your analysis with direct quotes from participants. A good rule of thumb is to use one or two quotes per main point. This brings your data to life and supports your interpretations.

• Provide context

Give enough background for readers to understand the significance of your data. This might include brief descriptions of participants or settings. For instance: "Sarah, a 45-year-old teacher with 20 years of experience, noted that..."

• Use tables and figures

Visual representations can help summarize complex information. A table showing themes and subthemes, or a diagram illustrating relationships between concepts, can be very effective.

• Maintain anonymity

Use pseudonyms or participant codes to protect identities. Be consistent throughout your manuscript. For example, you might use "P1, P2, P3" or choose fictional names.

Remember, your goal is to present a clear, compelling story about your findings that are grounded in your data.

How should data be represented?

To represent data effectively in qualitative research, use a combination of vivid descriptions, participant quotes, and organized visuals. Start by crafting detailed narratives that capture the context and emotions behind the data, making the findings relatable and engaging. Incorporate relevant quotes to bring participants’ voices into the analysis—using short quotes in-line and longer quotes as block text for emphasis. To enhance clarity, organize key findings into thematic tables or diagrams, helping readers quickly understand patterns and relationships across the data. This approach balances depth, participant authenticity, and structured insights.

How to analyze interview transcripts in qualitative research?

Analyzing interview transcripts is a crucial and often complex process. To analyze interview transcripts in qualitative research, start by reading through all transcripts to get a broad understanding of the data. Develop a coding scheme based on your research questions, using descriptive and interpretive codes. Apply these codes consistently across the data, then identify broader themes that connect different codes. Refine your codes and themes as needed, looking for patterns, relationships, and key insights. Lastly, interpret the data in the context of your research questions and existing theories, considering that qualitative analysis is an iterative process that may require revisiting earlier steps.

Summing up 

Transcribing interviews is a crucial step in qualitative research. It turns spoken words into written text, allowing for in-depth analysis. Good transcription captures not just what was said, but how it was said. This process involves listening carefully, typing accurately, and noting important non-verbal cues. Whether you're using manual methods or automatic tools, the goal is the same: to create a faithful record of the interview that serves your research needs.

• How do you write a verbatim in qualitative research?

A verbatim transcript in qualitative research captures every word, filler, and sound as spoken, without correcting grammar. Include non-verbal cues (e.g., laughter), phonetic spelling for unclear words, false starts, and time stamps. The goal is to preserve both content and delivery for accurate analysis.

• How do you format a research interview transcript?

For formatting, use a consistent structure with a header (date, participant code), line numbering, labeled speakers, and time stamps. Note non-verbal cues in brackets and use uniform fonts and spacing for easy readability.

• What contextual detail is necessary to interpret data?

When interpreting data, include participant details, interview setting, non-verbal cues, cultural factors, and the broader research context. This ensures a fuller, more accurate analysis.

• What is data transcription?

Data transcription is the process of converting audio or video recordings into written text. Qualitative research typically involves writing out interviews word-for-word. A good transcript captures not just the spoken words but also pauses, hesitations, tone of voice, and non-verbal sounds like laughter or sighs.

• Who should do the transcribing?

The choice of the transcriber depends on the project's needs, timeline, and resources. Researchers may choose to transcribe themselves for a nuanced understanding, though it's time-consuming. Research assistants can help save time, while professional services offer speed and precision but at a higher cost. Automated tools provide a budget-friendly option but often require additional editing.

• Why is accurate transcription crucial for qualitative research?

Accurate transcription is fundamental to qualitative research integrity. It ensures data stays true to the source, enabling reliable analysis and credible research findings. Good transcripts allow researchers to revisit and reanalyze data, providing a solid foundation for evolving research questions or methods.

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Journal of Medical Internet Research (Jul 2024)

Determining an Appropriate Sample Size for Qualitative Interviews to Achieve True and Near Code Saturation: Secondary Analysis of Data

• Claudia M Squire,
• Kristen C Giombi,
• Douglas J Rupert,
• Jacqueline Amoozegar,
• Peyton Williams

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BackgroundIn-depth interviews are a common method of qualitative data collection, providing rich data on individuals’ perceptions and behaviors that would be challenging to collect with quantitative methods. Researchers typically need to decide on sample size a priori. Although studies have assessed when saturation has been achieved, there is no agreement on the minimum number of interviews needed to achieve saturation. To date, most research on saturation has been based on in-person data collection. During the COVID-19 pandemic, web-based data collection became increasingly common, as traditional in-person data collection was possible. Researchers continue to use web-based data collection methods post the COVID-19 emergency, making it important to assess whether findings around saturation differ for in-person versus web-based interviews. ObjectiveWe aimed to identify the number of web-based interviews needed to achieve true code saturation or near code saturation. MethodsThe analyses for this study were based on data from 5 Food and Drug Administration–funded studies conducted through web-based platforms with patients with underlying medical conditions or with health care providers who provide primary or specialty care to patients. We extracted code- and interview-specific data and examined the data summaries to determine when true saturation or near saturation was reached. ResultsThe sample size used in the 5 studies ranged from 30 to 70 interviews. True saturation was reached after 91% to 100% (n=30-67) of planned interviews, whereas near saturation was reached after 33% to 60% (n=15-23) of planned interviews. Studies that relied heavily on deductive coding and studies that had a more structured interview guide reached both true saturation and near saturation sooner. We also examined the types of codes applied after near saturation had been reached. In 4 of the 5 studies, most of these codes represented previously established core concepts or themes. Codes representing newly identified concepts, other or miscellaneous responses (eg, “in general”), uncertainty or confusion (eg, “don’t know”), or categorization for analysis (eg, correct as compared with incorrect) were less commonly applied after near saturation had been reached. ConclusionsThis study provides support that near saturation may be a sufficient measure to target and that conducting additional interviews after that point may result in diminishing returns. Factors to consider in determining how many interviews to conduct include the structure and type of questions included in the interview guide, the coding structure, and the population under study. Studies with less structured interview guides, studies that rely heavily on inductive coding and analytic techniques, and studies that include populations that may be less knowledgeable about the topics discussed may require a larger sample size to reach an acceptable level of saturation. Our findings also build on previous studies looking at saturation for in-person data collection conducted at a small number of sites.

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A qualitative study on reasons for women’s loss and resumption of Option B plus care in Ethiopia

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Loss to follow-up (LTFU) from Option B plus, a lifelong antiretroviral therapy (ART) for pregnant women living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), irrespective of their clinical stage and CD4 count, threatens the elimination of vertical transmission of the virus from mothers to their infants. However, evidence on reasons for LTFU and resumption after LTFU to Option B plus care among women has been limited in Ethiopia. Therefore, this study explored why women were LTFU from the service and what made them resume or refuse resumption after LTFU in Ethiopia. An exploratory, descriptive qualitative study using 46 in-depth interviews was employed among purposely selected women who were lost from Option B plus care or resumed care after LTFU, health care providers, and mother support group (MSG) members working in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission unit. A thematic analysis using an inductive approach was used to analyze the data and build subthemes and themes. Open Code Version 4.03 software assists in data management, from open coding to developing themes and sub-themes. We found that low socioeconomic status, poor relationship with husband and/or family, lack of support from partners, family members, or government, HIV-related stigma, and discrimination, lack of awareness on HIV treatment and perceived drug side effects, religious belief, shortage of drug supply, inadequate service access, and fear of confidentiality breach by healthcare workers were major reasons for LTFU. Healthcare workers' dedication to tracing lost women, partner encouragement, and feeling sick prompted women to resume care after LTFU. This study highlighted financial burdens, partner violence, and societal and health service-related factors discouraged compliance to retention among women in Option B plus care in Ethiopia. Women's empowerment and partner engagement were of vital importance to retain them in care and eliminate vertical transmission of the virus among infants born to HIV-positive women.

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Introduction.

Lost to follow-up is a major challenge in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV among HIV-exposed infants (HEI). Globally, about 1.5 million children under 15 years old were living with HIV, and 130,000 acquired the virus in 2022 1 . In the African region, an estimated 1.3 million children aged 0–14 were living with HIV at the end of 2022, and 109,000 children were newly infected 2 . Five out of six paediatric HIV infections occurred in sub-Saharan Africa in 2022 3 . Most of these infections are due to mother-to-child transmission (MTCT), accounting for around 90% of all new infections 4 , 5 . Without any intervention, between 15 and 45 percent of infants born to HIV-positive mothers are likely to acquire the virus from their mothers, with half dying before their second birthday without treatment 3 . Almost 70% of new HIV infections were due to mothers not receiving ART or dropping off during pregnancy or breastfeeding 3 .

In Ethiopia, the burden of MTCT of HIV is high, with a pooled prevalence ranging from 5.6% to 11.4% 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 . Ethiopia adopted the 2013 World Health Organization’s Option B plus recommendations as the preferred strategy for the PMTCT of HIV in 2013 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 . Accordingly, a combination of triple antiretroviral (ARV) drugs was provided for all HIV-infected pregnant and/or breastfeeding women, irrespective of their CD4 count and World Health Organization (WHO) clinical staging 11 , 13 . Besides, the drug type was switched from an EFV-based to a DTG-based regimen to enhance maternal life quality and decrease LTFU from Option B plus care 11 , 15 . The Efavirenz-based regimen consists of Tenofovir (TDF), Lamivudine (3TC), and Efavirenz (EFV), while the DTG-based regimen consists of TDF, 3TC, and DTG 13 , 15 , 16 . The change in regimen was due to better tolerability and rapid viral suppression, thereby retaining women in care and achieving MTCT of HIV targets 17 , 18 .

The trend of women accessing ART for PMTCT services increases, and new HIV infections decrease over time 3 , 19 , 20 . However, the effectiveness of Option B plus depends not only on service coverage but also on drug adherence and retention in care 4 , 15 , 21 . In this regard, quantitative studies conducted in Ethiopia showed that the prevalence of LTFU from Option B plus ranged from 4.2% to 18.2% 22 , 23 , 24 . Besides, the overall incidence of LTFU ranged from 9 to 9.4 per 1000 person-months of observation 25 , 26 , which is a challenge for the success of the program.

Qualitative studies also revealed that the main reasons for LTFU among women were maternal educational status, drug side effects, lack of partner and family support, lack of HIV status disclosure, poverty, discordant HIV test results, religious belief, stigma, and discrimination, long distance to the health facility, and history of poor adherence to ART 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 . Reasons for resumption to care were a decline in health status, a desire to have an uninfected child, and support from others 30 , 33 . Unless the above risk factors for LTFU are managed, the national plan to eliminate the MTCT of HIV by 2025 will not be achieved 34 .

Currently, because of its fewer side effects and better tolerability, a Dolutegravir (DTG)-based regimen is given as a preferred first-line regimen to pregnant and/or breastfeeding women to reduce the risk of LTFU 13 , 16 . The goal is to reduce new HIV transmissions and achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3.3 of ending Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) as a public health threat by 2030 35 , 36 , 37 . As mentioned above, there is rich information on the prevalence and risk factors of LTFU among women on Option B plus care before the DTG-based regimen was implemented. Besides, the previous qualitative studies addressed the reasons for LTFU from providers’ and/or women’s perspectives rather than including mother support group (MSG) members. However, there was a lack of evidence that explored the reasons for LTFU and resumption of care after LTFU from the perspectives of MSG members, lost women, and healthcare workers (HCWs) providing care to women. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the reasons why women LTFU and resumed Option B plus care after the implementation of a DTG-based regimen in Ethiopia.

Materials and methods

Study design and setting.

An exploratory, descriptive qualitative study 38 was conducted between June and October 2023. This study was conducted in two regions of Ethiopia: Central Ethiopia and South Ethiopia. These neighbouring regions were formed on August 19, 2023, after the disintegration of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region after a successful referendum 39 . The authors included these nearby regions to get an adequate sample size and cover a wider geographic area. In these regions, 140 health facilities (49 hospitals and 91 health centers) provided PMTCT and ART services to 28,885 patients at the time of the study, of whom 1,236 were pregnant or breastfeeding women (675 in South Ethiopia and 561 in Central Ethiopia).

Participants and data collection

Study participants were women who were lost from PMTCT care or resumed PMTCT care after LTFU, MSG members, and HCWs provided PMTCT care. Mother support group members were HIV-positive women working in the PMTCT unit to share experiences and provide counselling services on breastfeeding, retention, and adherence, and to trace women when they lost Option B plus care 11 , 40 . Healthcare workers were nurses or midwives working in the PMTCT unit to deliver services to women enrolled in Option B plus care.

Purposive criterion sampling was employed to select study participants from twenty-one facilities (nine health centers and twelve hospitals) providing PMTCT service. A total of 46 participants were included in the study. The interview included 15 women (eleven lost and four resumed care after LTFU), 14 providers, and 17 MSG members. Healthcare workers and MSG members were chosen based on the length of time they spent engaging with women on Option B plus care; the higher the work experience, the more they were selected to get adequate information about the study participants. Including the study participants in each group continued until data saturation.

The principal investigator, with the help of HCWs and MSG members, identified lost women from the PMTCT registration books and appointment cards. A woman's status was recorded as LTFU if she missed the last clinic appointment for at least 28 days without documented death or transfer out to another facility 15 . Providers contacted women based on their addresses recorded during enrolment in Option B plus care, either via phone (if functional) or by conducting home visits for those unable to be reached. Informed written consent was obtained, and the research assistants conducted in-depth interviews at women’s homes or health facilities based on their preferences. After an interview, eleven women who lost care were counselled to resume PMTCT care, but nine returned to care and two refused to resume care. Besides, the principal investigator, HCWs, and MSG members identified women who resumed care after LTFU, called them via phone to visit the health facility at their convenience, and conducted the interview after obtaining consent. The research team covered transportation costs and provided adherence counselling to women post-interview. A woman resumed care if she came back to PMTCT care on her own or healthcare workers’ efforts after LTFU.

One-on-one, in-depth interviews were conducted with eligible MSG members and HCWs at respective health facilities. A semi-structured interview guide translated into the local language (Amharic) was used to collect data. The guide comprises the following constructs: why women are lost to follow-up from PMTCT care, what made them resume caring after LTFU, and why they did not resume Option B plus care after LTFU with probing questions (Supplementary File 1 ). The interview was conducted for 18 to 37 min with each participant, and the duration was communicated to study participants before the interview. The interview was audio-taped, and field notes were taken during the interviews.

Data management and analysis

Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. The research assistants transcribed the interviews verbatim within 48 h of data collection and translated them from the local language (Amharic) to English for analysis. The principal investigator read the translated document several times to get a general sense of the content. An inductive approach was applied to allow the conceptual clustering of ideas and patterns to emerge. The authors preferred an inductive approach to analyze data since there were no pre-determined categories. The core meaning of the phrases and sentences relevant to the research aim was searched. Codes were assigned to the phrases and sentences in the transcript, which were later used to develop themes and subthemes. The subthemes were substantiated by quotes from the interviews. The interviews developed two themes: reasons for LTFU and the reasons for resumption after LTFU. The findings were triangulated from healthcare workers, MSG members, and client responses. Open code software version 4.03 was used to assist in data management, from open coding to the development themes and sub-themes.

