Preparing for the interview

Purea Nei (Waiata Whakangahau)Purea nei e te hauHorohia e te uaWhiti whitia, e te ra

Mahea ake nga poraruraru Makere ana nga here E rere wairua eKi nga ao, o te rangiWhiti whitia e te ra Mahea ake nga poraruraruMakere ana nga here

Cleansed by the windsWashed by the rainsShining, shining forth from the sun Clearing away all your troublesReleasing you from your bonds Fly oh spirit flyTo the world, of the skyWhere life springs forth from the sun Clearing away all your troublesReleasing you from your bonds

McLaren Park/Henderson South. Bounded by twin streams (Oratia and Opunuku), Gt North Rd, Parrs Cross Ave, Pine St, Henderson Valley Rd extension. It has an extensive industrial area, Henderson shops, a secondary school and two primary schools, great cycleways and parks, and a Community Development Hub.

Area of focus – Henderson South, west of the industrial area. Bounded by Henderson Valley Rd, Misty Valley Rd, the Oratia stream and Garelja St.

Literature reviewThe McLaren Park/Henderson South community is around 7,000 in number with high levels of Maori and Pacific Islanders. Many of its members are not doing so well as much of the area has a New Zealand Deprivation Index rating of 9 (2002) so there are a number of people living in the area who experience issues and stress in relation to not having enough money to adequately live on; housing affordability; feeling valued, degree of connection to their community and how safe they feel; youth transitioning to adulthood and access to facilities,

services and activities that support health and wellbeing.

Recent research – the Amplify project (2011) – 2006 Census data

• High-deprivation, low-socioeconomic area. • 30% single-parent households vs 19% for the

Auckland region. • 33% aged 15 and over have no formal

qualification vs 20% (Auckland region). • Students more likely to be stood down from

school • Henderson Massey has the highest number of

children aged between 5-14 of any local board area in Auckland. This number is projected to grow substantially over the next decade.

MPHS in comparison to surrounding suburbs and Auckland generally - 2013 Census data

•Incomes are low and falling further behind•Rents are just as high as in Auckland , increasing much faster than wages, and more properties are turning into rentals. •Families are larger, households more overcrowded.•Solo parents and people on sickness and invalid's benefits are high and growing. •More young people and fewer older people. •A community dominated by cars despite good access to buses and trains. •Car ownership is growing rapidly and is at the same level as Auckland generally.

MPHS in comparison to surrounding suburbs and Auckland generally - 2013 Census data

•People with qualifications are growing quite rapidly, and levels of study and use of student allowances are high •The proportion of wage-earners in the population is as high as in Auckland regionally and more and more MPHS adults are becoming professionals, technicians, community and service workers or working in cultural or arts related jobs. •MPHS residents do as much volunteer work in their community as do residents of much more affluent communities, but have greater responsibilities looking after children and those who are unwell or disabled.

Cool spaces and Dumb spaces

23 play rugby or rugby league; 33%14 play netball; 20%9 play soccer; 13%6 do martial arts; 9%5 participate in swimming 7%5 play hockey; 7%4 play basketball; 6%

10 participate in other sports 14%

6 belong to a youth service groups 9%

10 learn a music or dance group 14%

What do the kids do? 69 respondents

Preferred after-school

activities – ranked on level of “fun” (n=69)

How young people

want to be treated by

adults (n=69)

Family activities parents suggested

• Debating (children vs. parents)• Charades• A water-fight• Bullrush• Performance evening• Cricket• Dodge-ball• Quiz night (e.g. are you smarter than a 12 yearold, kids vs. parents tables).

Major parent concern - Safety

• Physical, educational (e.g. not putting their education at risk), and emotional safety was an important consideration for both young people and their parents.

• Parents are unlikely to allow their children to participate in activities if they do not believe that the activity is safe, or if they do not have enough information with which to make this decision.

What would I like to change about living in MPHS?

Continuing from lecture 5

Grounded theory process - background information

- from interviews, observations

- finding themes/concepts

- generating theories/propositions

Axial coding = - axial codinggrouping the themesinto larger overview thematic ideas.

NO’s?• No pre-research literature review. Literature of the

area under study gives preconceptions about what to find and the researcher gets desensitized by borrowed concepts. The literature should instead be read in the sorting ideas stage, being treated as more data (ideas) to code and compare with what has already been coded and generated.

• No taping. Taping is counterproductive and a waste of time - the researcher delimits her data by field-noting interviews and soon after generates concepts that fit with data, are relevant and work in explaining what participants are doing to resolve their main concern.

• No talk. Talking about the theory before it is written up can either render praise or criticism, and both diminish the motivational drive to write memos that develop and refine the concepts and the theory

Building Community resilience through community project groups

• What would be some things that you would like to change about where you live? What are these things about, what’s behind each of these thoughts

• In pairs, take notes, swap • Bring in a 2nd pair. Identify themes (codes,

propositions, assumptions, key ideas – e.g. It could be about the location, access to places, the neighbours, the family, the building, the grounds, the atmosphere, the weekend, traffic – memoing)

• In groups, discuss themes, can you cluster (sort) them? (e.g. flowers and trees on the street, no grafitti, speed bumps, get rid of the rubbish – all under a general concept or theory of what makes better, safer streets)

Axial Coding - 2nd level coding

Element Description• Phenomenon The name of the theme - the

concept/theory that holds the bits together - e.g. better, safer streets

• Causal conditions the events or variables that lead to the occurrence or development of the phenomenon – e.g. Slow traffic, flowers and vegetables growing on the verge

Axial Coding - 2nd level coding• Context linked with causal conditions. Context

includes (these can be positive and negative)– Intervening conditions : Other variables and events

that influence the phenomena – e.g. having a tinny house on the street, having street BBQs, solo parents

– Action strategies: The purposeful, goal-oriented activities that participants perform in response to the phenomenon and intervening conditions – e.g. talk to neighbours, share resources, build a big fence .

