{"id":3973,"date":"2016-02-12T10:51:15","date_gmt":"2016-02-12T18:51:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nnlm.gov\/evaluation\/blog\/?p=3973"},"modified":"2019-09-24T10:13:29","modified_gmt":"2019-09-24T17:13:29","slug":"w-a-i-t-for-qualitative-interviews","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.nnlm.gov\/nec\/2016\/02\/12\/w-a-i-t-for-qualitative-interviews\/","title":{"rendered":"W.A.I.T for Qualitative Interviews"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"WAIT\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Why\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Am\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Talking?<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

My sister-in-law recently told me about the W.A.I.T. acronym that she learned from a communication consultant who spoke to her staff. It\u2019s a catchy phrase for an important communication concept: Be purposeful when you talk.\u00a0This self-reflective question can be applied to any conversational setting, but I want to discuss it in the context of qualitative interviews for evaluation data collection.<\/p>\n

Surveys and tests are examples of quantitative<\/em> data collection instruments. They require careful crafting and pilot-testing to be sure they collect valid information from respondents. By contrast, in qualitative interviews,\u00a0the data collection instrument is the interviewer<\/em>.\u00a0 The interview guide itself is important, but the interpersonal manner of the\u00a0interviewer has far\u00a0greater impact on the trustworthiness of the information gathered. The key responsibility of the interviewer is described succinctly by Michael Q. Patton in Qualitative Research and Evaluation Methods: <\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIt is the responsibility of the interviewer to provide a framework within which people can respond comfortably, accurately, and honestly to open-ended questions.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Listening skills, of course, are key to good interviewing. \u00a0As program evaluator Kylie Hutchinson<\/a>\u00a0said recently in a 2016 American Evaluation Association conference presentation, evaluators need ask their questions, then shut up<\/em>.\u00a0 If you can learn to do this, you are more than halfway there. \u00a0Julian Treasure has a TEDtalk<\/a> with excellent tips on developing your listening skills.<\/p>\n

However, how you talk<\/em> is important as well.\u00a0 Here are a few ways I would answer the question \u201cWhy Am I Talking?\u201d during an interview:<\/p>\n