Background characteristics of the study participants

We successfully interviewed 46 participants (14 providers, 15 women, and 17 MSG members) until data saturation. The mean (± standard deviation [SD]) of age was 25.53 (± 0.99) years for women, 32.5 (± 1.05) years for MSG members, and 32.2 (± 1.05) years for care providers. Three out of fifteen women did not disclose their HIV status to their partner, and 5/15 women’s partners were discordant. The mean (± SD) service years in the PMTCT unit were 10.3 (± 1.3) for MSG members and 3.29 (± 0.42) for care providers (Supplementary File 2 ).

Reasons for LTFU

Women who started ART to prevent MTCT of HIV were lost from care due to different reasons. Societal and individual-related factors and health facility-related factors were the two main dimensions that made women LTFU. The societal and individual-related factors were socioeconomic status, relations with husbands or families, lack of support, HIV-related stigma and discrimination, lack of awareness and perceived antiretroviral (ARV) side effects, and religious belief. Health facility-related factors such as lack of confidentiality, drug supply shortages, and inadequate service access led to women's loss from Option B plus care (Supplementary File 3 ).

Societal and individual-related factors

Socioeconomic status.

Lack of money to buy food was a major identified problem for women’s LTFU. Women who did not have adequate food to eat became undernourished, which significantly increased the risk of LTFU. Besides, they did not want to swallow ARV drugs with an empty stomach and thus did not visit health facilities to collect their drugs.

“My life is miserable. I have nothing to eat at my home. How would I take the drug on an empty stomach? Let the disease kill me rather than die due to hunger. This is why I stopped to take the medicine and LTFU.” (W-02, 30-year-old woman, divorced, daily labourer)

Women also disappeared from PMTCT care due to a lack of money to cover transportation costs to reach health facilities.

I need a lot of money to pay for transportation that I can’t afford. Sometimes I came to the hospital borrowing money for transportation. It is challenging to attend a follow-up schedule regularly to collect ART medications.” (W-11, 26-year-old woman, married, housewife)

Relationships with husbands and/or families

Fear of violence and divorce by sexual partners were identified as major reasons for the LTFU of women from PMTCT care. Due to fear of partner violence and divorce, women did not want to be seen by their partners while visiting health facilities for Option B plus care and swallowing ARV drugs. As a result, they missed clinic appointments, did not swallow the drugs, and consequently lost care.

“Due to discordant test results, my husband divorced me. Then I went to my mother's home with my child. I haven’t returned to take the drug since then and have lost PMTCT care.” (W-03, 25-year-old woman, divorced, commercial sex worker)

Women did not disclose their HIV status to their discordant sexual partners and family members due to fear of stigma and discrimination. As a result, they did not swallow drugs in front of others and were unable to collect the drugs from health facilities.

“I know a mother who picked up her drugs on market day as if she came to the market to buy goods. No one knows her status. She hides the drug and swallows it when her husband sleeps.” (P-05, 29-year-old provider, female, 3 years of experience in the PMTCT unit) “I don't want to be seen at the ART unit. I have no reason to convince the discordant husband to visit a health facility after delivery. My husband kills me if he knows that I am living with HIV. This is why I discontinued the care.” (W-12, 18-year-old woman, married, housewife)

Women who lack partner support in caring for children at home during visits to health facilities find it difficult to adhere to clinic visits. Besides, women who did not get financial and psychological support from their partners faced difficulties in retaining care.

“Taking care of children is not business for my husband. How could I leave my two children alone at home? Or can I bring them biting with my teeth?” (W-05, 24-year-old woman, divorced, daily labourer) “ I didn't get any financial or psychological support from my husband. This made me drop PMTCT care.” (W-15, 34-year-old woman, married, daily labourer) Lack of support

Women living with HIV also had complaints of lack of support from the government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and HIV-related associations in cash and in kind. As a result, they were disappointed to remain in care.

"Previously, we got financial and material support from NGOs. Besides, the government arranged places for material production and goods sale to improve our economic status. However, now we didn't get any support from anywhere. This made our lives hectic to retain PMTCT care.” (W-06, 29-year-old woman, married, daily labourer)

HIV-related stigma and discrimination

Fear of stigma and discrimination by sexual partners, family members, and the community were mentioned as reasons for LTFU. Gossip, isolation, and rejection from societal activities were the dominant stigma experiences the women encountered. As a result, they did not want to be seen by others who knew them while collecting ARV drugs from health facilities, and consequently, they were lost from care and treatment.

“Despite getting PMTCT service at the nearby facility, some women come to our hospital traveling long distances. They don't want to be seen by others while taking ARV drugs there due to fear of stigma and discrimination by the community.” (P-10, 34-year-old provider, female, 2 years of experience in the PMTCT unit) “I am a daily labourer and bake ‘injera’ (a favourite food in Ethiopia) at someone's house to run my life. If the owner knew my status, I am sure she would not allow me to continue the job. In that case, what would I give my child to eat?” (W-12, 18-year-old woman, married, housewife) “My family did not know that I was living with the virus. If they knew it, I am sure they would not allow me to contact them during any events. Thus, I am afraid of telling them that I had the virus in my blood.” (W-05, 24-year-old woman, divorced, daily labourer)

Lack of awareness and perceived ARV side effects

Sometimes women went to another area for different reasons without taking ARV drugs with them. As per the Ethiopian national treatment guidelines 13 , they could get the drugs temporarily from any nearby facility that delivers PMTCT service. However, those who did not know that they could get the drugs from other nearby PMTCT facilities lost their care until their return. Others were lost, considering that ARV drugs harm the health status of their babies.

“One mother refused to retain in care after the delivery of a congenitally malformed baby (no hands at birth). She said, 'This abnormal child was born due to the drug I was taking for HIV. I delivered two healthy children before taking this medication. I don't want to re-use the drug that made me give birth to a malformed baby." (P-14, 32-year-old provider, female, 4 years of experience in the PMTCT unit)

When they did not encounter any health problems, women were lost from care, considering that they had become healthy and not in need of ART. Some of them also believe that having HIV is a result of sin, not a disease. Besides, some women believed that it was not possible to have a discordant test result with their partner.

“I didn't commit any sexual practice other than with my husband. His test result is negative. So, from where did I get the virus? I don't want to take the drug again.” (W-02, 30-year-old woman, divorced, daily labourer)

Religious belief

Some study participants mentioned religious belief as a reason for LTFU and a barrier to resumption after LTFU. Women discontinued Option B plus care due to their religious faith and refused to resume care as they were cured by the Holy Water and prayer by religious leaders.

“I went to Holy Water and was there for two months. My health status resumed due to prayer by monks and priests there. Despite not taking the drugs during my stay, God cured me of this evil disease with Holy Water. Now I am healthy, and there is no need to take the medicine again.” (W-09, 25-year-old woman, married, daily labourer)

Some women believed that God cured them and made their children free of the virus despite not taking ART for themselves and not giving ARV prophylaxis for their infants.

“Don't raise this issue again (when MSG asked to resume PMTCT care). I don't want to use the medicine. I am cured of the disease by the word of God, and my child is too. My God did not lie in His word.” (MSG-16, 32-year-old MSG, married, 16 years of service experience “Don't come to my home again. I don't have the virus now. I have been praying for it, and God cured me.” (W-03, 25-year-old woman, divorced, commercial sex worker)

Health facility-related factors

Shortage of drug supply.

Women were not provided with all HIV-related services free of charge and were required to pay for therapeutic and prophylactic drugs for themselves and their infants. Most facilities face a shortage of prophylactic drugs, primarily cotrimoxazole and nevirapine syrups, for infants and women, and other drugs used to treat opportunistic infections. As a result, women lost their PMTCT care when told to buy prophylactic syrups for infants and therapeutic drugs to treat opportunistic infections for themselves.

“Lack of cotrimoxazole syrup is one of the major reasons for women to miss PMTCT clinic visits. In our facility, it was out of stock for the last three months. Women can't afford its cost due to their economic problems.” (MSG-03, 34-year-old provider, married, 12 years of service experience)

Inadequate service access

Most women travelled long distances to reach health facilities to get PMTCT service due to the absence of a PMTCT site in their area. Due to a lack of transportation access and/or cost, they were forced to miss clinic visits for PMTCT care.

“In this district, there were only two PMTCT sites. Women travelled long distances to get the service. To reach our facility, they must travel half a day or pay more than three hundred Ethiopian birr for a motorbike that some cannot afford. Thus, women lost the service due to inadequate service access.” (P-06, 30-year-old provider, male, 2 years of experience in the PMTCT unit)

In almost all facilities, PMTCT service was not given on weekends and holidays, despite women's interest in being served at these times. When ARV drugs were stocked out at their homes, they did not get the drugs if facilities were not providing services on weekends and holidays. When appointment date was passed, they lost care due to fear of health workers’ reactions.

Lack of confidentiality

Despite maintaining ethical principles to retain women in care, breaches of confidentiality by HCWs were one of the reasons for LTFU by women. Women were afraid of meeting someone they knew or that their privacy would not be respected. As a result, they lost from PMTCT care.

“I don’t want to visit the facility. All my information was distributed to the community by a HCW who counselled me at the antenatal clinic.” (W-09, 25-year-old woman, married, daily labourer)

Reasons for resumption after LTFU

Healthcare workers' commitment to searching for lost women, partners’ encouragement, and women’s health status were key reasons for resuming women's Option B plus services after LTFU.

Healthcare workers’ commitment

The majority of lost women resumed Option B plus care after LTFU when healthcare workers called them via phone or conducted home visits for those who could not be reached by phone call.

“We went to a woman’s home, who started ART during delivery and lost for four months, travelling about 90 kilometers. She just cried when she saw us. She said, 'As long as you sacrificed your time traveling such a long distance to return me and save my life, I will never disappear from care today onward.' Then, she returned immediately and was linked to the ART unit after completing her PMTCT program.” (P-13, 32-year-old provider, male, 5 years of experience in the PMTCT unit) “We have an appointment date registry for every woman. We waited for them for seven days after they failed to arrive on the scheduled appointment date. From the 8th day onward, we called them via phone if it was available and functional. If we didn't find them via phone, we conducted home visits and returned them to care.” (P-02, 24-year-old provider, female, 3 years of experience in the PMTCT unit)

Partner encouragement

Women who got their partners' encouragement did not drop out of PMTCT care. Besides, most women returned to care and restarted their ARV drugs due to partner encouragement.

“I did not disclose my HIV status to my husband, which was diagnosed during the antenatal period. I lost my care after the delivery of a male baby. When my husband knew my status, rather than disagreeing, he encouraged me to resume the care to live healthily and to prevent the transmission of HIV to our baby. This was why I resumed care after LTFU.” (W-14, 28-year-old woman, divorced, daily labourer)

Women’s health status

Some women returned to Option B plus care on their own when they felt sick and wanted to stay healthy.

“When I felt healthy, I was away from care for about eight months. Later on, when I sought medical care for the illness, doctors gave me medicine and linked me to this unit (the PMTCT unit). I returned because of sickness.” (W-06, 29-year-old woman, married, daily labourer)

This qualitative study assessed the reasons why women left the service and why they resumed care after LTFU. The study aimed to enhance program implementation by providing insights into reasons for LTFU and facilitators for resumption from women's, health professionals', and MSG members' perspectives. We found that financial problems, partner violence, lack of support, HIV-related stigma and discrimination, lack of awareness, religious belief, shortage of drug supply, poor access to health services, and fear of confidentiality breaches by healthcare providers were major reasons for LTFU from PMTCT care. Healthcare workers’ commitment, partner encouragement, and feeling sick made women resume PMTCT care after LTFU.

In this study, fear of partner violence and divorce were identified as major reasons that made women discontinue the PMTCT service. Men are the primary decision-makers regarding healthcare service utilization, and the lack of male involvement in the continuity of PMTCT care decreases maternal health service utilization, including PMTCT services 41 , 42 . In addition, economic dependence on men threatened women not to adhere to clinic appointments without their partner’s willingness due to fear of violence and divorce 28 . Thus, strengthening couple counselling and testing 13 , male involvement in maternal health services, and women empowerment strategies like promoting education, property ownership, and authority sharing to reach decisions on health service utilization were crucial to retaining women in PMTCT care. Besides, legal authorities and community and religious leaders should be involved in preventing domestic violence and raising awareness about the negative effects of divorce on child health.

Financial constraints to cover daily expenses were major reasons expressed by women for LTFU from PMTCT care. Consistent with other studies, this study revealed that a lack of money to cover transportation costs resulted in poor adherence to ART and subsequent loss of PMTCT care 27 , 29 , 43 . As evidenced by other studies, lack of food resulting from financial problems was a major reason for LTFU in the study area 30 . As a result, women prefer death to living with hunger due to food scarcity, which led them to LTFU. Besides, women of poor economic status spent more time on jobs to get money to cover day-to-day expenses than thinking of appointment dates. Thus, governments and organizations working on HIV prevention programs should strengthen economic empowerment programs like arranging loans to start businesses and creating job opportunities for women living with HIV.

Despite continuous information dissemination via different media, fear of stigma and discrimination was a frequently reported reason for LTFU among women in PMTCT care. Consistent with other studies conducted in Ethiopia and other African countries, our study identified that fear of stigma and discrimination by partners, family, and community members are significant risk factors for LTFU 27 , 28 , 29 , 31 . As a result, women did not usually disclose their HIV status to their partners 28 , 32 so that they could not get financial and psychological support. This highlights the need to intensify interventions by different stakeholders to reduce HIV-related stigma and discrimination in the study area. Women's associations, community-based organizations, and religious, community, and political leaders should continuously work on advocacy and awareness creation to combat HIV-related stigma and discrimination.

Our study revealed that a lack of support for women made them discontinue life-saving ARV drugs. In developing countries like Ethiopia, most women living with HIV have low socio-economic status to run their lives, and thus they need support. However, as claimed by the majority of study participants, the government and organizations working on HIV programs were decreasing support from time to time. This was in line with qualitative studies such that lack of support by family members or partners 27 was identified as a barrier to adherence to and retention in PMTCT care 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 32 . Organizations working on HIV programs need to design strategies so that poor women get support from partners, family members, the community, religious leaders, and the government to stay in PMTCT care. Moreover, some women thought incentives and support must be given to retain them in Option B plus care. Thus, HCWs should inform women during counselling sessions that they should not link getting PMTCT care to incentives or support.

