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Quantitative conversations: the importance of developing rapport in standardised interviewing

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  • Karen Bell
  • Eldin Fahmy
  • David Gordon

Abstract

When developing household surveys, much emphasis is understandably placed on developing survey instruments that can elicit accurate and comparable responses. In order to ensure that carefully crafted questions are not undermined by ‘interviewer effects’, standardised interviewing tends to be utilised in preference to conversational techniques. However, by drawing on a behaviour coding analysis of survey paradata arising from the 2012 UK Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey we show that in practice standardised survey interviewing often involves extensive unscripted conversation between the interviewer and the respondent. Whilst these interactions can enhance response accuracy, cooperation and ethicality, unscripted conversations can also be problematic in terms of survey reliability and the ethical conduct of survey interviews, as well as raising more basic epistemological questions concerning the degree of standardisation typically assumed within survey research. We conclude that better training in conversational techniques is necessary, even when applying standardised interviewing methodologies. We also draw out some theoretical implications regarding the usefulness of the qualitative–quantitative dichotomy. Copyright The Author(s) 2016

Suggested Citation

  • Karen Bell & Eldin Fahmy & David Gordon, 2016. "Quantitative conversations: the importance of developing rapport in standardised interviewing," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 50(1), pages 193-212, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:qualqt:v:50:y:2016:i:1:p:193-212
    DOI: 10.1007/s11135-014-0144-2
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Gabriele Durrant & Frauke Kreuter, 2013. "Editorial: The use of paradata in social survey research," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 176(1), pages 1-3, January.
    2. Lynn, Peter & Sala, Emanuela & Noah Uhrig, S.C., 2008. "The development and implementation of a coding scheme to analyse interview dynamics in the British Household Panel Survey," ISER Working Paper Series 2008-19, Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    3. Anthony Onwuegbuzie & Nancy Leech, 2005. "Taking the “Q” Out of Research: Teaching Research Methodology Courses Without the Divide Between Quantitative and Qualitative Paradigms," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 39(3), pages 267-295, June.
    4. Gremler, Dwayne D. & Gwinner, Kevin P., 2008. "Rapport-Building Behaviors Used by Retail Employees," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 84(3), pages 308-324.
    5. Joanna Sale & Lynne Lohfeld & Kevin Brazil, 2002. "Revisiting the Quantitative-Qualitative Debate: Implications for Mixed-Methods Research," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 36(1), pages 43-53, February.
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    Cited by:

    1. Chinaza Uleanya & Ke Yu, 2023. "Data Collection in Times of Pandemic: A Self-Study and Revisit of Research Practices During a Crisis," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(1), pages 21582440231, March.
    2. Mary Kung’u & Rhoda Kabuti & Hellen Babu & on behalf of The Maisha Fiti Study Champions & Chrispo Nyamweya & Monica Okumu & Anne Mahero & Zaina Jama & Polly Ngurukiri & Emily Nyariki & Mamtuti Panneh , 2023. "Conducting Violence and Mental Health Research with Female Sex Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Ethical Considerations, Challenges, and Lessons Learned from the Maisha Fiti Study in Nairobi, Keny," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(11), pages 1-12, May.
    3. Rosalind Edwards & Ann Phoenix & David Gordon & Karen Bell & Heather Elliott & Eldin Fahmy, 2017. "How paradata can illuminate technical, social and professional role changes between the Poverty in the UK (1967/1968) and Poverty and Social Exclusion in the UK (2012) surveys," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 51(6), pages 2457-2473, November.
    4. Melany Horsfall & Merijn Eikelenboom & Stasja Draisma & Johannes H. Smit, 2021. "The Effect of Rapport on Data Quality in Face-to-Face Interviews: Beneficial or Detrimental?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(20), pages 1-10, October.
    5. Merijn Eikelenboom & Melany Horsfall & Stasja Draisma & Jan H Smit, 2023. "Investigating people’s lifetime history of suicide attempts: a roadmap for studying interviewer-related error," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 57(4), pages 3183-3197, August.

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