The Science and Art of Interviewing

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

"Qualitative interviewing is one of the most widely used methods in social research, but it is arguably the least well understood. To address that gap, this book offers a theoretically rigorous, empirically rich, and user-friendly set of strategies for conceiving and conducting interview-based research. Much more than a "how to" manual, the book shows why depth interviewing is an indispensable method for discovering and explaining the social world-shedding light on the hidden patterns and dynamics that take place within institutions, social contexts, relationships, and individual experiences. It offers a step-by-step guide through every stage in the research process, from initially formulating a question, to developing arguments, and presenting the results. To do this, the book shows how to develop a research question, decide on and find an appropriate sample, construct an interview guide, conduct probing, theoretically focused interviews, and systematically analyze the complex material that depth interviews provide-all in the service of finding and presenting important new empirical discoveries and theoretical insights. The book also lays out the ever-present, but rarely discussed challenges that interviewers routinely encounter and then presents grounded, thoughtful ways to respond to them. By addressing the most heated debates about the scientific status of qualitative methods, the book demonstrates how depth interviewing makes unique and essential contributions to the research enterprise. With an emphasis on the integral relationship between carefully crafted research and theory building, the book offers a compelling vision for what the "interviewing imagination" can and should be"--

"Recent debates around interviewing have raised awareness about the centrality of this method to the social sciences, and about how to make sense of the data. This new book by master interviewers Kathleen Gerson and Sarah Damaske is destined to become the new 'go-to' for learning and teaching about
best practices, tricks of the trade, ad recent controversies. It is sure to become the Learning from Strangers for the new generations of scholars. I recommend it wholeheartedly!" -- Michele Lamont, Harvard University, and Former president of the American Sociological Association

"Building on Gerson and Damaske's own highly esteemed interview-based work as well as on that of numerous other social researchers, The Science and Art of Interviewing explores the intellectual, ethical, and practical mechanics of 'depth interviewing.' Stressing both scientific rigor and artistic
creativity, it walks the reader through the various steps of the interview-based research process -- from sampling and recruiting, through listening(!) and probing, to adapting to surprises and contradictions -- offering future researchers the best possible advice on how to capture people's 'voice
thereby realizing the very goal of 'verstehen, ' interpretive sociology." -- Eviatar Zerubavel, author of Generally Speaking and The Clockwork Muse

"In this lively and multi-faceted book, Gerson and Damaske provide a useful and comprehensive guide to in-depth interview research -- a fresh update to classic handbooks by Glaser and Strauss, Merton, Weiss, and others. Chock-full of examples from the works of contemporary scholars, The Science and
Art of Interviewing will prove a valuable reference to researchers across the social sciences." -- Mario Small, Grafstein Family Professor of Sociology, Harvard University