Women infected with HIV want to be healthy and have HIV-free infants, which could be achieved by proper utilization of recommended therapy as per the protocol 27 , 43 . However, women’s religious beliefs were found to interfere with adherence to the recommended treatment protocol, made them LTFU, and refused resumption after LTFU. Although religious belief did not oppose the use of ARV drugs at any time, women did not take the medicine when they went to Holy Water and prayer. As evidenced by previous studies, lost women perceived that they were cured of the disease with the help of God and refused to resume PMTCT care 27 , 30 . This finding suggests the need for sustained community sensitization about HIV and its treatment, engaging religious leaders. They need to inform women on ART that taking ARV drugs does not contradict religious preaching, and they should not discontinue the drug at any religious engagement.

Once on ART, women should not regress from care and treatment due to problems related to the facility. Unlike the study conducted in Malawi, which reported a shortage of drugs as not a cause of LTFU 29 , in the study area there was a shortage of drugs and supplies to give appropriate care to women and their infants and to retain them in care. They did not get all services related to HIV free of charge and were requested to pay for them, including the cotrimoxazole syrup given to their infants. The finding was consistent with the study conducted in Malawi, where the irregular availability of cotrimoxazole syrup was mentioned as a risk factor for LTFU 32 .

On some occasions, there may also be a shortage of ARV prophylaxis (Nevirapine and Zidovudine syrups) at some facilities for their infants that they couldn’t get from private pharmacies. Services related to PMTCT care were expected to be free of charge for mothers and their infants throughout the care. Ensuring an adequate supply of prophylactic and therapeutic drugs should be considered to prevent the MTCT of HIV and control the spread of the disease among communities via appropriate resource allocation. Facilities should have an adequate supply of ARV prophylaxis and should not request that women pay for diagnostic services. Besides, they always need to provide cotrimoxazole syrup free of charge for HIV-exposed infants.

Lack of awareness of a continuum of PMTCT care among women is a major challenge to retaining them in care. Women who experienced malpractice against standard care practice and had misconceptions about the disease were at higher risk for LTFU. Those women who forgot to take ARV drugs due to different reasons (maybe due to poor counselling) did not get the benefits of ART. Improved counselling and appropriate patient-provider interaction increase women’s engagement in care and reduce the risk of LTFU 28 , 44 . Thus, proper counselling on adherence, malpractice, and misconceptions should be strengthened by healthcare providers in PMTCT units to create optimal awareness for retention.

Maintaining clients’ confidentiality is the backbone of achieving HIV-related treatment goals. However, some women disappear from PMTCT care due to a lack of confidentiality by HCWs delivering the service. Although not large, women claimed a lack of privacy during counselling, and disclosing their HIV status in the community was practiced by some healthcare professionals. The finding was consistent with the study conducted in developing countries, including Ethiopia, where lack of privacy and fear regarding breaches of confidentiality by healthcare workers were identified as risk factors for LTFU 31 , 32 , 44 . Thus, HCWs should deliver appropriate counselling services and maintain clients’ confidentiality to develop trust among women.

The validity of the findings of this study was strengthened by the triangulating data collected from women, MSG members, and HCWs delivering PMTCT service. Besides, the study included women from the community who had already been lost from care during the study, which minimized the risk of recall bias. However, we recognized the following limitations. First, the study did not explore the husband’s perspective to validate the findings from women and HCWs. Second, the study may have different reasons for LTFU for women who were unreached or unwilling to participate compared to those who agreed to be interviewed. Thus, further studies are advised to include the husband’s perception to validate their concern and to address all women who have lost care.

Conclusions

Financial constraints to cover transportation costs, fear of partner divorce and violence, HIV-related stigma and discrimination, lack of psychological support, religious belief, shortage of drug supply, inadequate service access, and breach of confidentiality by HCWs were major reasons for women’s lost. Healthcare workers’ commitment to searching for lost women, partners’ encouragement to resume care, and women’s desire to live healthily were explored as reasons for resumption after LTFU. Women empowerment, partner engagement, involving community and religious leaders, awareness creation on the effect of HIV-related stigma and discrimination for the community, and service delivery as per the protocol were of vital importance to retain women on care and resume care after LTFU. Besides, HCWs should address false beliefs related to the disease during counseling sessions to retain women in care.

Data availability

All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this article and its Supplementary Information files.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the staff of the South Ethiopia and Central Ethiopia Regional Health Bureaus for their technical and logistic support. Moreover, the authors sincerely thank the research assistants who translated and transcribed the interview. The authors would also like to thank the study participants who were involved in the study.

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W.F. was involved in the study's conception, design, execution, data acquisition, analysis, interpretation, and manuscript drafting. T.T., E.W., and A.A. were involved in the project concept, guidance, and critical review of the article. All the authors have reviewed and approved the final manuscript and agreed to publish it in scientific reports.

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Facha, W., Tadesse, T., Wolka, E. et al. A qualitative study on reasons for women’s loss and resumption of Option B plus care in Ethiopia. Sci Rep 14 , 21440 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-71252-2

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• Published: 12 September 2024

“I’m trying to take the lead from my child”: experiences Parenting Young Nonbinary Children

• Noah Sweder 1 ,
• Lucinda Garcia 2 &
• Fernando Salinas-Quiroz   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-1257-6379 1  

Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health volume  18 , Article number:  117 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

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While research has emphasized the importance of parental support for LGBTQIA + youth wellbeing, there remains limited understanding of parental experiences with nonbinary children, particularly those prepubescent. This study aimed to explore how parents of nonbinary children ages 5–8 learn to support their child’s identity, examining initial reactions, emotional processes, supportive behaviors, societal responses, and associated challenges and rewards.

A qualitative study was conducted using Reflexive Thematic Analysis (RTA) within a framework of ontological relativism and epistemological constructivism. Nine parents of nonbinary children aged 5–8 from the Northeastern United States participated in semi-structured interviews lasting 60–80 min. Questions explored various aspects of parenting nonbinary children, including the child’s gender identity, parental feelings, experiences sharing the child’s identity, and challenges and rewards of raising a gender-diverse child. The research team, comprising individuals who identify as trans, genderqueer, and nonbinary, employed collaborative coding and thematic development.

Four main themes were constructed: (1) Parents hear and support their child’s nonbinary identity , this theme highlights immediate acceptance and efforts parents make to affirm their child’s gender; (2) Parents learn about ways cisnormative society harms their child , here, parents recognize the societal pressures and barriers their children face; (3) Parents take significant and proactive steps to affirm their child , this theme documents the actions parents take to support their child in environments that invalidate their identity; and (4) Gender is just one aspect of who my child is , this theme reflects on parental insights of gender as just one part of their child’s overall personhood.

Conclusions

This study provides insights into the experiences of parents supporting young nonbinary children, emphasizing the importance of affirming expressed identity, the parent-child relationship, and proactive support in navigating cisnormative societal structures. Findings highlight the transformative experience of parenting nonbinary children, with parents often challenging their own preconceptions of gender and coming to more nuanced understandings. These results can inform supportive interventions and policies for nonbinary children and their families, and we hope to contribute to a growing body of research that shifts narratives towards joy, resilience, and community in trans and nonbinary experiences.

Over the past three decades, cultural discourse around ‘intensive parenting’ [ 1 ] has emphasized the need to dedicate significant time, energy, and resources to raising children in a way that prioritizes their ability to communicate needs and self-advocate [ 2 ]. While current literature highlights the importance of parental support for the wellbeing of LGBTQIA + youth [ 3 , 4 , 5 ], there is still very little research focused on the experiences of parents of trans and nonbinary (TNB) children [ 6 ].

In this context, Hidalgo et al. [ 7 ] propose a gender-affirmative model of supportive parenting that views genderqueernes not as a disorder but as a culturally influenced variation shaped by biology, development and socialization. This model acknowledges that gender is fluid rather than binary and suggests that the struggles children experience with identity often stem from societal prejudices like transphobia and the institution of cisnormativity, an element of the social, political and economic system in our society designed to force individuals into a gender and sex binary, while punishing behavior and expression that deviates from it. Legal and medical professionals are primary enforcers of cisnormativity. Despite being society’s supposed experts on gender and sex, as a field they fail to acknowledge the self-determination of gender and conceptualize sex as a spectrum [ 8 ]. This begins with the assessment of genitals at birth and the 'corresponding' gender assignment [ 9 , 10 ].

Amidst the ongoing discourse on gender fluidity, we are witnessing a significant amount of anti-transgender violence. Trans people–especially TNB children– are increasingly becoming the targets of political campaigns, fearmongering, and public debates that challenge their right to exist. In 2023, the number of anti-trans legislation in the U.S. surged dramatically, from 174 (26 passed) to 604 (87 passed), more than tripling the record set the year before. By July 2024, 635 bills had been introduced into state legislatures, with 123 active and 47 passed [ 11 ]. These laws aim to exclude TNB children from accessing healthcare, updating legal documents to reflect their gender, using appropriate bathroom facilities, and participating in school activities such as sports and clubs [ 12 ].

Given these vicious attacks on children, the role of the family in supporting their TNB child has become increasingly critical. Research consistently demonstrates that family dynamics significantly impact the psychological health of LGBTQIA + youth, with supportive environments providing a buffer against stigma, and promoting overall wellness [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]. Recent longitudinal studies underscore that while TNB youth face increased risks for adverse mental health outcomes, their wellbeing improves significantly within supportive family contexts [ 13 ]. Central to this support is the acceptance and understanding of nonbinary identities and expressions, including the adoption of gender-neutral language by family members, which enhances the child’s perception of acceptance from their parents [ 14 , 15 , 16 ].

The sharing of pronouns is becoming increasingly popular in the U.S. and beyond, including Western countries like the UK and Canada, as well as parts of Asia, especially among younger generations and progressive circles [ 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ]. A 2020 Pew Research Center survey found that over half of Americans are aware of pronouns that are not ‘she/her’ and ‘he/him’, with younger people being more likely to use them. This trend reflects a growing global awareness of gender existing beyond the binary, as well as the importance of validating these identities through inclusive language. As awareness and popularity of gender diversity grows, it has become popular to share pronouns in introductions and email signatures [ 22 ], and transphobic people have been attempting to politicize pronouns in an effort to villainize TNB people. The adoption of gender-neutral pronouns, like the singular ‘they’, which gained recognition when Merriam-Webster named it the word of the year in 2019, underscores an ongoing challenge to binary norms.

In this paper, we define ‘nonbinary’ as an umbrella term encompassing individuals who self-identify as a gender outside the gender binary, and/or does not identify as always and completely being just a man or a woman, recognizing gender as existing along a spectrum. Various expressions of nonbinary identities are present, such as identifying as both a boy and a girl, experiencing gender as fluid or fluctuating, feeling a partial connection to one gender without fully aligning with it (known as demigender), embracing multiple gender identities, adhering to two-spirit traditions rooted in Indigenous cultures, adopting gender concepts from ‘unrelated domains’ (known as xenogender), or ‘lack of’ a gender [ 23 ]. While terms like ‘trans’ and ‘nonbinary’ originate from Western contexts, they strive to encompass a diverse and evolving spectrum of gender identities. It is important to note that while many nonbinary individuals may identify as trans, not all do.

For nonbinary people, recognition and affirmation is deeply intertwined with language use. Employing gender-affirming language—such as neutral labels, pronouns, and grammatical structures—in environments like schools, workplaces, healthcare facilities, and the home, is crucial for encouraging “self-definition,” as well as “visibility and understanding” of nonbinary identities [ 24 ]. In Budge and colleagues [ 14 ]’ five-year study of families with a TNB member, pronouns were best understood by the end of the research period. Their findings suggest that conducting regular family check-ins on gender identity, pronouns, and gender expression can significantly enhance family members’ understanding of the individual’s needs. Matsuno and colleagues [ 25 ] found that support can be further conceptualized as advocating for the child’s rights across various settings, expressing love verbally and nonverbally, and actively seeking community and professional resources for the growth of both the parent and the child.

Some studies have documented that initial parental reactions to their child’s TNB identity such as shock, fear, and worry, often hinder their acceptance and support [ 26 , 27 ]. These emotional barriers, compounded by cisnormativity and transphobia in society, may lead to reluctance in acknowledging or understanding TNB identities [ 28 ]. Moreover, entrenched beliefs in binary and immutable gender norms further complicate parental efforts to support nonbinary children. In fact, Matsuno and colleagues [ 4 ]’ study found that among parents of TNB youth, half of those who were unsupportive had nonbinary children, indicating potentially greater challenges in support within this demographic.

McGuire and colleagues [ 29 ] theorized that the presence of a TNB individual in a family leads to other members of the family challenging existing theories about essentialist and social constructionist notions of gender and sexuality. Given that gender is “messy, plural and in constant evolution” [ 30 ], these authors argue that describing it requires “dynamic approaches […] that can account for within-person variability over time” ( [ 29 ] p.63). This perspective underscores the evolving nature of gender identities within families and highlights the need for flexible mental frameworks that are welcoming to the diverse expressions of nonbinary individuals.

Addressing emotional barriers, transphobia, and cisnormativity necessitates parents being equipped with the knowledge and skills to navigate the social exclusion of nonbinary identities effectively [ 27 , 28 ]. Facilitators of supportive parental behaviors include building social support networks, and accessing informational resources [ 4 ]. Connecting with others, whether online or in person, is crucial for parents of TNB youth, highlighting the importance of making support groups accessible [ 31 ]. Exposure to positive portrayals of gender diversity also plays a crucial role in fostering affirming parental attitudes and behaviors [ 32 , 33 ]. Schools often lack knowledge about gender diversity and inclusive practices suitable for all children, regardless of their gender identity. Therefore, in these environments, parents have to ‘make room’ for their children by informing school staff about their child’s chosen names, pronouns, individual needs, and sometimes even providing basic education on gender identity and diversity [ 34 ].

The trans family systems framework, proposed by Robinson and Stone [ 35 ], challenges traditional family dynamics by integrating trans identities as an analytical category [ 36 ]. This category questions the sex/gender distinction, challenges biological determinism, exposes the production of normativity, and disrupts cisnormative gender practices. The trans family systems approach explores how either investments in or divestments from cisnormativity shape both family interactions and individual experiences. The concept of cisgender divestments [ 35 ] describes how family members resist cisnormative gender norms to support their gender-diverse children. Actions such as providing a variety of toys, clothes, and activities (i.e., ‘gender buffet’ [ 37 ]), and validating TNB identities (i.e., ‘giving gender’ [ 38 ]), can be seen as forms of cisgender divestment.

Parents are not only socializing their children, rather, parents are also re-socializing themselves. This means that many caregivers are rethinking their own relationship to gender as they engage in ‘gender-expansive childhood socialization’ [ 39 ]. Initially, children are often required to ‘prove’ their identity. Subsequently, these same parents of TNB children often find themselves explaining their children’s gender to others [ 40 ]. Many caregivers transition from confusion and uncertainty to ‘pride’ and ‘empowerment,’ becoming advocates for TNB people beyond their children [ 29 ]. Learning to affirm one’s TNB child not only enhances family cohesion, but also contributes to a broader divestment from cisnormativity.

