Pros and Cons of an E-mail Interview
An e-mail interview provides another way to conduct interviews, but it comes with some advantages and disadvantages (Hunt & McHale, 2007). It eliminates the costs of traveling, recording equipment, and transcription. E-mail interviews allow researchers and participants to review questions and responses and allow interviewees to reveal in-depth details about questions. Researchers can conduct multiple interviews simultaneously, create a rapport, and help to overcome the interviewer effect.
Conversely, e-mail interviews may lack representative samples, which could lead to bias and interviewing wrong participants. It may cause information overload, consume much time and raise ethical questions, impersonality, and eliminate nonverbal cues.
The Guidelines for an E-mail Interview
The study design should aim for wider, more detailed responses, the number of questions indicated, and possible subsidiary questions noted. Use the triangulation method to overcome participants’ issues.
Create a rapport with interviewees before the study through informal questions. Conduct sampling using either traditional or Web-based methods carefully to limit ethical issues. Restrict simultaneous interviews to avoid information overload. Keep time limits to restrict drifting, extended interview periods. Use closure to seek more information or ask how to improve interviews in the future. Apply analysis techniques that accommodate lack of space and vocalization in data. Always provide feedback to participants.
Reference
Hunt, N., & McHale, S. (2007). A practical guide to the e-Mail interview. Qualitative Health Research, 17(10), 1415-1421. Web.