Education Resource Center: Tips for Collecting High-Quality Qualitative Data

1. Tips for Collecting
High-Quality
Qualitative Data
With
Dr. Rachel Carmen Ceasar, Assistant Professor of Clinical
Population & Public Health Sciences, KSOM Population & Public
Health Sciences, University of Southern California
Dr. Katherine Guevara, Associate Director of Clinical & Translational
Research Education Programs, SC CTSI Workforce Development
at the University of Southern California

2. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
10 tips to better interview
Cheat sheet
1. No hypothetical questions.
2. No close-ended questions.
3. No leading questions.
4. Be polite.
5. Be quiet.
6. It’s not about you.
7. Avoid validation.
8. Keep it conversational.
9. Using silence.
10. Avoid intervention or dictating what’s normal.
Finding meaning in patterns
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3. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#1: No hypothetical questions
Better interviews
• Avoid hypothetical or scenario questions
• Plant questions in actual situations, local
• Situate questions grounded in little details
they’ve already thrown out
• Example:
• XX Would you use this service in the
future? XX
• What’s missing from this service?
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4. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#2: No close-ended questions
Better interviews
• Avoid yes/no questions—it’s not a survey
• Example:
• Rachel: You like the vibe of this church for vaccination?
• Nina: Yeah, I like the vibe of this church.
• XX Do you like this EMR feature? XX
• How has this EMR feature helped you in your work?
• XX Do you use cannabis a lot? XX
• When did you last use cannabis?
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5. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#3: No leading questions
Better interviews
• Let participants paint the picture for you
in their own words—don’t fill it in for
them
• Example:
• XX Do you get testing every month?
If not, why not? XX
• How often do you go to the doctor /
clinic?
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6. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#4: Be polite
Better interviews
• Avoid using “you guys” to refer to women and other
colloquiums (“Oh that sucks”)
• Start with titles (Dr., Mrs. X) and let them direct you on how
they want to be called
• Don’t test them or prove them wrong—you’re not trying to
uncover THE TRUTH
• Example:
• XX That’s funny because in an earlier interview, someone
said that that hospital is closed now? XX
• XX So they just took your opioids for no reason at all? XX
• Rachel: The stat I heard was that more women are
misdiagnosed for bladder cancer, is that true?
Cecilia: I don’t know that stat.
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7. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#5: Be quiet.
Better interviews
• Avoid “hmmms” and responding every
time participant responds
• Show you’re listening with non-verbal
clues
• Imagine trying to get nice clean chunks
of conversation + short line of question /
clarification coming from you
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8. 45

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10. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#6: It’s not about you
Better interviews
• “Listening session”
• Example:
Brent: Back in September of last year, I had a problem
with my heart where it was beating too fast. I don’t
know if you know what an ablation is.
Rachel: I do b/c my dad, yeah.
Brent: So they had to —
Rachel: —My dad had to have open heart surgery, and
I remember—-
Brent: —have one of those because…
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11. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#7: Avoid validation.
Better interviews
• Don’t validate or give +/- of you feel
about their answer
• Example:
Rachel: Why do you prefer that clinic
over the DTLA one?
Carmen: Convenience.
Rachel: That’s cool.
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12. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#7: Avoid validation.
Better interviews
• Don’t push participant in a direction of how you want
them to respond (eg, what’s good / cool)
• ‘We’ve never heard that before’
• ‘That’s really great”
• Example:
Rachel: Where do you frequently purchase vaping
products?
Carmen: There’s a corner shop where I live—they let
me hang out and bring my dog so.
Rachel: Awesome, I love that.
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13. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#7: Avoid validation.
Better interviews
• Don’t need to give feedback
• Example:
Samuel: I kinda just wanted to smoke
my weed at that party, and others were
doing it too so I did.
Rachel: It’s normal. So have you ever
introduced anyone to smoking?
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14. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#8: Keep it conversational.
Better interviews
• Not trying to get to all your questions or get
to next question—it’s not a survey.
• Example:
Cecilia: I mean I’m aware of the health risk
involved with vaping because last week—
Rachel: —Ok. So some people vape b/c it’s
really hard to stop smoking cigarettes.
Would you say that sentence resonates
with you?
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15. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#8: Keep it conversational.
Better interviews
• Example:
Rachel: So the first time you smoked cannabis, what did you use?
Samuel: Yeah.
Rachel: Do you remember what you used?
Samuel: No I don’t.
Rachel: Okay. Do you remember liking it?
Samuel: Yeah.
Rachel: Did it have mostly THC in it? B/c sometimes people mix CBD…
Samuel: No, I’m not sure.
Rachel: Okay. Do you remember liking the physical feeling of the THC effects
from it?
Samuel: No.
Rachel: Okay. You just liked the CBD part.
Samuel: Uh huh.
Rachel: Ok.
Samuel: Yeah.
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16. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#8: Keep it conversational.
Better interviews
• The order of the interview guide is just a suggestion
• Memorize the interview guide and have second
interviewer ask follow up questions from guide and
their listening
• Example:
Anita: Before it was like okay, there’s just a joint
and a bong but now there’s pens, and devices, and
all kinds of names for them it’s so funny.
Rachel: Ok, ok we are actually about to get into
those questions right now. So—what’s in your
joint?
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17. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#9: Using silence
Better interviews
• When in doubt what to do with yourself,
take a pause
• Body language
• Breaks and breaths
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18. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#10: Avoid intervention or dictating what’s normal
Better interviews
• Not an opportunity to give medical advice
(even if you’re a medical professional!) or life
advice
• Example:
Anita: I used to run cross country but since
the accident, I’m so reliant on my pain meds
to just do basic walking. Then I gained all this
weight from not being able to get around. I
know these pills are killing me I know it.
Rachel: Well we don’t know that yet.
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19. A recording and modified version of this presentation will be available to you for personal reference afterwards.
#10: Avoid intervention or dictating what’s normal
Better interviews
• Listening vs. reacting
• Don’t wait to get to sensitive question to say it’s sensitive
• Emotions in interviewing?
• Example:
Anita: We’ll sometimes get together my dad and I and smoke and drink
together, like on the weekends.
Rachel: Ok.
Anita: We’ll like smoke some cannabis, nothing crazy.
Rachel: Right so you guys will have a few beers and eat dinner type thing?
Anita: Sort of…
Rachel: Sort of?
Anita: He doesn’t eat dinner.
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20. Request a Consult - BERD
https://sc-ctsi.org/resources/qualitative-
research-consultation

21. Request a Consult - ERC
https://sc-ctsi.org/resources/education-resource-center

22. Thank You!
SC CTSI | www.sc-ctsi.org Phone: (323) 442-4032 Email: info@sc-ctsi.org Twitter: @SoCalCTSI
Cite us: This work was supported by grants UL1TR001855 and UL1TR000130 from the National Center for Advancing
Translational Science (NCATS) of the U.S. National Institutes of Health. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors
and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
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