The evolution of parental responses to nonbinary identities reflects a broader societal shift from pathologizing to affirming non-normative identities. According to de Bres [ 41 ]’ critical review of research on parents of gender-diverse children, early studies from the 1990s and 2000s predominantly took a pathologizing stance toward gender diversity in children, often validating parents’ negative reactions. During the 2010s, research began to shift towards a more affirming perspective, although it still frequently equated the experiences of a ‘parental transition’ to a process of grief [ 42 ], continuing a level of pathologization. Hidalgo and Chen [ 43 ] assert that parents experience both external stressors (e.g., school discrimination, rejection by family and friends, and verbal abuse) and internal stressors (e.g., negative messages about gender diversity and ‘fitting in’ difficulties) while supporting their nonbinary child’s identity. Parents worry about their child’s well-being in a society that often invalidates gender diversity. Supportive parents might also face stigma and a reduction in social safety, such as losing connections with family, friends, and religious communities. Additionally, they must address their own cisnormative beliefs and navigate barriers in educational and healthcare settings. These challenges can impact their ability to support their nonbinary child [ 25 ].

Since the late 2010s, there have been numerous documented stories of parents highlighting their support for TNB children by shielding them from societal stigma, embracing a gender-affirming approach, and normalizing gender diversity in their home and broader community [ 41 ]. Recent studies have shown how parents are reframing the narrative of grief, instead focusing on the rewards of parenting a TNB child, which include ‘greater critical awareness’ [ 44 ], ‘expanded knowledge’ [ 45 ], and ‘personal growth as a parent’ [ 46 ]. Abreu et al. [ 47 ] describe this shift as “using radical hope to create meaning and purpose for their child’s existence and envisioning positive future possibilities for them” (p.7). Exploring positive experiences in parenting TNB children can counterbalance the traditional focus on challenges, reflecting many parents’ narratives of joy and transformation.

In summary, the literature underscores the critical role of family support in shaping the wellbeing of nonbinary youth, highlighting the transformative power of parental acceptance and understanding. However, existing research predominantly focuses on trans boys and girls, primarily adolescents, and their families. Little attention has been paid to families with young children who identify beyond the gender binary. Our study aims to “contribute something to a rich tapestry of understanding” Footnote 1 by exploring, in a general sense, the experiences of parents of nonbinary children, guided by our research question, ‘How do parents of nonbinary children learn to support their child?’ Specifically, we seek to understand initial reactions to their children sharing their gender, and changes over time, as well as emotional processes, supportive behaviors, societal responses, and the challenges and rewards for parents in this context. By exploring these dynamics, we aim to contribute insights that can inform supportive interventions and policies tailored to meet the needs of young nonbinary children and their families.

Methodology 

Our study Footnote 2 , Footnote 3  was initially conceived by [AUTHOR 3– MASKED] and further developed with [AUTHOR 1– MASKED] during a summer scholars’ program that supports juniors and seniors in conducting ten-week research projects with faculty mentors. [AUTHOR 3– MASKED], a Brown trans, genderqueer, and nonbinary Mexican immigrant who holds a doctoral degree from the largest university in Latin America, also serves as an Assistant Professor at a private ‘little ivy’ university in the U.S. [AUTHOR 1– MASKED] is a white, trans, genderqueer, and nonbinary undergraduate student at the same institution Footnote 4 .

The research question for this study was addressed within a paradigmatic framework of ontological relativism and epistemological constructivism. This fully qualitative approach (i.e., ‘Big Q’), combined with Reflexive Thematic Analysis (RTA), fosters a nuanced and reflective research practice. Unlike more structured and positivistic methods, ontological relativism views reality as diverse and shaped by human actions and interactions [ 48 ]. Interpretations of reality differ across cultures and contexts, acknowledging that reality is not fixed. This study is based on the idea that people construct meaning from their experiences (constructionism) and express this through their individual perspectives (relativism). Epistemological constructivism posits that knowledge is dynamic and evolves as individuals reflect on their beliefs and experiences, contributing to collective understanding. This qualitative analysis values the symbolic power of language in data collection, recognizing its role in meaning-making [ 48 ].

Recruitment

Parents were eligible to participate in our study if their child identified beyond the gender binary (see page 1), was aged between 3 and 8 years, and lived in the Northeastern U.S. (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont) to make transportation expenses feasible. Prepaid train rides, parking fees, and/or bus fare were provided.

Between July and August 2022, we created a database and contacted organizations supporting LGBTQIA + individuals/families. In October 2022, specialists from the National Institutes of Health Clinical and Translational Science Program (NIH CTSI) launched a one-month Facebook targeted advertising campaign (UL1TR002544) and posted an advertisement on Craigslist from October 2022 to March 2023. Eleven parents completed a Qualtrics questionnaire, and nine met the inclusion criteria (see Table  1 ), proceeding to the scheduling of an in-person visit. Families received a $50 USD gift card as compensation. Despite efforts to sample a diverse population, seven participating parents were white, one was Asian-white, and one was Asian. Additionally, all were married, lived in the Greater Boston Area, and earned between the categories of $50,000 to $74,999 USD, and $150,000 USD and above, with a mode of $150,000 USD and above. For reference, the median household income in Boston was $81,744 in 2021 Footnote 5 . Although we desired to interview parents of children ages 3–5, we only recruited those with children ages 5–8.

Methods: interviews

The semi-structured interview consisted of 10 predetermined questions, with consent documented from all participants. The interviews typically lasted 70 minutes on average, ranging from 60 to 80 minutes. Questions were designed to explore various aspects of parenting children who identify beyond the gender binary, including describing the child’s gender (e.g., ‘How would you describe your child’s gender?’), changes in gender identity over time (e.g., ‘Has their gender changed over time?’), parental feelings towards the child’s gender identity (e.g., ‘How do you feel about them being [preferred term for child’s gender]?’), experiences sharing the child’s gender identity with others (e.g., “How have people in your child’s life reacted to them being [preferred term]?’), as well as the challenges and rewards of raising a gender-diverse child (e.g., ‘What has been the most rewarding part of raising a [preferred term] child?’). The study adhered to ethical standards set by institutional and national research committees, following the principles of the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its subsequent amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Reflexivity

[AUTHOR 2 - MASKED], a white graduate student who identifies as trans, genderqueer, and nonbinary, transcribed the interviews. In summer 2023, [AUTHOR 3– MASKED], along with [MASKED], conducted a 5-day workshop on Reflexive Thematic Analysis (RTA). Although exclusively mentioning our skin color, gender identities and educational attainment may resemble a ‘brief confessional’ - see the first paragraph of the Method-ology section and [ 49 ] -, on the workshop’s first day, each author spent a 4-hour period crafting their own reflexivity statement, dedicating the initial hour and a half to writing and the remaining time to sharing. These statements proved invaluable throughout the analysis.

Under AUTHOR 3’s guidance, who regularly practices this exercise each semester, the other authors were prompted to reflect on their intersecting identities, social privileges, and marginalities. They were asked to consider how these positions influence their perspectives in the research, and how it may affect how they are perceived by others. Additionally, they reflected on how their backgrounds, life experiences, and beliefs shape their worldview. Next, the authors examined their relationship with knowledge, scholarship, and research practice, considering their research training, experiences, and understanding of ‘good quality’ research, as well as institutional pressures including the capitalist demand to ‘publish or perish.’ They also explored their methodological preferences and how these choices impact the research process and outcomes. Finally, AUTHOR 3 encouraged them to revisit reflexivity regarding their identities and experiences in relation to the project and nonbinary children. They considered how their positions intersect with this topic and examined any assumptions about individuals inside and outside the gender binary. These statements, while lengthy, fostered a sense of closeness and safety among the group. Ideally, they would be included here, but due to the constraints of academic publishing and the emphasis on brevity, interested readers can contact the corresponding author for access.

In summary, the three of us identify as trans, genderqueer, and nonbinary individuals, and share the following beliefs: (a) reality and truth are constructed, contingent, and multiple; (b) gender is experienced in a unique way by everyone; (c) nonbinary individuals know who they are [ 50 ]; and (d) we prioritize compassion and curiosity over comprehension [ 51 ].

Reflexive Thematic Analysis (RTA)

Thematic Analysis is a method for identifying, analyzing, and interpreting patterns across qualitative data. Reflexive Thematic Analysis (RTA) differentiates itself by valuing “.a subjective, situated, aware and questioning researcher, a reflexive researcher.” ( [ 48 ], loc. 1246). We followed the six-phase RTA process: familiarizing ourselves with the interviews, engaging in collaborative coding , developing , reviewing , refining themes, and finally, producing this analytic report.

While familiarizing ourselves with the data is an ongoing process with no single approach, coding is structured and systematic. We carefully read each interview at least twice, identifying and labeling segments relevant to our research question (‘How do parents of nonbinary children learn to support their child?’). Not all segments were coded, as codes are “.ultimately guided by your research question and purpose.” ( [ 48 ], loc. 2953).

Collaborative coding enhanced our understanding, interpretation, and reflexivity, rather than achieving consensus on codes. The three authors worked together, discussing and reflecting on their ideas and assumptions. Our aim was to “.gain richer or more nuanced insights collaboratively, not t o reach agreement on every code.” ( [ 48 ], loc. 3028). This structured exploration ensured a thorough analysis for theme development and attempted to safeguard against accusations of cherry-picking .

We used an inductive approach with predominantly semantic codes. Pure induction is impossible as “.we bring various perspectives, theoretical and otherwise, to our meaning-making,” and as a result “our engagement with data is never purely inductive” ( [ 48 ], loc. 3027). Semantic codes capture expressed meanings, often mirroring participants’ language, unlike latent coding, which prioritizes underlying meanings that are not explicitly stated.

Thematization (development, revision, and refinement)

Developing initial themes from our codes involved several processes. We explored areas of similar meaning within the data, clustering potentially connected codes into candidate themes, and examining these patterns of meaning. Each cluster was considered independently, in relation to the research question, and within the broader analysis. We recognized that data “do[es] not speak for [itself];” as researchers, we interpret and tell the story of our data [ 48 ].

Phase four provided a crucial check on initial theme development through re-engagement with coded data extracts and the entire dataset. This iterative process ensured that our analysis effectively addressed our research question with a compelling narrative, remaining grounded in the data. We ensured each theme captured a distinct core point and offered rich diversity and nuance, verifying that themes were coherent, distinct, and comprehensive.

We constructed four themes that emerged from the accounts of participating parents. The first theme, Parents hear and support their child’s nonbinary identity , details how children share their nonbinary identity with their parents and documents parents’ initial reactions and meaning-making processes. The second theme, Parents learn about ways cisnormative society harms their child , captures how parents learn about the struggles their child faces living in a cisnormative society as a nonbinary person. The third theme, Parents take significant and proactive steps to affirm their child , documents participants taking action to support their child in environments that do not validate their gender identity. The fourth and final theme, Gender is just one aspect of who my child is , discusses insights and conclusions drawn by parents about their child, as well as gender identity. These themes are discussed in detail below.

Theme 1: Parents hear and support their child’s nonbinary identity.

Among all parents, a universally reported experience was receiving a clear and straightforward declaration from their children about their nonbinary identity. Some examples of these explicit statements include: “They always say, I’m not a girl or a boy” (Dahlia), “[They] tell me that [they are] both a boy and a girl” (Helena), and “They describe themself as ‘they/them’” (Iris). All parents were told by their child the way they had been referred to and understood thus far was not correct (i.e., as exclusively a girl or a boy).

All but one parent’s reaction to their child informing them of their gender identity was immediate support for their desired changes (e.g., pronouns and name): “‘Can you call me they/them?’ ‘Okay, great’” (Iris); “Awesome! Whatever you want, we will follow you and affirm you” (Fiona); “We just said ‘okay,’ and we did it” (Grace). The overwhelming support from these parents reflects other child-led approaches, placing affirmation of the child’s lived experience at the center of their parenting style, and validating their emotions and desires even without necessarily understanding them [ 2 ].

Some parents initially found it challenging to adjust to using their child’s new pronouns or name, but they all made their best effort. Bianca candidly shared that her husband struggled a lot with they/them pronouns, “not for lack of love or trying, [he] just didn’t have [.] much practice”. The time and effort all parents had to spend to retrain their brain to meet the expressed needs of their child follows the previously mentioned movement towards ‘intensive parenting’ [ 1 ].

Despite the dominant paradigm of a gender binary in Western society, no parents reported skepticism of the validity of their child’s nonbinary identities. In fact, the majority of the parents were active in divesting from cisnormativity [ 35 ], with six parents explicitly making an effort to raise their children in ways that were not constrained by traditional gender norms. Adrienne explained that she was “quite strongly opposed to having a very gendered upbringing,” and Grace shared a similar sentiment, emphasizing that she wanted her children to “play with whatever [toys] they want,” and that she would buy “whatever clothing” for them. The actions described by these parents exemplify forms of cisgender divestment [ 35 ] and a movement away from strict ideas of what a child assigned male at birth (AMAB) or assigned female at birth (AFAB) should look like or how they should act.

Despite the traditional paradigm of a gender binary in society, no parents reported skepticism of the validity of nonbinary identities. In contrast, the majority of the parents valued divesting from cisnormativity [ 35 ], with six parents explicitly making an effort to raise their children in ways that were not constrained by traditional gender norms. Adrienne explained that she was “quite strongly opposed to having a very gendered upbringing,” and Grace shared a similar sentiment, emphasizing that she wanted her children to “play with whatever [toys] they want,” and that she would buy “whatever clothing” for them. The actions described by these parents exemplify forms of cisgender divestment [ 35 ] and a movement away from strict ideas of what a child assigned male at birth (AMAB) or assigned female at birth (AFAB) should look like or how they should act.

Additionally, four parents spoke with their child about gender being more than just boy or girl before their child named themselves nonbinary. Adrienne had “a book about gender identity,” and Fiona had “books that have nonbinary characters and just talk about gender identity and expression.” Bianca “read some books where there was they [pronouns] as an option” and “talked about what that meant ‘’ with her child. Grace could not “point to a moment when [they] started talking about gender and pronouns because it’s [always] been incorporated.” Alternatively, a few parents made no mention of proactively sharing gender-diverse stories, with Christine describing their early conversations around gender as “talking about boys and girls […] talking within the binary, because […] that’s sort of the usual thing.”

