Reference no: EM133961699

Assignment Instructions:

For the interview project, you will conduct a semi-structured interview to learn about a peer's experience in pursuing a doctoral degree. (See your assigned partner under 4.0.)

Qualitative researchers primarily use data collection instruments developed specifically for the research questions and context of a study. Effective instrument development requires a thorough understanding of the study topic. Questions asked during an interview should be informed by the existing literature related to the topic and the study's theoretical framework. For example, a study exploring the influence of servant leader behaviors should include questions that ask about the application of specific servant leader behaviors as defined in the literature.

This week, you will 1) complete a table mapping your interview questions to existing literature and 2) develop an interview protocol using the mapped questions. You will use the templates below for each component of the assignment. Please read all assignment details and ask questions early in the week if needed.

Interview Questions Mapping Table

For this assignment, you will complete a mapping table demonstrating how your interview questions were developed from existing literature. Use the template provided and include all cited references on the References page. You are required to use minimum of five peer-reviewed sources from the list below in your mapping table. You may also use the course text (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016) as a source. No other sources are permitted for the assignment. Get reliable and affordable assignment help today!

In developing your primary questions for the interview, consider factors such as motivation, challenges, benefits, family support, faculty support, peer interactions, and future goals. You are not expected to complete a thorough literature review for the interview project. Therefore, sources are provided below that you will use for completing this assignment as well as the report that will be due in Week 7. Please do not use other sources in completing this assignment.

Each of the main questions in your interview protocol should be mapped to a scholarly source from the list. The mapping table must include an explanation and a citation for each main question that reflect a clear connection to the topic and thoughtful analysis of the source in developing question content. Your initial ice-breaker question may be mapped to the course text as in the example provided. The content-specific questions should be mapped to sources related to the topic. The mapping table should include two questions for the Opening phase, six to eight questions for the Primary Discussion phase, and one or two questions for the Closing phase (a total of nine to 12 main questions). These questions will be used to develop a more detailed interview protocol for the second component of this week's assignment.

You should think of your protocol as your guidance for conducting the interview; it tells you what to do and what questions to ask. When conducting an interview for research purposes, you would prepare an interview protocol, field test and refine the protocol, apply for and receive IRB approval, recruit participants, obtain informed consent from participants, and then use the protocol to collect data through interviews. If you were working as part of a research team, you might be given a protocol drafted by the lead researcher that would be used by all members of the team to ensure consistency with data collection methods for the study as a whole.

Remember that an interview is not a questionnaire. A semi-structured interview is an open discussion with questions that guide in a way that ensures responses provide insight into the phenomenon being studied. Interviewers should not ask questions that can be answered with a simple "yes" or "no." Your questions should be open-ended and invite conversation and explanation. Your interview protocol should include examples of probing questions. As an interviewer, you must be prepared to probe the participant to provide more information by asking follow-up questions, including those that cannot be planned in advance. The ability to ask effective probing questions requires careful listening throughout the interview and is a skill that improves with practice. Your goal as an interviewer is to guide the participant in discussing meaningful aspects of the experience.

While there is no single right way to draft an interview protocol, for this assignment, we will use a phased interview approach with specific requirements. In building your interview protocol, please include the following phases as defined below:

Welcome
Opening
Primary Discussion
Closing
For each section, describe what will occur during that phase of the interview process and include a script reflecting tentative plans for what you will say and what questions you will ask. Your main questions will be the questions from your mapping table. Explain in your protocol how and where you will use probing questions to guide the discussion.

Please also provide examples of prompts or probing questions but remember that not all probing questions can be planned in advance. Probing questions that are context-specific and asked directly in response to a participant's comments are an important part of a semi-structured interview. With the exception of your scripted statements, do not use first-person pronouns in your protocol; instead, describe what the interviewer will do during each phase. After the welcome phase, the majority of the talking will be done by the participant. For this assignment, be sure your text refers to the class project as opposed to an actual research study.

Interview Phases:

Welcome: The Welcome phase of the interview provides an opportunity to welcome the participant and let the participant know what to expect during the interview. For this section, explain the purpose of this phase and write a script that you will read at the beginning of the interview. Your script should begin by introducing yourself and explaining the purpose of the interview. It should include a statement informing the participant that the interview is being recorded and should address concerns about comfort and confidentiality. It should end with an introduction to the topic that will be discussed during the interview and provide an opportunity for the participant to ask questions.