Janet Salmons

Hello everyone,

Over the next two weeks we will discuss many aspects of online interview research, from designing the study to conducting the interviews. I want this event to be relevant to your needs and interests, so please post your ideas and questions!

To begin at the beginning, I define online interviews or e-interviews as: "interviews conducted using computer-mediated communication (CMC). Such interviews are used for primary Internet-mediated research. That is, they are used to gather original data via the Internet with the intention of subjecting these data to analysis" (Salmons, 2015). This is a broad definition that encompasses any online interaction with someone-- no matter how seemingly informal-- where the exchange is recorded and saved, and will be analyzed.

To begin the dialogue about how to think through technology and methods options, I would like to share the E-Interview Research Framework. I developed this model to present the elements of the research design as part of a coherent whole. The E-Interview Research Framework offers a conceptual system of key questions about interrelated facets of online interview research.

When introduced in Cases in Online Interview Research (Salmons, 2012), the central focus was on data collection with online interviews; however, the updated E-Interview Research Framework encompasses related primary (i.e., questionnaires, observations) and secondary (i.e., posts, sites, documents,images, or media) online data collection.

Here are some materials that introduce elements of the model:

• Chapter 1 from Cases in Online Interview Research;
• An overview of the model and its use in planning and evaluating studies: 
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Choosing E-Interviews
One of the first questions to consider is: why choose to conduct interviews online? My initial motivation was the desire to interview people from different countries-- without having funds to travel. Now, I am also motivated by the desire to use visual methods of exchange. What about you? Let's start the conversation with that question!

This is a an area for sharing articles, books or online resources relevant to online interviews or interview research generally.

This is an open forum where you can post your questions.

Qualitative Online Interviews shows how and why to use the Internet for qualitative research.

This new book is available from Sage Publications in print and in CourseSmart e-book formats, or from your favorite bookseller. (For a discount when purchasing from Sage, use this code.)

The Internet is transforming higher education, one established bastion at a time. E-learning allows students anywhere to access classes and interact with professors and peers. Now the Internet is transforming research, and similarly, re-shaping the universe of scholarship. With the advent of pervasive, mobile online communications researchers can interview participants from across the globe to create knowledge that we need to understand our changing world. 

Qualitative Online Interviews offers a thorough foundation in both theoretical and practical aspects of qualitative research online. It is organized using the E-Interview Research Framework (Salmons, 2012, 2015) to provide a systematic, holistic process for exploring each stage of the design and conduct of research.

Learn more and see a table of contents on the Sage site!

In an effort to encourage faculty to include online interview methods in their classes, I've created several course outlines:

• Online Interviews Design and Practice. Many students enter the thesis or dissertation stage with little hands-on research experience. In this course, students practice the steps they are learning. Assignments center on a course project that allows students to collect data from online interviews and related observations. This course can be adapted for use by upper-level undergraduate, Masters, professional doctorate or PhD programs.  A course outline that offers hands-on experience with planning and conducting interviews is posted here: Course Outline- Online Interviews Design and Practice.
  
  
• Qualitative Inquiry and Online Interviews. This course explores online interview methods into the context of qualitative research methodologies.  This course focuses on review, critique and analysis of published qualitative research articles. This course can be adapted for use by upper-level Masters, professional doctorate or PhD programs. The course outline focused on qualitative interviews in the context of qualitative methodologies is posted here: Course Outline- Qualitative Inquiry and Online Interviews.
  
  
• Online Interviews and Case Analysis. The focus of this course is on analysis of published cases of online interview research that utilizes various methodologies, methods and technologies. This course uses both Qualitative Online Interviews and Cases in Online Interview Research as texts. This course can be adapted for use by upper-level Masters, professional doctorate or PhD programs. A syllabus for a course that uses case analysis to interrogate online interview research is posted here: Online Interviews and Case Analysis Syllabus.

What do you think? What other kinds of courses or learning activities do you think will help today's students preoare to conduct digital research?