Overall, the majority of these parents demonstrated active efforts to divest from expectations of cisnormativity, even before learning their child was nonbinary, with some even deconstructing the gender binary through supportive environments that benefit TNB youth [ 35 , 37 , 38 ]. However, not sharing previous efforts to divest from cisnormativity is also a common experience among both the parents in our study, and parents of TNB children in other studies [ 29 , 40 ]. There is no evidence supporting the absurd notion that home environments can ‘turn children trans’ [ 52 ], and the briefly popular theory of ‘rapid onset gender dysphoria’ has been debunked [ 53 ]. Conversely, supportive home environments help TNB children freely explore and come to understand themselves ( [ 23 , 52 , 53 ], and actually fosters a ‘stronger attachment’ between parent and child [ 42 ].

While all parents supported their child’s gender identity, some still grappled with doubts and concerns along the way. Iris and Grace questioned whether their child understood what they were saying or was simply using they/them pronouns “because [a peer] said it” (Grace). Grace “didn’t know” whether the desired name/pronoun changes “would stick,” a sentiment echoed by Adrienne’s husband. Additionally, there were concerns about whether the child was “transitioning too young.” Christine expressed caution, not wanting to “act too quickly,” or “be seen to be pushing something on the child,” while Emiko mentioned concerns about their child being perceived as “too young” possibly reflecting societal worries. This experience is not uncommon among parents of TNB children [ 29 ]. These parents faced a challenging situation; there is no script for raising nonbinary individuals -as we will discuss further-, and currently, there is a widespread fear-mongering targeting parents of TNB children [ 53 ]. Despite these doubts and uncertainties, all but one parent in the study immediately affirmed their child. Many parents expressed worries about their child’s future as a nonbinary person in society, but they understood this as a concern to bear with their spouse, not one with which to burden their child.

Two factors which may have helped parents overcome their doubts, or at least put them aside, are their observations of cisgender nonconformity in their children before the children shared their nonbinary identity, and the insistence of the children themselves.

Bianca, Fiona, Emiko, and Iris’s children who were AMAB all enjoyed wearing dresses, an example of physical presentation not stereotypically associated with their assigned gender. Other parents noted verbal expressions: Adrienne’s child would “call themself a boy or a girl […] depending on what [they] felt more like,” while Christine recalled her child, AFAB, stating plainly that they “don’t always feel like a girl.” Therefore, when these children expressed a desire to use different names or pronouns, it did not necessitate a complete overhaul of how the parents understood them. Reflecting on her reactions to her child sharing their nonbinary identity, Grace shared that she “[was not] really surprised,” Adrienne stated that “[she] had often suspected [her child’s] idea of gender was not [rigid],” and Emiko adding that she felt her child “has never cared about [society’s] gender boundaries.”

Multiple parents mentioned that seeing their child “feel strongly” (Bianca) about their gender identity, “even in the face of lots of situations where it would have been easier [to not identify as nonbinary]” (Dahlia), helped affirm their support. Christine noted that her child’s insistence made it “increasingly clear” to her that their gender identity was both “very important to them” and “that it was real,” and Emiko added “[they] have a sense of agency.”

Although the parents may not fully comprehend their child’s identity, they showed respect for their child as a self-advocate and are committed to centering their child’s expressed needs [ 1 , 2 ]. This can be seen as a way of prioritizing compassion and curiosity over comprehension [ 51 ].

Theme 2: Parents learn about ways cisnormative society harms their child.

With that said, aside from a parent who also identifies as nonbinary, the parents lacked prior understanding of the specific needs of a nonbinary child. We are all familiar with parenting scripts tailored for raising cisgender children, reinforced by abundant resources and support networks, both formal and informal. However, the same cannot be said for parents of nonbinary children. Christine shared her experience of researching how to “best support” her child, finding that there “[is not] a lot out there.” The unique nuances and challenges faced by nonbinary children have not been sufficiently discussed or documented to establish rudimentary frameworks or ‘best practices’ [ 2 ]. As a result, these parents found themselves having to find other ways to learn about their child’s needs, largely through conversations with them as well as observing their child’s reaction to experiences, for example, Fiona described herself as a “sponge” absorbing so much new information. Despite their affirmation of the child’s gender identity and use of validating language, it became evident to the parents that their support needed to extend beyond the home.

One common experience for parents was observing their child feeling pressure to “[not] rock the boat” by “bucking” (Fiona) societal norms of gender presentation. Fiona’s AMAB child enjoyed wearing dresses and having their nails painted at home, but intentionally wanted both off before going to school. Helena’s AMAB child was generally open about their feminine expression, “I am a girl, or I feel like a girl,” they would say, yet emphasize, “but it’s secret and I only want you and daddy [to know].” Emiko described an interaction where her AMAB child said, “Most people think that I’m a boy, so if I wear a dress, they’re confused.” The parent followed up, asking “Is that what’s stopping you from wearing a dress?” to which the child responded, “A little bit.” Grace reported her child hesitating about sharing their pronouns with their transphobic grandmother, saying “I don’t want my relationship with grandma to suffer because I’m nonbinary.” This really struck Grace, “the kid is eight years old saying that to me.” All the parents with these experiences shared some understanding gained about their child. Helena reflected that her child “has some awareness […] that being nonbinary is different.” Fiona understood that her child “was self-conscious […] about what people would think,” and Emiko, similarly, saw that her child was feeling pressure from a “societal ‘you should do this.’” It became very clear to the parents that their children were keenly aware of cisnormativity and felt pressure to conform.

Parents also observed barriers to inclusion that exist in what are mundane, day-to-day moments for cisgender people. Some reported their children getting frustrated when confronted with the categorizations, including bathrooms, sections in stores, and birthday party goodie bags. Parents also witnessed their children’s worry and frustration in the context of various forms of potential and realized micro- and macro-aggressions, including experiences of minority stress [ 54 ]. For instance, not wearing button up shirts in public “because they were worried that they would be called he” (Bianca), deciding it was “not worth it” to attend to an otherwise ideal camp that was separated into ‘boys’ and ‘girls’ (Emiko), feeling like they “have to” wear a pin that says ‘They/Them’ to avoid being misgendered at school (Grace), and frequently correcting people in public (Adrienne, Bianca, Grace), among many other experiences. Bianca best summarizes what all parents come to understand: their children are made “very upset” about the fact that “the world is not set up to include them.”

When these children leave their homes, they confront a world that overwhelmingly does not validate their identity. Through conversations and observed experiences, parents came to understand distress, anger, and shame their children feel at being constantly invalidated, and gained insights into what kinds of support and affirmation their children need.

Theme 3: Parents take significant and proactive steps to affirm their child.

As expanded on in the second theme ( Parents learn about ways cisnormative society harms their child) , parents came to recognize the importance of their child’s gender being affirmed and that society is not currently set up to do that. These parents observe their child often having to either self-advocate or endure micro- and macro-aggressions. Following the pattern of intensive parenting, these parents felt a strong desire to advocate for and protect their children, “to make things a little smoother for [their] life” (Iris). It is understood that parental support has a strong influence on the mental health and wellbeing of TNB people [ 14 , 15 ], highlighting the importance of this approach by parents.

One area of identity affirmation parents recognized as lacking for their children was in models of nonbinary identities. The parents express an understanding that their child rarely, if at all, sees people who share that aspect of their identity. Bianca wanted her child to get more “exposure” to people who “exist outside of this rigid gender binary,” and as Christine points out, “they see plenty of cisgender people. I’m not worried about them not having cisgender role models.” As a result, parents take steps to correct this. Christine took a book that did not explicitly address nonbinary experiences and “spent six hours whiting out and writing new words over every part of it.” Adrienne started going out of her way to attend a queer rock-climbing club in an effort to “cultivate a [queer] community” for her child, and introduced them to a nonbinary person she met there. Iris and Dahlia also made explicit efforts to provide their children with gender-diverse representation.

Same-gender models are understood to be important in one’s development and understanding of gender [ 55 , 56 ]. While children imitate individuals with traits they identify with, and not just people of their gender [ 55 ], much research has reaffirmed the importance of same-gender models. Although these studies have generally focused on girls and young women, research from nonbinary author Koonce [ 57 ] states from their professional experience “.it is in the mirroring of others that [non-binary identities] truly take form” (location 3,021). Kuper and colleagues [ 56 ] add that exposure to models with diverse gender presentations is crucial in supporting ongoing gender exploration.

Parents come to understand that the act of negotiating one’s way through transphobic and cisnormative systems is a “heavy lift” (Bianca). They do not want their child to have to be “constantly” (Bianca) educating and correcting people, especially “[not] by themselves” (Christine). Parents would rather take on the “forefronting” (Dahlia) and “emotional labor” (Christine) themselves. The overwhelming sentiment from parents is that “[their child] should not be expected to do” (Grace) the work of making space for themselves.

Despite the diverse realities of the children and experiences of the parents, a pattern emerged: parents respected their child’s ability to know and communicate their desires and leveraged their abilities and resources as adults to support them. A common example involved pronouns in public. According to Garcia [ 58 ], ‘gender math’ refers to the complex calculations parents must make when attempting to prioritize their child’s well-being while simultaneously accounting for restrictive systems of cisnormativity. For decisions regarding sharing their child’s gender identity, Bianca and her child devised a collaborative scale-ranking system to gauge the significance of individuals. “Is this an important person that we need to [understand your gender]? Is this person not worth it? Can this person potentially be toxic?” In similar fashion, Emiko and her child “came up with a system” to organize how much they care about the person in question, and gave us the example, “Do we care about the gas station attendant? Not really.” Powell and colleagues [ 42 ] similarly found that sharing the child’s gender with extended family was “often led by the child” (p.4). Additionally, a parent in their study shared that when they had made the decision without their child’s consent it “caused a big problem” (p.4). This kind of collaborative approach empowers the child to make decisions while also providing the assurance of a supportive caregiver during challenging circumstances.

In situations where the child was subject to explicit invalidation and/or transphobia, parents very readily took strong action. Adrienne shared that her child’s grandma refused to correctly gender the child. In response, she “nearly asked her to leave,” and was currently undergoing a “grandma rehabilitation plan.” Adrienne made sure it was clear to both the grandparent and the child that transphobic behavior was “[not] welcome under this roof.” Christine and Grace shared instances of invalidating behavior by their child’s classmates relating to gender which prompted them both to contact their child’s teachers, demanding that they “do better” (Christine) to make their child feel safe and included in the classroom. Ehrensaft [ 59 ] advocates for parental involvement in actively dismantling social pathologies that adversely affect trans youth such as gender policing and harassment. She recommends methods such as direct intervention within broader institutional spheres, encompassing schools, social institutions, and policy-making bodies.

While strategies were initially discussed between the parent and child, many parents became exceptionally proactive in their support. The parents’ efforts extended beyond casual conversations. While correction after an instance of misgendering or other aggression is crucial, the parents recognized the importance of minimizing these experiences before they occur. Bianca decided to coach her child’s soccer team “because [they] wanted to make sure [the team] was a safe space [for their child]” and that all the children “could hear role modeling of using ‘they’ [pronouns].” Emiko reached out to her child’s teachers and sports coaches, urging them to adopt inclusive language and suggesting alternatives to gendered terms: “You could use, ‘alright players,’ or ‘alright team.’” Fiona found a “How to They/Them book” immensely helpful, sent it to everyone in her family and is “making [them] read it.” Christine and her husband expended “a lot of emotional labor” to get their family on the “right page.” She shares that advocating for her child has been “a huge time investment on [her] part,” but that she is “fighting the good fight,” echoing a sentiment shared by all parents.

Theme 4: Gender is just one aspect of who my child is.

In society, there’s a prevalent notion that undergoing a gender ‘transition’ entails a departure from one’s ‘pre-transition’ self. This misconception is especially pronounced in expectations regarding clothing and presentation, where there is a common belief that AMAB individuals who are TNB must present as feminine, and vice versa. However, this presumption extends beyond outward appearance to encompass behavior and preferences as well. It originates from the entrenched concept of gender binary, whereby deviation from assigned gender norms is often perceived as a desire to conform to the norms of the ‘opposite gender.’ Through the parents’ demonstrated willingness to let their child’s expressed emotions and demonstrated actions alter their preconceived notions and internalized frameworks, the parents came to understand that very little about their child’s ‘being’ changed after sharing their nonbinary identity [ 2 , 42 ]. These experiences helped the parents expand their understanding of what gender is, but also what gender is not: a determining characteristic of a person’s identity.

In Grace’s experience, her child’s nonbinary identification “did not change anything about [their] clothes or identity or books or anything.” In comparing her child pre- and post-nonbinary identification, Adrienne explains “they wear the same things they’ve always worn. The main [difference] is they tell people that they’re nonbinary.” Instead of basing presentation off of gender, Bianca observed her child dressing “for practical reasons,” namely the weather and season, and Helena shared her child’s understanding of clothes being as plain as “[these shoes] are on my feet and I’m wearing them.” Fiona shared that at first when learning that her AMAB child was nonbinary, her brain struggled holding it as they felt that her child “seem[ed] like such a boy.” Fiona had to open her mind to what nonbinary could mean through meeting people of diverse gender identities and presentations, and reading books, and arrived at the conclusion that “if there are 7 billion people, [there are] 7 billion [gender] identities.”

A big takeaway explicitly communicated by six parents, is that gender is just a part of how they understand their child as a person. Powell and colleagues [ 42 ] had the same finding with parents of TNB children between the ages of 10 and 18. Parents acknowledge that while the identification with naming a nonbinary identity (nonbinary, boy-girl, etc.) holds personal, practical, and political significance, and while it can be and is a very important identity to many people, it does not provide a singular definition of their child. Iris identifies her child’s nonbinary identity as just “another characteristic, [but] not what defines [their child].” Dahlia adds that “[gender] is a piece of information, but it’s not the most interesting or important thing about who they are.” Christine understands the nonbinary identity to be a component of their child’s identity in addition to “loving Lego and loving dresses, and jumping off stuff, and hitting stuff with other stuff. It’s just part of their kernel, you know?” Expressions like the highlighted quote are not meant to invalidate or diminish the nonbinary experience. Instead, they seek to understand gender as an integral aspect of the child’s being, one that significantly influences their interactions within society. Nevertheless, this acknowledgment does not necessitate a complete overhaul of their core identity. In reflecting, Iris shares, “I try to think of them as a person that I’m finding out about and not a set of expectations,” and that she tries to “not to make [gender] a big deal […] a guiding thing that I have taken from [my child].” Adrienne adds, “It’s the same child that I’ve always known, just using different pronouns,” and Bianca is glad that her child feels that “[they] can be anything [they] want. But [does not] have to be not something.” These parents came to recognize that their child’s nonbinary gender was simply an extension of who the child already was. Bianca found this experience “really joyous,” and for Helena, seeing their child being themself was “indescribably heartwarming.” Dahlia feels that it is “such a gift,” and “rewarding to know that they know” they can be their true self, and Fiona echoes that she feels “happy… that they’ve discovered that this can be their identity.”

