Introduction
Interviews are always very important when gathering information about a certain topic from an individual. Various individuals in different fields use interviews to gather relevant data in their fields. A researcher would use interviews to get information from people holding information. Police officers use interviews to gather evidence that would allow them prosecute a suspect. An attorney would use the same in order to defend his or her client or implicate a suspect. An employer needs the same to determine the effectiveness and suitability of an employee.
In any interview, both verbal and non-verbal cues are very important. As Robson (2002) notes, at times, non-verbal cues may be more revealing than verbal cues. This scholar asserts that police officers and the attorneys rely more on non-verbal cue as opposed to verbal expressions to acquire relevant information from an individual. Non-verbal signal include facial expressions or any other body movements that would relate to the topic at hand. For an interviewer, it is very important to note all non-verbal signals from the interviewee, as this would help in ensuring that more information is gathered in this process.
The Interview
As part of the course work, the researcher conducted an interview on the topic ‘stressor’. The researcher identified a hairdresser who happened to be a neighbor. Because of cordial relationship that had existed between the researcher and the interviewee, she obliged to the request of being interviewed. The researcher assured her that the research was purely academic and that any information that would be retrieved from the process would be treated as confidential meaning that the student and the concerned lecturer could only share it.
The client was an eighteen-year-old woman who was then taking care of her aging mother. Her nine-year-old child had passed some years after suffering from juvenile diabetes. Her husband abandoned her soon after the death of their son, claiming that it was because of her irresponsibility that the child perished. This was very devastating to her. The fact that she had lost her child brought her many sorrows. The departure of the husband and the reason he gave for the departure was heartbreaking. Although this had taken some time now, memories of the ordeal was still very clear in her mind. Upon this realization, the researcher developed some means through which the required data could be collected, with high level of accuracy and free from emotions.
The Interview Process
During the process of the interview, the researcher was able to gather a lot of information from the interviewee through verbal and non-verbal cues. When asked about the main stressor in her entire life, the soft smile in her face disappeared. Her face darkened and she looked very disturbed. Because the interviewer had known her before, the person in front of him was completely different. She turned pale and her breath became deep. This reaction was enough to inform the researcher of the effect the incident had in her life. When she turned to talk, she was weak in voice and there was a small tremor in her voice.
To ensure that the interview proceeds without interruptions caused by emotions, the researcher consoled the interviewee, informing her that her case was very normal. This was important for the report, as it would ensure that the information gathered was free from bias caused by emotions. According to Rubin and Rubin (2005), a good interview should be free from any form of emotion. These scholars further assert that emotions would lead to bias in the report because it reduces one’s ability to reason rationally. The researcher therefore ensured that the interviewee took time to recover from the sudden pain caused by the memories of the past.
The verbal cues were closely related to the non-verbal cues. Her story was sad. After the struggle with the illness of the child, she lost the battle when the child passed on. The only consolation would have come from the husband whom they shared the same level of grief. However, the husband accused her of negligence and went ahead to divorce her. She had a lot of difficulty in expressing herself. She would stop for a while, wipe her teas and have a distant empty look through the open window. She was unsettled and her face expressed a lot of loneliness.
She would fidget her fingers, as though nervous and turn strong again. She was more determined to share her story with the researcher. This would mostly be in the occasion when she was explaining how she managed to come out of this ordeal and how she has managed to make her life successful since then. However, this would change immediately she had to bring in the death of the son and the departure of the husband. Strength would ooze from her. Her frail body would need some support and the nostalgia would be so evident in her face.
Congruency of the Verbal and the Non-verbal Cues
The verbal and non-verbal cues had a lot of congruency. The interviewee welcomed the request of the researcher to interview her with a lot of enthusiasm. This was witnessed both in words and in body language. However, when the interview started about her life’s major stressor, she became weak and sorrows engulfed the smile that was so broad in her face before. The interviewee started by narrating her story.
Verbal and Nonverbal Patterns
The researcher was keen on his verbal and non-verbal patterns. When the interview started, the researcher explained the purpose of the research. During the interview, the researcher maintained a jolly mood, always encouraging the interviewee when she broke down during her narration. The researcher, having realized the magnitude of this stressor to the interviewee, maintained an emphatic tone by trying to convince the interviewee that all she went through was just a passing wind that would soon end. This helped a lot in this interview. It helped the interviewee to sober up, gain courage and to continue with her narration completely.
Questioning Method
The researcher maintained ethics and professionalism while conducting the interview. Although used in occasions that were unavoidable, the researcher avoided the use of structured questions in the interview. This was to ensure that the interviewee could have the freedom to wander when providing the answer. This was important as it enabled the researcher to gather more information about the topic. The following are some of the questions that were used in this research:
- What is your main stressor in life?
- Are you married?
- How do you cope with it?
As can be seen, the first structured question could not be avoided. However, most of the questions were unstructured.
Skills Used To Demonstrate Empathy in the Interview
The topic of research raised many emotions. The interviewee could not withstand the grief with which the memories of her past brought. It was therefore necessary to offer her consolation in order to ensure that the process is successful. The researcher was empathetic towards the interviewee. He informed her of others who had undergone the similar experience or even worse but came out stronger than before. The interviewee received this with positivity, a fact that enabled the researcher to gather all needed information from her.
Strengths in the Interview
The researcher was able to identify several strengths from the interviewee. The researcher was able to maintain a keen observation of the non-verbal cues of the interviewee. In many occasions, she would recollect herself and continue with the discussion as though all were well. This ability was very core in this process. She would betray emotions and narrate her story with a smile on her face.
Recommendations
Although the interview was successful, the researcher would consider applying a different approach when it was to be conducted afresh. The researcher would consider facilitating more communication. Just before the interview begins, the researcher would consider engaging the interviewee in general a discussion about life. This would enable the researcher understand the general attitude of the interviewee as regards to life. The researcher would then know the best approach to apply when the interview begins. The researcher would also avoid empathetic failures. This would be done by ensuring that the words used in consoling the interviewee are genuine and practical. Moreover, the researcher recommends that it is very important to build the interviewee’s strength once it is identified.
References
Robson, C. (2002). Real world research: A resource for social scientists and practitioner-researchers (2nd ed.). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
Rubin, H. J., & Rubin, I. S. (2005). Qualitative interviewing: The art of hearing data (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.