Systematic methodological review: developing a framework for a qualitative semi‐structured interview guide

Abstract

Rigorous development of a qualitative semi-structured interview guide contributes to the objectivity and trustworthiness of studies and makes the results more plausible. Researchers should consider using this five-step process to develop a semi-structured interview guide and justify the decisions made during it.

‘Try to make good hay in the shade – it won't work!’ A qualitative interview study on the perspectives of Bavarian farmers regarding primary prevention of skin cancer

“…While the sample size was adequate with respect to our main objective, other models of data saturation with different core assumptions about data saturation might have been able to identify further views, for example of older male vs. younger female farmers . The lack of an underlying theory for the study's topic guide is a further weakness but justified by the exploratory nature of this study . With the interviewer being a dermatologist, we cannot exclude the possibility that social desirability bias influenced the responses of participants .…”

“…53 The lack of an underlying theory for the study's topic guide is a further weakness but justified by the exploratory nature of this study. 54,55 With the interviewer being a dermatologist, we cannot exclude the possibility that social desirability bias influenced the responses of participants. 56 Importantly, the researchers being convinced of and engaged with sun protection may have influenced the way the data were analysed and interpreted; moreover, the first three interviews were coded in duplicate, but subsequent interviews were not.…”

The Changing Uses of Cadastral Information: A User-Driven Case Study

“…Semi-structured interviews provide a flexible enough method for our purpose, since we aim towards understanding diverse perspectives and perceptions on changing uses of cadastral information. By definition, this interviewing technique offers a focused structure for the discussion, but also enables a further exploration of the research topic [29]. Each interviewee was presented with the same questions in order to steer the discussion in the intended direction.…”

Environmental responsibility in hospital care: Findings from a qualitative study

“…We piloted the guide with one technical manager who was accountable for the environmental affairs of a central hospital and, based on this, found that the guide was intelligible, logical and comprehensive. [38] The researcher (HK) conducted interviews at the participants' offices or nearby meeting rooms. They lasted 7.5 hours in total (1.5 hours on average) and were recorded and transcribed verbatim to text for analysis.…”