General discussion

We examined how parents of nonbinary children learn to support their child through the lenses of ontological relativism and epistemological constructivism. We interpreted these parents’ experiences, taking on the role of ‘subjective storytellers’ [ 48 ]. Despite space limitations, our aim was to offer a comprehensive exploration and contribute nuanced insights to the limited, yet growing, understanding of parental support for gender affirmation among TNB youth [ 6 , 13 , 14 , 25 , 31 , 47 , 52 ]. Our aim was not merely to ‘fill a gap’ but to enrich the broader understanding that we and others are collectively developing [ 48 ]. Our strength lay in adhering to a ‘Big Q’ approach that challenges the structured and positivist paths towards absolutisms.

As a result, RTA was the perfect methodology for our study. We were interested in “…process and meaning, over cause and effect; a critical and questioning approach to life and knowledge; the ability to reflect on the dominant assumptions embedded in [our] cultural context—being a cultural commentator as well as a cultural member; the ability to read and listen to data actively and analytically […] a desire for understanding that is about nuance, complexity, and even contradiction, rather than finding a nice tidy explanation…” ( [ 48 ], loc. 1334). We made active efforts to reflect on dominant assumptions and divest from cisnormativity in our daily lives [ 35 ]. Moreover, we, the authors–cultural commentators– are still learning what it means to be trans, genderqueer, and nonbinary–cultural members– in a society that has traditionally only had space for men and women. We are collectively working on this tapestry of understanding.

While all parents supported their child’s gender identity, some struggled with doubts and concerns, highlighting the nuances and even contradictions in their experiences. Parents faced a complex situation with no clear guidance on raising nonbinary children, amidst widespread fear-mongering targeting parents of TNB children [ 47 , 53 ]. Although we focus on parents and avoid pathologizing and stigmatizing rhetoric, it is a matter of fact that TNB children are facing intense violence and legislative attacks, with more anti-trans laws introduced in the past nine years than in the previous 240, aiming to restrict their healthcare, legal recognition, participation in school activities, and more [ 9 , 12 , 60 ]. In the face of this anti-trans violence and exclusionary legislation, recent scholarship emphasizes that trans communities extend beyond struggle and hardship, embracing resilience and thriving through radical hope [ 47 , 61 , 62 , 63 ].

de Bres [ 41 ]’s recommendations fit well within this call to shift the narrative towards joy. This is why we aimed to ask similar questions and create a realistic but uplifting account that acknowledges struggles but celebrates the joys of parenting a nonbinary child. As de Bres [ 41 ] reminds us, the questions researchers ask shape the responses they receive. Common questions like ‘When did you first notice your child was gender-diverse?’ often prompts a ‘coming-out’ narrative. Shifting to asking questions such as ‘What has been the most rewarding part of raising a [preferred term] child?’ can prompt reflection through a more joy- and strengths-based lens.

One of our primary insights was the discovery that parents approached parenting a nonbinary child within minimal preconceptions. This finding was surprising, considering prevalent societal narratives, often steeped in fearmongering as previously discussed. While we recognize that not all initial parental reactions may have been disclosed during interviews, those that were shared demonstrated a nuanced understanding of nonbinary identities. Parents deconstructed much of society’s cisnormativity and debunked transphobic misconceptions. Particularly notable was their collective sentiment that their child’s nonbinary identity is ‘just’ simply another integral aspect, as natural as their love for activities like soccer or building with Legos, and as natural as their other children identifying as girls or boys.

Furthermore, we were impressed by their comprehension of the fluidity inherent in their children’s nonbinary identities, embracing expressions that may encompass elements considered traditionally masculine or feminine. This included recognizing that their child’s desire to wear a dress and paint their nails on one day and wear pants and a t-shirt another is not merely an ‘exploration’ but a genuine expression of their gender.

We were heartened by the rapid evolution in societal acceptance of genderqueer identities in recent years. As early as 2020, during our collective virtual interactions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we began to regularly encounter individuals displaying pronouns next to their names -a small but significant shift. Four years later we observe a growing recognition and understanding of ‘they/them’ pronouns, alongside remarkable parental support for young children in the Northeast who identify as nonbinary. Beyond just gender, this progress inspires hope for a world that embraces ambiguity and rejects rigid absolutes, celebrating the diverse spectrum of human experience rather than confining individuals to either one thing or another.

Throughout our exploration of parental experiences, we were struck by their responsiveness to their children’s desires and needs. While following a child’s lead is not a new concept, these parents had minimal pre-existing knowledge of TNB experiences. Their support required a leap into uncharted territory, yet with open minds and attentive listening, they made decisions that appeared highly supportive and affirming of their child’s gender identity to us. Witnessing this support brought us profound joy and optimism amidst pervasive fear mongering rhetoric and transphobic narratives.

Research consistently highlights improved outcomes for TNB individuals when their families support their gender identities. While the relationship between familial support and wellbeing is nuanced, it remains clear that supportive parenting plays a pivotal role. Even within a transphobic and cisnormative society that often lacks understanding of pronoun usage and genderqueer identities, and remains fixated on binary norms, these parents demonstrate that by valuing their nonbinary children’s communications of needs, they can profoundly make them feel seen, loved, and supported.

In conclusion, our pioneering study focuses uniquely on the experiences of parents of nonbinary children, applying rigorous ‘Big Q’ principles and emphasizing narratives of joy. Utilizing RTA, we hope to contribute valuable insights to understanding and supporting young nonbinary children and their families. Christine’s words resonate deeply: “Sometimes I just say to my husband, ‘We’re doing it, this child’s heart is intact. This child’s heart is strong, and intact. And, no matter what, we’re doing it right if their heart is intact’.” This sentiment underscores our commitment to providing shared experiences and celebrating the resilience of TNB communities throughout our research. Our work adds to the growing body of research aimed at promoting understanding and support for nonbinary individuals.

We hope our findings contribute to the shift away from adult-centric perspectives and towards respecting children’s ability to be cognizant of their own needs, as well as understand themselves in the context of broader society. As our study shows, children will be who they are, and will express themselves, despite any barriers. Banning learning or restricting ideas does not control children; it only harms them. Violence against children should never be normalized. Families and youth deserve legal autonomy, and everyone should be educated about the diversity that exists in this world. We are optimistic that these experiences will inspire advocates and lawmakers to recognize children as experts in their own lives, as the parents in our study did.

Our research highlights how parents can deconstruct binary conceptions of gender in favor of more open-minded perspectives, positively impacting both family dynamics and children’s well-being. We are hopeful that these narratives will encourage adults who work with children -therapists, social workers, teachers, coaches, pediatricians, and others- to re-examine their own understanding of gender. To parents who may be struggling or worried about their nonbinary child: we hope our work offers guidance and hope. The gender binary can be unlearned, and new pronouns can be practiced. You can learn from your child and from the growing resources available. Your child knows themself. You will continue to learn about them and their identity, just as they do, and just as every person does.

Data availability

The authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article. Due to the sensitive nature of the research and limitations of participant consent, the supporting data is not available for sharing beyond what is presented in the article.

In qualitative research “… you are not seeking to show that you have found an empty cell in the spread-sheet of ultimate truth about the topic, which your study will fill in. We think it’s useful to get beyond the filling the gap idea, and conceptualize our qualitative analyses as contributing something to a rich tapestry of understanding that we and others are collectively working on, in different places, spaces and times” (Braun & Clarke, 2022, loc.5192).

The term ‘method’ risks becoming “...a practically orientated descriptive summary, rather than a more theoretically-oriented and reflexive discussion of what, why and how one did the research” (Braun & Clarke, 2022, loc.5232).

“How Do Children Identifying Beyond the Gender Binary and Their Parents Understand Gender?” (IRB ID: CR-01-STUDY00002649).

We emphasize the significance of dynamic and reflective positionality in research, advocating to move beyond static researcher-centered perspectives towards amplifying marginalized communities (Salinas-Quiroz et al., 2024). We also recognize challenges posed by word limits and traditional research guidelines yet stress the continual integration of reflexivity to enrich qualitative inquiry.

Although we collected demographic data, it will not be fa central part of our analysis. The research on demographic factors related to TNB identities is limited, and our sample size is too small to draw significant conclusions about ‘potential correlations.’ Moreover, it’s important to consider broader historical contexts. While there is a common belief that white, wealthy individuals with higher education levels are more socially progressive, focusing solely on these factors overlooks how legal, medical, and academic institutions have systematically reinforced racial, gender and class hierarchies. Emphasizing these demographics risks overshadowing the richness of individual experiences, which is the true strengths of qualitative research.

Abbreviations

lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, and sexual. The + represent other identities that are noy included in the acronym

Transgender and nonbinary

Reflexive Thematic Analysis

Transgender and Gender Diverse

Assigned Male At Birth

Assigned Female At Birth

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Acknowledgements

We are most thankful to Jocelyn Demos Utrera for helping us with the conceptualization, data curation, investigation and methodology.

This research was supported by [MASKED], and [AUTHOR 3– MASKED]’s start-up research funds (Faculty Research Funds), [MASKED].

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NS: Conceptualization (lead); Writing– original draft (equal); Formal analysis (equal); Writing– review and editing (equal).LG: Data Curation (lead); Writing - review and editing (equal); Formal analysis (equal); Conceptualization (supporting); Writing– original draft (supporting); Methodology (supporting).FS-Q: Investigation (lead); Supervision (lead); Methodology (lead); Funding Acquisition (lead); Project Administration (lead); Formal analysis (equal); Writing– review and editing (equal); Conceptualization (supporting); Writing– original draft (equal).

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Sweder, N., Garcia, L. & Salinas-Quiroz, F. “I’m trying to take the lead from my child”: experiences Parenting Young Nonbinary Children. Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health 18 , 117 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-024-00807-y

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• Nonbinary children
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• Gender affirmation
• Cisnormativity
• Qualitative research
• Reflexive thematic analysis

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The phenomenon of yoga in the imagination of Turkish nursing students: "The way to place goodness in the heart"

• Özüm Erki̇n 1 ,
• Aynur Çeti̇nkaya 2 &
• Begüm Güler 3  

BMC Nursing volume  23 , Article number:  655 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

Metrics details

The aim of the research is to shed light on the experiences of a group of nursing students enrolled in a yoga elective course who practiced yoga regularly for 14 weeks, regarding yoga and the phenomenon of doing yoga, with a qualitative approach.

This qualitative study was conducted at a public university in Izmir, Turkey. The study sample consisted of 61 students enrolled in the 1st-year yoga course at the Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences. Except for two students, 59 of them participated in the study. Participants attended a face-to-face yoga course once a week for 1.5 h over a 14-week period. Each session comprised 30 min of theoretical instruction and 60 min of practice. In data collection, an interview form containing five questions was used to understand nursing students' experiences and thoughts about practicing yoga. In addition, A4 sized papers in different colors were presented to the participants. The participants were asked to draw and/or cut a shape by choosing the paper in the color that most evokes yoga. Then they were asked to explain why they chose this color and why they drew this shape. Participants were given one hour. After the data were collected, the pictures drawn by the participants and their descriptions of their drawings were transferred to the computer and included in the analysis. Qualitative data were hand-coded by the researchers. Within in-vivo coding, code names were formed from the participants' expressions. The findings analyzed by content analysis were interpreted with the literature under the themes by presenting quotations.

It was determined that the participants used nature figures (sun, cloud, tree, sky, flower) (f = 75), people doing yoga (f = 12), and sound, light and other figures (bird sound, wave sound, candle, light bulb, traffic light, heart, eye, left key, peace, swing, India, circle, etc.) (f = 29) in the shapes they drew and cut out on A4 sized papers in different colors to describe their experiences and thoughts about practicing yoga. The participants mostly chose blue-green-yellow colors ( n  = 41). With qualitative question analysis, a list of codes was created from the answers given by the students to the questions for the phenomenon of “doing yoga” (number of codes = 98). After the analysis of the data, four categories were reached. The category names and frequency numbers explaining the phenomenon of practicing yoga were distributed as “symbol of health and serenity (f = 345)”, “the way to place goodness in your heart (f = 110)”, “the most effective way to meet the self (f = 93)” and “no guarantee of relaxation (f = 71)”, respectively.

Conclusions

The results indicate that yoga is perceived by nursing students as a multifaceted practice that evokes a range of emotional and physical responses. Most participants associate yoga with symbols of health, serenity, and self-awareness, often using natural elements and blue-green-yellow the colors to represent these feelings. However, there is also recognition that yoga may not guarantee relaxation for everyone, as some students reported difficulties in meditation, physical discomfort, and challenges in focusing. The study highlights the variability in how individuals experience yoga, emphasizing both its positive effects on well-being and the potential challenges in practice. These findings suggest that while yoga is widely valued for its calming and health-promoting benefits, it may not be universally effective in achieving relaxation or mindfulness.

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Introduction

Yoga is a practice that has been subject to many different interpretations and translations over thousands of years. Patanjali's phrase "Yogas Chitta Vrittis Nirodha" translates to "Yoga is the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind" in English [ 1 ]. Hagen & Hagen (2024) have emphasized that yoga is commonly understood in society as a tool for mental calmness and balance[ 2 ]. This provides a comprehensive model for personal development, contributing to the individual's balanced harmony in every aspect—mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual [ 3 , 4 ]. By developing inner awareness as well as meta-awareness, yoga offers a roadmap for individuals to see and understand their own state and surroundings more clearly [ 5 ]. Yoga enhances physical functionality by alleviating pain and discomfort, thereby reducing physical ailments. Moreover, yoga offers physical health benefits, including increased strength and flexibility, as well as improved posture [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 ].

According to Bhavanani (2014), yoga extends beyond mere physical or mental health; it also addresses emotional, social, and spiritual needs [ 11 ]. By increasing personal awareness, it can strengthens both inner attachment and social connections [ 6 , 9 , 12 ]. Research shows that participants' self-confidence increases during yoga practice, and they might gain better skills to manage their mental health. This underscores not only the physical advantages of yoga but also its significant contributions to mental and emotional well-being [ 8 , 9 , 13 , 14 ]. Yoga can fosters heightened bodily awareness, elevates mood, and enhances overall well-being. It also promotes self-acceptance, personal fulfillment, and social harmony. This holistic process provides psychological relief and mental tranquility, aiding in the management of common mental health issues such as anxiety and depression [ 11 ].

Today, young adults increasingly experience stress, pressure, and mental health issues [ 15 ]. Research links young people's stress levels to high demands at school and the pressure to meet these demands [ 16 ]. Additionally, lack of physical activity and sleep problems also can contribute to their difficulties in coping with these issues [ 17 , 18 ]. Academic expectations from parents, especially those from middle-class families, can further increase the pressure on young people, leading them to evaluate their self-worth solely based on their achievements. This adds to the existing academic pressures, causing young people to worry more about future educational and career opportunities [ 19 ].

