The Problem with Easy Interview Subjects

As a beginning interviewer, you may want to find the easiest way to recruit potential subjects. Students often want to select people with whom they already have relationship, such as: family, friends, coworkers, students they know, or others they may know. While it is understandable to want to use people you know, it is problematic and complicates, and even contaminates, your interviews.

Family and Friends

Sometimes it is tempting to use family or friends as participants in the study; however, this carries with it some serious issues. First, your prior relationship influences the comfort level they have with you, as the interviewer. Thus, they may be more likely to reveal things to you other people would not, providing a false picture of your sample. Similarly, they may be uncomfortable answering personal questions others would answer (picture asking your grandmother about her sex life, not very comfortable for you or her!).

The other issue with friends and family is you may assume you know what they are talking about and not explore in the depth needed in a research interview. It is a good rule that you do not personally know your subjects.

People You Supervise

Conflicts of interest occur when you interview people you supervise. An example might be a principal interviewing the teachers she/he supervises. However, in the situation of interviewing supervisees, you are placing them in a difficult position. They cannot risk be totally honest with you, if you are also in a position to affect their job. It is advisable to seek similar individuals you do not supervise.

As you can see, there is no easy way to recruit participants. Do not fall for the trap of thinking you can "cheat the system," you will only waste your and your participants' time in conducting unethical research. 

Next time we will consider how best to recruit subjects. Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Would you like to be a guest writer? Send me your ideas! leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu