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How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. ~ Annie Dillard
There are different types of interview questions that can be used in different ways. Here are a few [from James Spradley (1979) The Ethnographic Interview].
Descriptive Questions
Grand Tour Questions: Questions that lay out an in-depth descriptive sequence explaining a series of events, describing a group of people, telling how to engage in an activity, use an object, or run through the events of a time period.
- "Could you describe the kinds of things that you do to get ready for a date?"
- "Can you tell me what happened during your first year of college, beginning in September and going through May?"
"What are the names of your college roommates and what was each one like?"
Specific grand tour questions
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ask for a recent day or the most recent series of events, for example: "Can you describe what happened during your last 'Shaping a Life' class, from the moment it started to the time that you left?"
Guided grand tour questions
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ask for an actual tour, for example: "Can you show me around your alma mater?"
Task-related grand tour questions
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ask an informant to perform a simple task that aids in description, for example: "Can you draw me a map of your old dorm room?"
Mini-tour questions: Identical to grand-tour questions except that they deal with a much smaller unit of experience.
"Can you tell me how you broach the topic of using a condom with a new boyfriend?"
Grand tour questions are verbal descriptions of the significant features of a cultural scene; they encourage informants to open up and ramble on about their experiences. Typical grand tour questions ask for a description of how things usually are and ask informants to generalize and talk about a pattern of events, for example: "Can you describe a typical day in your 'Shaping a Life' class?"
The three kinds of grand tour questions also have their counterparts in mini-tour questions.
Example questions
These questions are for focusing an informant on a specific case. They take a specific case identified by an informant and ask for a specific example. For example, in response to a grand tour question, an informant might say, "I was waiting in the clinic waiting room for almost three hours while an addict in front of me kept nodding out." So you might ask, "Can you give me an example of that? Nodding out?" This kind of question is very useful in almost any interview and often encourages informants to tell you actual stories of events that were important to them.
Experience questions
These questions ask for particular experiences that people have had while in a particular setting.
- "You've probably had some interesting experiences in clinic waiting rooms; can you remember any of them?"
These can be so general that they are hard to answer. They tend to elicit unusual experiences, rather than typical ones. Use them after grand tour and mini-tour questions.
Native language questions
These questions are designed to explore an unfamiliar term after an informant uses it.
- "When would you use the phrase '23 skidoo'?"
- "When would you call someone 'phat'?"
A probe is a way to stimulate an informant to produce more information without injecting yourself so much into the interaction that you only get a reflection of yourself in the response.
The Silent Probe. After an informant tells you a story, you can use the silent probe by waiting quietly for them to continue talking. Often, they will pause briefly, and when you say nothing, go on to explain some aspect of the story in more detail. This is the hardest probe to learn because it takes confidence to do and it can become awkward. It is easier to do if you are relaxed and aware that through your body language, you are being attentive and focused on your informant (for example, if you are maintaining eye contact through the initial silence).
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The Echo Probe. This probe consists of repeating back something your subject has said to you.
- "So you are saying that after you warm up for six minutes, you stretch for ten minutes and then you begin with the exercise that targets the largest muscle group you are planning to work that day?"
- The "Uh-Huh" Probe. When an informant has paused after a story, say, "uh-huh", and wait for her to go on. Very simple and very effective; most people use it all the time without thinking about it.
In psychology and counseling, this is called "reflection". There, it is used to show another person that you are really listening and that you understand their feelings. It has a similar use here, and it also gives your subject a chance to identify and correct any misunderstandings.
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