Yoga can physically contribute to nervous system balance by decreasing stress-related sympathetic activity and stimulating the parasympathetic system. Consequently, it can positively impact stress and mental health issues, particularly in young people. Nursing students, who often undergo a stressful educational period, can also benefit from these effects [ 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 ]. Therefore, it is recommended to integrate mindfulness programs, including breathing techniques, meditation, and yoga, into the nursing curriculum [ 21 , 22 ]. In the literature, a yoga course was integrated into the nursing curriculum in Turkey for the first time by Erkin and Aykar (2021) [ 20 ]. Most studies with students in the field of yoga in the literature are quantitative, although yoga has been studied in college students using qualitative methods, no studies found in nursing. This is one of the starting points of this research. The aim of the research is to shed light on the experiences of a group of nursing students enrolled in a yoga elective course who practiced yoga regularly for 14 weeks, regarding yoga and the phenomenon of doing yoga, with a qualitative approach. This qualitative study tries to fill this gap in the literature by explaining the imaginary meanings that nursing students attending yoga courses attribute to the yoga experience.

Design and participants

The research, designed in a qualitative type, was conducted during the 2018–2019 academic year. In line with the qualitative research approach, a purposeful sampling method was used. The qualitative method sees the experience of reality as subjective, varying from person to person. Moreover, it is a reliable method for studying a little known or understood area. Therefore, a qualitative descriptive design was adopted to explore students’ knowledge and perspectives [ 25 ].

Participants attended a face-to-face yoga course once a week for 1.5 h over a 14-week period. Each session comprised 30 min of theoretical instruction and 60 min of practice. The content of the yoga course is detailed in Table 1 . The theoretical component included a weekly 30-min PowerPoint presentation covering topics such as the history of yoga, meditation, breathing techniques (pranayama), yoga poses (asanas), chakras, mindfulness, and compassion. The practical sessions were conducted in a tranquil and dimly lit room, following a structured 60-min schedule: 15 min of pranayama (e.g., ocean breath, equal breathing, cooling breath, humming bee breath, alternate nostril breath, kapalbhati pranayama), 30 min of hatha yoga asanas involving gentle stretching and strengthening exercises with each pose held for 5–10 breaths and repeated five times, 5 min of meditation, and 10 min of shavasana. These sessions were led by a yoga instructor (first author) registered with the Yoga Alliance. No home practice was required. According to the course rules, students were allowed up to 20% absenteeism. At the end of the 14-week period, it was determined that students were absent for an average of 1.5 weeks. There was only one change in the planned yoga protocol. Although it was initially planned to use one breathing technique every two weeks, all breathing techniques were combined based on the students’ feedback and used in the sessions after students learned all the techniques (after the 6th week). Class attendance was encouraged through messages in a WhatsApp group. However, attendance was not included in the scoring.

The sample of the research was planned to consist of first-year students enrolled in the elective course "Yoga" in the Nursing Department of the Faculty of Health Sciences at İzmir Democracy University in Izmir ( N  = 61). Two students did not participate in the study because the topic and objectives did not interest them. Data were collected from a total of 59 nursing students on a voluntary basis. After the yoga course, the last week interviews were conducted with 59 participants who voluntarily agreed to participate in the study. Of the participants (n:59), 40 were female and 19 were male, with ages ranging from 18 to 21. Forty-six participants described their health perception as "good," nine as "very good," and four as "poor." (Appendix 1).

Data collection

Data collection was conducted using a structured interview form alongside a creative activity where participants were asked to draw a picture and write a text representing the concept of doing yoga. Data were collected through structured interviews guided by a pre-developed interview Schedule (see Appendix 1). The structured interview form developed for this study included seven open-ended questions and prompts designed to elicit detailed responses from the participants regarding their experiences with the yoga course. Prior to commencing data collection with the main participant group, the interview schedule was pilot tested with five nursing students who met the inclusion criteria but were not part of the final sample. This pilot testing allowed for refinement of the interview questions and ensured clarity and comprehensiveness.

After obtaining the necessary permissions for the research, the students engaged in the yoga course were comprehensively briefed on the study’s objectives, content, methodology, and the individuals responsible for its execution. The last week of "Yoga" course (14th week), students asked to draw a picture and write a text representing the concept of doing yoga. Each student was given colored A4 papers and, for those who wished to use them, colored pencils in the classroom environment. Before starting to draw, students were asked to write their gender on the back of the paper, but not their name or surname. In addition to the picture they drew, they were asked to write their thoughts about yoga and what they drew regarding the concept of doing yoga on a separate piece of paper or in appropriate spaces on their drawing paper. Besides students filled the interview form. They also filled out a structured interview form to capture their experiences and thoughts about practicing yoga. Participants were given one hour to complete the task. After the data were collected, the drawings and their related descriptions made by the participants were digitized and included in the analysis [ 26 ]. For security purposes, the data were stored in Google Drive™ accessible to authors.

To examine subjective experiences, the techniques of "drawing" and "description" were used together, attempting to integrate the strengths of both methods. Participants were provided with A4 papers in different colors and asked to choose the color that most reminded them of yoga. Starting from the theme of "The meaning of doing yoga for them," participants were asked to draw pictures representing their perceptions and to write descriptions related to their drawings. In a similar approach referred to as "projective technique" in the literature, the drawing is accepted as a tool for reflecting emotions. Projection means expression and is based on the assumption that "an individual's behavior is a reflection of their personality" [ 26 , 27 ].

Data analysis and interpretation process

The data were analyzed using an inductive approach. Inductive analysis involves coding the data to categorize it, identifying relationships between these categories, and reaching a holistic picture based on this. The key point in data analysis in this study was to create categorical labels embedded in the data [ 26 , 27 ]. In this study, a code list was developed, data were coded, categories were created, and data were reported within these categories. Data analysis was conducted by the researchers through coding. For some themes, in-vivo coding, which is included in the qualitative research methodology of grounded theory, was used as an inductive coding process. In vivo coding involves creating a theme tag using the code that comes directly from the data, i.e., the participant's own expressions [ 28 ].

All these processes were carried out in collaboration with two field experts (ÖE, AÇ). Similar codes were grouped together to form a certain number of categories and reported to establish the main idea in the data. Comparing codes and categories with the literature aimed to contribute to the validity of the data analysis. At the end of the data collection phase, a conceptual model related to the topic was developed by the researchers [ 26 ]

The research team acknowledges the importance of reflexivity in qualitative research. The first researcher, who has a PhD degree in public health nursing with 16 years of experience in nursing, is an instructor of yoga courses for undergraduate nursing students. The researcher maintained a critical awareness of their own biases and assumptions that could potentially influence the data analysis throughout the research process. We aimed to minimize bias by employing a systematic thematic analysis approach and by regularly discussing the emerging themes with a second author, who is a specialist on qualitative research and has a qualitative PhD thesis in public health nursing. This cooperation contributed to ensuring the findings’ objectivity and reliability. Regretfully, it was not possible to get direct participant input on the findings because of the anonymous nature of the data collection process. The third researcher, who is a master’s degree student in public health nursing with 3 years of clinical experience in nursing, is an instructor of yoga. Nonetheless, we think that the utilization of rich participant quotes in conjunction with the iterative analytic process guarantees that the results truly reflect the participants’ experiences with the yoga course.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Before starting data collection, information about the research was provided to the school administration, permission was obtained, and contact was made with the participants. Approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee of Manisa Celal Bayar University (02/12/2019, no:20.478.486). Participation was based on voluntariness and willingness, and students were informed about sensitive points related to the teacher-student relationship (such as participation or non-participation in the research not affecting their performance evaluations, etc.). Written informed consent to participate was obtained from all of the participants in this study.

Research validity and reliability

In qualitative research, the researcher investigating the problem is at the center of the research. The main measurement tool in the research is the researcher themselves. Therefore, the issue of objectivity has always been at the center of methodological debates in social sciences. In qualitative research, the concept of "trustworthiness" is considered instead of validity and reliability [ 27 ]. Various criteria of trustworthiness were considered in the processes of this research.

During the data analysis phase, in the creation of the code list, and in the interpretation of the findings, a comprehensive perspective was attempted to be reflected through a thorough literature review on the subject. All records in the data collection and analysis processes were kept systematically. Quotations were made from all data sources. The frequencies of the drawings and descriptions were determined, and those with high frequencies and those that were strikingly related to the topic were included. The data collection and data analysis processes were reported in detail as far as space limitations allowed, and original quotations from the data were included. Furthermore, in the quotations, descriptions written by the participants in their own handwriting were also used.

The number of participants in the study was 56. This number is considered sufficient for an in-depth exploration of the research topic. Students were instructed to create an illustration and compose a text depicting the concept of practicing yoga. Each student received colored A4 paper, and colored pencils were provided for those who wished to use them within the classroom setting. Prior to beginning their drawings, students were asked to indicate their gender on the back of the paper, ensuring that they did not include their name or surname. Alongside their drawings, students were required to write their reflections on yoga and describe what they had drawn related to the practice of yoga, either on a separate sheet of paper or in suitable spaces on their drawing paper. Additionally, students completed an interview form. Participants were allotted one hour to finish the assignment. This approach allowed for a thorough and comprehensive examination of the participants’ perspectives. To enhance transferability, purposive sampling was employed in the study. In purposive sampling, participants are selected to have specific characteristics relevant to the research topic. This approach ensured that the participants’ perspectives would represent the research topic effectively. To ensure dependability, interview questions, data collection, and analysis were consistently applied throughout the entire research process. In this study, to achieve confirmability, all stages of the research were described openly and transparently, aiming to reduce the impact of researcher bias. All transcripts and notes used in the study were stored for reference.

The reporting process of the study adhered to the COREQ (CONsolidated criteria for Reporting Qualitative research) guidelines, as outlined by Tong et al. (2007) [ 29 ]. The study follows CLARIFY 2021 guidelines for reporting yoga research [ 30 ].

Participants expressed their experiences and thoughts about practicing yoga by drawing and cutting shapes on A4-sized papers of different colors. It was determined that they used nature figures (sun, cloud, tree, sky, flower) (f = 75), figures of people practicing yoga (f = 12), and other figures such as sound, light, and others (bird sound, wave sound, candle, light bulb, traffic light, heart, eye, key, peace, swing, India, circle, etc.) (f = 29). Participants mostly chose blue-green-yellow colors ( n  = 41).

A code list was created from the responses of students to questions about the concept of "practicing yoga" through qualitative question analysis (number of codes = 98). After analyzing the data, four categories were reached. The categories describing the concept of practicing yoga were distributed as follows in terms of symbols and frequency numbers: "symbol of health and tranquility (f = 345)", "the way to place goodness in your heart (f = 110)", "the most effective way to meet oneself (f = 93)", and "no guarantee of relaxation (f = 71)" (Fig. 1 ).

Concepts and codes identified in the qualitative analysis of nursing students' perception of the phenomenon of "practicing yoga"

Category 1. Symbol of health and serenity (f = 345)

The subcategories that received the most references from nursing students in explaining the phenomenon of practicing yoga under this category are "Serenity and Peace (f = 169)", "Comfort (f = 120)", "Health, Well-being, Happiness, and Energy (f = 56)". Below is the picture and description of the participant related to the subcategory "Symbol of Health and Serenity" (Fig. 2 ): "The reason for choosing the shape of a cloud and the color blue is that it brings me peace, reminds me to take deep breaths and be grateful. It reminds me that there are beautiful things in life and that I need to enjoy life." Additionally, "when you start doing yoga, your thoughts change, you feel rested, and your heart fills with peace." Participant 7, Female.

Cloud figure (blue) -participant 7

Participant 22 wrote the following in the interpretation of the figure they drew (Fig. 3 ): "The color blue always makes me feel happy and peaceful. I chose this color because yoga makes me feel peaceful and happy. For example, when I feel restless and unhappy, going to the beach, seeing the sea, seeing blue calms me down. Also, when I think of yoga, I imagine an endless deep blue sea. A sea with birds flying over it and a deep blue sky. A painting with sunny weather" Participant 22.

Interpretation by participant 22 (blue)

Participant 35's drawn figure is a butterfly, and their description is as follows (Fig. 4 ): “When I think of yoga, I think of a butterfly. Because when I do yoga, I feel as free and light as a butterfly. I imagine my wings taking me wherever I want inside. The green color relaxes me and makes me happy. The wings of the butterfly in my soul's greenery take me to purity…”.

Butterfly figure (green) -participant 35

Participant 9, in the chosen color and the comment on their drawing, expressed the following regarding the sub-category "Symbol of Health and Serenity" (Fig. 5 ): "I chose this color for its energy. Since energy is important in yoga, I chose orange. I chose this shape because I believe yoga is best done in a natural environment. Yoga reminds me of serenity, the feeling of being in emptiness, and relaxation (Fig. 5 )."

Tree figure and comment (orange) -participant 9

Participant 19, in the chosen figure and the comment on their drawing, stated the following (Fig. 6 ): "Because yoga reminds me of mental and physical health. In my opinion, health is manifested in the combination of blue and green colors. That is, balance in nature is something that exists in the soul and body." Participant 19 depicted a ladder figure in combination with blue and green, defining yoga as "soul and body therapy" (Fig. 6 ).

The place where the moon meets the sun (turquoise)-participant 19

Category 2. The way to place goodness in your heart (f = 110)

The meaning of the phenomenon of doing yoga by participant 11, an 18-year-old female nursing student, was labeled as "being aware of placing goodness in heart" as the category tag. This category, referred to 110 times by the participants, includes the subcategories of "Purification (f = 65)" and "Being a virtuous person (f = 45)". Participants mentioned virtues such as "patience, tolerance, love for all creatures, flexibility, equality, non-prejudice, peace, optimism, freedom" contributing to the concept.

Participant 51, an 18-year-old male who described his health as poor, used the light bulb figure to express "happiness, peace, security" and commented, "It causes positive effects on people" (Fig. 7 ). Participant 51 expressed the following regarding the subcategory " The way to place goodness in your heart" in the figure and comment (Fig. 7 ): "The light bulb illuminating the environment is connected to yoga. Yoga enlightens a person's mind."

Light bulb (yellow) -participant 51

Participant 39, a 19-year-old male, mentioned that practicing yoga leads to "thinking more compassionately." Participant 21, a female, stated, "Yoga is something that requires patience."

Here is the drawn peace figure and comment by participant 46, related to this category (Fig. 8 ). This participant said, "I chose pink because it opens up and gives peace. Of course, there is also light pink, not just dark pinks. I chose this sign because where there is yoga, there is love for all living beings, and where there is love, peace is inevitable."

