Description
Book SynopsisInterviews are a frequent and important part of empirical research in political science, but graduate programs rarely offer discipline-specific training in selecting interviewees, conducting interviews, and using the data thus collected. Interview Research in Political Science addresses this vital need, offering hard-won advice for both graduate students and faculty members. The contributors to this book have worked in a variety of field locations and settings and have interviewed a wide array of informants, from government officials to members of rebel movements and victims of wartime violence, from lobbyists and corporate executives to workers and trade unionists.
The authors encourage scholars from all subfields of political science to use interviews in their research, and they provide a set of lessons and tools for doing so. The book addresses how to construct a sample of interviewees; how to collect and report interview data; and how to address ethical consi
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Apart from its value for filling a gap in the literature, this book has one additional merit: it reflects the epistemological diversity within the discipline, facilitating a dialogue between the positivist and interpretivist scholars. Overall, the book is a valuable source for understanding the key challenges behind interview-based research—such as ethics, sampling, validity, and reliability—and also contains practical advice for coping with interviews in the different stages of research.
-- Israel Solorio Sandoval * Political Studies Review *
Table of ContentsIntroduction. "Just Talk to People"? Interviews in Contemporary Political Science
by Layna MosleyPart I. General Considerations: Research Design, Ethics, and the Role of the Researcher1. Aligning Sampling Strategies with Analytic Goals
by Julia Lynch2. The Ethical Treatment of Human Subjects and the Institutional Review Board Process
by Sarah M. Brooks3. The Power of the Interviewer
by Lauren M. MacLean4. How to Report Interview Data
by Erik Bleich and Robert PekkanenPart II. Addressing the Challenges of Interview Research5. Crafting Interviews to Capture Cause and Effect
by Cathie Jo Martin6. Using Proxy Interviewing to Address Sensitive Topics
by Melani Cammett7. Working with Interpreters
by Lee Ann Fujii8. The Problem of Extraterritorial Legality
by William RenoPart III. Putting It All Together: The Varied Uses of Interview Data9. Capturing Meaning and Confronting Measurement
by Mary Gallagher10. Elite Interviewing in Washington, D.C.
by Matthew N. Beckmann and Richard L. Hall11. Lessons from the "Lobbying and Policy Change" Project
by Beth L. Leech, Frank R. Baumgartner, Jeffrey M. Berry, Marie Hojnacki, and David C. Kimball12. Using Interviews to Understand Racial Group Identity and Political Behavior
by Reuel R. RogersAppendix: Sample Materials for Interview ResearchNotes
References
Index