Peace figure (pink) -participant 46

Category 3. The most effective way to meet yourself (f = 93)

For nursing students, practicing yoga means creating "awareness" and is the most effective way to meet oneself (f = 93). Participant 43, a 19-year-old female with a poor health perception, described feeling "calmer, more aware, and internally peaceful" when practicing yoga, as shown in Fig. 9 . Under the category of "the most effective way to meet oneself," Participant 43's figure and comment about yoga are as follows (Fig. 9 ): "…I chose this color because it gives me peace. The other colors make me restless, but this color makes me feel like I can breathe. Yellow is like an endless void to me. A color that makes me experience everything with all its reality. It's like a sky where you can escape from the chaos of the world and get lost in it…".

The world and heart (yellow) -participant 43

Participant 8 chose a cloud figure, describing yoga as "like rising above the clouds" and wrote the following about yoga practice: "Finding oneself in life, being at peace with oneself… [someone who starts practicing yoga] starts to know themselves, their love for life increases." Participant 8, Female.

Participant 33, a female who chose yellow for its calmness and non-straining quality, described the effect of yoga as "self-discovery" and wrote the following (Fig. 10 ): "You awaken your sleeping mind and body, and find the 'self' within you." Participant 33, Female.

Flower and human (yellow)- participant 33

The statement from participant 48 is as follows (Fig. 11 ): "In this image, what I want to convey is; the individual who practices yoga finds themselves, reaches their essence, and becomes aware of their own existence after a long and perhaps short journey. I chose the color orange because it reminds me that energy exists, is alive, and can be transmitted at any moment. For me, yoga is an indicator of energy. After yoga, the body revives and rejuvenates."

The road (orange)- participant 48

Category 4. No guarantee of relaxation (f = 71)

Among the nursing students ( n  = 59), 16 (27.1%) indicated that they do not recommend yoga. The subcategories of this category include "difficulty in relaxing during meditation/emptying the mind (f = 23)", physical complaints (f = 21)", "difficulty in focusing (f = 18)", and "negative perceptions (f = 9)". Participants used expressions such as "headache, neck pain, back pain, dizziness, exhausting, feeling bad, difficult, fear, nervousness, inability to relax, disbelief" in relation to this category. A 19-year-old male participant, participant 41, stated about yoga, "I cannot meditate, I do not feel comfortable." Participant 44, a 19-year-old female participant who rated her health as poor, stated during yoga, "I cannot fully control my breathing and do meditation, I cannot empty my mind, so I cannot achieve complete peace."

Yoga, often conceptualized in the Western world as a physical practice [ 31 ], is considered a practice that can calm the mind and access a higher state of consciousness where individual and universal consciousness merge, using the body [ 32 ], in yoga traditions, the physical, mental, and spiritual dimensions of the individual are intricately connected [ 1 ]. When we relate the benefits of yoga to traditional yoga theories and systems, it can be interesting to explore its connection with the chakra system and colors. The main focus of yoga can be to regulate the functioning of chakras while awakening the associated energies [ 33 , 34 ]. It was thought that the free association of the students' drawings and descriptions could provide guidance in determining their experiences related to the concept of yoga. In this study, where the experiences of nursing students who took the elective yoga course were evaluated with a qualitative approach, participants mostly chose blue, green, and yellow-colored papers, symbolizing nature. When viewed from the perspective of the chakra-yoga system explained in the yoga course, it was thought that the participants might have resonated with certain energy centers or chakras. Blue, green, and yellow colors are respectively associated with the throat chakra, heart chakra, and solar plexus chakra [ 35 ]. The throat chakra is associated with communication, speech power, intellectual development, creativity, and expression [ 36 ]. Participants 7 and 22, who currently perceive their health as good, and participant 19, who chose blue and turquoise colors, may reflect a desire for in-depth communication and original expression, or a need for improvement in these areas. During yoga practice, especially breathing exercises and poses focusing on the throat region can be worked on this chakra, thus enhancing students' capacity for clearer communication and expressing inner truths [ 37 , 38 ].

The philosophy of yoga emphasizes the importance of harmony and unity with nature, which is why many yoga asanas (poses) are named after elements from nature, such as the tree pose, which symbolizes the stability and balance of a tree through its strong roots and upward-reaching branches [ 39 ]. In this study, visuals related to yoga such as the sun, clouds, trees, sky, and flowers were found. Participant 9 recalling and drawing a tree figure during yoga experiences indicates their awareness of this symbolic relationship. Research has shown that spending time in nature has positive effects on people's mood and mental health [ 40 , 41 ]; similarly, many yoga philosophies emphasize the importance of being in harmony with nature [ 42 ]. Therefore, a student's preference for a natural environment while practicing yoga and associating this practice with a tree in nature is thought to reflect both the healing power of nature and the relationship of yoga poses with elements in nature. This symbiotic relationship reminds us of how interconnected humans are with nature and how yoga practice can strengthen this connection. This aspect of yoga can also encourage individuals to strengthen their relationship with nature and adopt a more respectful attitude towards the environment. This can be seen as a reflection of the principle of 'ahimsa' or non-harming, which is one of the foundational principles of yoga philosophy [ 43 ].

Deep breathing practices are fundamental components of yoga and meditation. Consciously controlling breathing can activate the parasympathetic nervous system and trigger the relaxation response [ 44 , 45 ]. Additionally, breath awareness is part of mindfulness practice and brings the individual into the present moment. Feeling gratitude helps a person recognize the positive aspects of their life and develop a more positive life perspective [ 46 ]. Gratitude practice can improve mental health and allow for greater enjoyment of life [ 47 ]. Participant 7's choice of a cloud shape and blue color is explained by the feeling of tranquility it brings, reminding them to take deep breaths and be thankful, and to remember that there are beautiful things in life that they should enjoy. Participant 7's statement confirms this. The shape of a cloud and the choice of the color blue directing them to take deep breaths, be thankful, remember that there are beautiful things in life, and enjoy life, can contribute to the participant's spirituality [ 48 ]. Such an approach can be balancing both mentally and emotionally, especially for students under academic pressure [ 49 ].

Yoga, meditation, and breathwork (pranayama) practices can be effective in creating a deep sense of peace by bringing individuals to the present moment and calming their inner dialogue [ 50 , 51 ]. Participant 22's statement, " The color blue always makes me feel happy and peaceful. I chose this color because yoga makes me feel peaceful and happy. For example, when I feel restless and unhappy, going to the beach, seeing the sea, and seeing blue calms me down ," also indicates the participant's association of yoga practice with feelings of peace and happiness, demonstrating the potential of yoga experience to provide inner tranquility and balance. Furthermore, the participant's desire to go to the beach and see the sea may refer to the healing and calming effect of nature [ 52 ]. Participant 19 states, " Yoga reminds me of spiritual and physical health. For me, health lives in the colors blue and green, meaning it is something in nature and in the spirit of nature ," and Participant 35 says, " When I think of yoga, I think of a butterfly because when I do yoga, I feel as light as a butterfly. I think my wings take me wherever I want inside me. The color green relaxes me, makes me happy, and the green inside me takes me to purity. " These statements may be associated with the heart chakra represented by the color green. This chakra is considered the center of love, compassion, and connection [ 36 ], and therefore, the association of green with this chakra may symbolize the participant's feelings of relaxation and happiness during yoga practice [ 48 ]. The phrase " the green inside me takes me to purity " in Participant 35's statement indicates that green represents purity and healing in the heart chakra, and the opening of this chakra allows the person to feel more peaceful and purer [ 53 ]. In this context, Participant 35's positive feelings toward green and the sense of relaxation may be a result of balancing and opening the heart chakra, contributing to their emotional experiences such as lightness and tranquility in yoga practices [ 54 ].

Participant 51, despite describing their health as poor, mentioning positive effects such as " Happiness, peace, trust " through the figure of a light bulb during yoga practices, can be explained by the illuminating effect of yoga on the mind. Just as a light bulb illuminates its surroundings, yoga enlightens the individual's mental and spiritual state, capable of transforming negative thoughts and emotions into positive ones. This contributes to achieving a general state of well-being and a positive mood by providing both physical and mental relaxation [ 55 ]. Participant 39 mentioned the effect of " thinking more humanely " while practicing yoga. Participant 21 commented that " yoga requires patience ." Participant 46 chose pink because " It opens up and gives peace within me, where there is yoga, there is love for all living beings, and where there is love, peace is inevitable. " Yoga can facilitates a tranquil mental state, reducing stress and tension, thereby promoting harmonious relationships and fostering peace within individuals and their social interactions. Central to yoga philosophy are humanism and the pursuit of a peaceful life [ 56 ] qualities reflected in participants' experiences, affirming yoga's role in cultivating positive personal and societal outcomes.

In the chakra system, colors and their associated energy centers are believed to promote balance and harmony in our daily lives and physical well-being [ 33 ]. Students' selection of these colors related to chakras may reflect their own energy balances and personal development needs, often unconsciously. Yoga practice can equips individuals with tools to enhance the harmony and integrity of these energy centers [ 57 ]. Participant 43, with a negative perception of health, reported becoming " A calmer person, awareness increases, and inner peace occurs; I chose this color (yellow) because it gives me peace. While other colors make me uneasy, when I look at this color, it feels like it gives me breath, and it continues to an endless void. Yellow, for me, is like escaping from the chaos of the world and getting lost in an endless sky ." Participants finding the color yellow soothing and describing it as providing a sense of freedom and freshness like an endless sky can be associated with the solar plexus chakra, typically represented by the color yellow [ 35 ]. This chakra is linked to self-confidence, willpower, and self-realization. [ 58 ]. Participant 33 described the experince of yoga with a flower and human figure as " Self-discovery ," stating, " you awaken your sleeping mind and body and find the 'self' within ." Participant 8 drawn a cloud figure, describing yoga as " like rising above the clouds," saying, "finding yourself in life, being at peace with yourself… [someone who starts practicing yoga] begins to know themselves, their love for life increases ."These statements and figures reinforce the basic themes of "self-discovery" and "being at peace with oneself" in yoga practice [ 59 ], indicating an important relationship between one's yoga practice, personal growth, and quest for inner peace [ 60 ]. Participant 48 believes that " After a long and perhaps short journey of practicing yoga, individuals find themselves, reach their essence, and become aware of their existence. I chose this color (orange) because it reminds me that energy exists, is alive, and can be transmitted at any moment. For me, yoga is a sign of energy; after yoga, the body revitalizes and refreshes. " The choice of orange suggests a strong relationship between yoga practice and energy, as this color, can be associated with the Sacral chakra, symbolizes vitality, creativity, and emotional balance [ 36 ].

In this study, there seem to be mixed views among some participants regarding yoga practice. While yoga and meditation are generally recommended as tools for reducing stress and enhancing personal well-being [ 24 , 61 , 62 ], some students (participants 41–44) have reported not finding this practice beneficial. For example, some participants have advised against practicing yoga due to physical discomfort (head, neck, and back pain, dizziness), inability to empty the mind during meditation, difficulty in focusing, and negative perceptions. The comments of participants 41 and 44 are thought to indicate their individual experiences regarding their inability to meditate and the discomfort they feel during yoga practice. Yoga and meditation practices can create different experiences in each individual; while they can be relaxing and healing for some, they can be challenging and discomforting for others [ 63 ]. This suggests that yoga and meditation can not universal solutions but practices that should be compatible with an individual's personal preferences, experiences, and health conditions [ 26 ].

Participants' health conditions can influence their experiences during yoga practice. Participants who feel unwell or have a specific health problem may find the practice challenging. This underscores the importance for educators and health professionals to provide stress management and relaxation techniques tailored to individual needs [ 64 ].

Limitations

The qualitative data collected in this study regarding the phenomenon of yoga is in Turkish. However, selecting an international journal for publication and translating the text into English may have limited the full conveyance of the figures and participants' expressions to the readers due to the unique cultural characteristics of the language. The concepts of yoga and chakras, meditation, and similar topics, which were theoretically as well as practically conveyed to the participants during the 14-week course content, may have influenced the participants' views on the phenomenon of yoga. The use of a qualitative design tradition in the research both limited the generalizability of the findings and contributed to the originality of the study.

This study has identified four themes that explain the phenomenon of practicing yoga. These are respectively; "symbol of health and tranquility", "way to place goodness in the heart", "most effective way to meet the self", and "no guarantee of relaxation" themes. The findings will contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of student experiences and ultimately understand their positive and negative experiences. By delving into the student perspective, this research aims to provide valuable insights for educators and healthcare professionals. Most of the research on the phenomenon of practicing yoga is conducted abroad, and it is a less studied area in Turkey. Although yoga, which is becoming increasingly popular in our country, is known to be a practice that makes a person feel good; research on how individuals feel about practicing yoga and how they think about it is specific to the subject. Participants associated practicing yoga with symbols and colors found in nature, emphasizing the importance of its effects on the body, mind, and spirituality. In addition, findings regarding the experiences of individuals practicing yoga, a practice that is also becoming increasingly popular in Turkey, have been obtained. Although it is seen that qualitative approaches such as in-depth interviews and content analysis are used in almost all of the qualitative studies on the subject [ 48 , 65 , 66 ], no study has been found that examines individuals' perceptions by drawing pictures and interpreting them. In this respect, the current research's unique research method can contribute to the literature.

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The authors extend their sincere gratitude to the nursing students who willingly took part in this study. Their participation is greatly valued and appreciated.

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Department of Public Health Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, Izmir Democracy University, Izmir, Turkey

Özüm Erki̇n

Department of Public Health Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, Manisa Celal Bayar University, Manisa, Turkey

Aynur Çeti̇nkaya

Begüm Güler

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ÖE and AÇ contributed to study design. AÇ contributed to analyze data. ÖE, AÇ and BG write the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Begüm Güler .

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Ethical approval for the study was obtained from Manisa Celal Bayar University Non-invasive Clinical Research Ethics Committee (Decision no:20.478.486, Date:02/13/2019). We adhered to the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and relevant guidelines. Written informed consent was obtained from all participants in this study. Participants were ensured to provide their consent voluntarily and without coercion. Written informed consent to participate was obtained from all of the participants in this study. Before the research, the purpose of the study was explained to the students and that they could leave the study at any time. At the beginning of the study, it was informed that participation in the study was voluntary and that no grade would be given. The evaluation of this course consisted of 10 open-ended questions as part of the year-end assessment. Students were asked to name 10 yoga poses they knew, describe the posture, explain the benefits, indicate the indications and contraindications, and identify the associated chakras. The grade distribution of the students was as follows: AA (n:31), BA (n:16), BB (n:6), CB (n:6).  Necessary precautions were taken to protect the confidentiality of the data, the identity information of the participants was not included in the data collection tools and all personal details in the data collection forms were kept confidential. The identifying images or other personal details of participants are presented in a way that does not compromise anonymity.

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Erki̇n, Ö., Çeti̇nkaya, A. & Güler, B. The phenomenon of yoga in the imagination of Turkish nursing students: "The way to place goodness in the heart". BMC Nurs 23 , 655 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-024-02288-y

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-024-02288-y

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