– Consequences: These are the consequences of the action strategies, intended and unintended - e.g. organise , paint a mural, go further into your shell

Data comparison

process – constant

comparison

Other key concepts• Saturation In collecting and interpreting data,

eventually extra interviews add nothing to what you already know about a category, its properties, and its relationship to the core category. Saturation is reached – cease collecting about that category – i.e. all the new interviews tell familiar stories about bullying, no new themes)

• Theoretical sampling - deciding whom to interview (different cultures, ages, gender, wealth, education) or what to observe next according to the state of theory generation. This can happen from the first interview

• Checking context - the need to compare between phenomena and contexts to make the theory strong (e.g. understanding the different contexts that produce and reduce troublesome youth).

Validity – being well-grounded or justifiable; at once relevant and meaningful

• Fit - how closely concepts fit with the incidents they are representing, and this is related to how thoroughly the constant comparison of incidents to concepts was done.

• Relevance. the "grab" that captures our attention – seeming to match real concern of participants,

• Workability. The theory works when it explains how the issues are understood and managed within a variety of contexts.

• Modifiability. Theory can be altered when new relevant data is compared to existing data. Grounded theory is never right or wrong, it just has more or less fit, relevance, workability and modifiability.

Criteria for judging emerging theory• It should fit the phenomenon, provided it has

been carefully derived from diverse data and is adherent to the common reality of the area;

• It should provide understanding, and be understandable;

• Because the data is comprehensive, it should provide generality, in that the theory includes extensive variation and is abstract enough to be applicable to a wide variety of contexts; and

• It should provide control, in the sense of stating the conditions under which the theory applies and describing a reasonable basis for action.

Grounded Theory - strengths

• Research is free from the bias of literature – mainly reflecting western ideologies

• Theory emerges from the data – data is not made to fit the theory

• The method is able to respond to emerging ideas

• Gets detailed information but is efficient• Provides a strong information base for

surveys

Grounded theory - weakness

• Difficult to define saturation – the point where no new ideas are emerging

• Difficult to generalise from as the questions have changed across the process

• Lack of transcript use means that interviews are filtered by the researcher’s ideas of what’s emerging

• Harder to manage ethically

Creating Interview Questions -1• Begin with descriptive questions. Not asking for

evaluations (though you may get them). You are after a rich description of experience.

What was it like when you first came to MPHS? Or, if very recently, what were your first impressions of MPHS? Prompts: when was that, impressions before you came, neighbours, street atmosphere, making friends, children (their making friends, new school, where would they play?), pets, parks, shops, transport, work, sport, church, marae, community events, community organisations, the MPHS community development centre, clubs, ………

Creating Interview Questions -1In this model of a semi-structured interview we want the participant to explore the issue from their own direction and thus start with a simple open ended question that could go in several directions. The prompts are used to help the interviewer develop a rich idea of the possibilities of the interview and sensitise them to the moments when the participant is heading in the direction of an issue explored by a prompt. Prompts should be used delicately, so as not to interrupt the narrative. Prompts are important questions and so if they aren’t covered during a narrative sequence they can be asked at the end

Creating Interview Questions -2Descriptive with simple evaluations (likes and dislikes, and what is behind these): What's changed since you first arrived? Prompts: potentially all of the above list, but focussing on the good and not so good highlights - what's got better or worse? What are your favourite things about MPHS (sights, sounds, smells, tastes, time of the year), what do you do for fun and relaxation (you personally or with a partner or friends, your children, as a whānau/family, spiritual practice)? what are the things that get you down a bit about MPHS (people, children, schools, places, work, lack of resources, services).

Creating Interview Questions -3Then get to major evaluations, after the experiential groundwork has been done.Overall what’s it like to live in MPHS? Prompts: generally, in comparison to other communities, will you stay on, do you want your kids to stay on? Next are solutions/resolutions to the major issues that have arisen; finish on a hopeful note.What can be done to fix some of the problems of living in MPHS? Prompts: national government, city council, community organisations, businesses, individuals. What could you contribute to change MPHS – what skills/resources do you have?

Creating Interview Questions -4

• Confirming questions. In focus groups key hypotheses can be checked with simple and direct questions.

• Demographic questions. What contexts influence the answers to the questions? Age, gender, culture, spiritual orientation, education, occupation and income?

Creating the questionsThis interview is about understanding what people’s connection

to their neighbourhoods, how they want to be engaged with their neighbourhood and what they would like change.

It’s not just about the small things that could change it’s about what people really yearn for and how parts of that yearning could be addressed if we could work together.

It’s about finding out what stopping us/our neighbourhood from doing things that would make our neighbourhood a safer, richer, more vibrant place to live.

What’s the contribution they feel that they could make to creating a better neighbourhood? What would they expect from others/ from community organisations/ from councils?

What would make getting involved in community a fun thing to do?

Drafting the Interview Questions

• As a class: develop questions and prompts about the what you would like to change about experience of living and/or working in MPHS using the Davidson’s descriptive, evaluation, solution, demographics model.

• Start with one open ended descriptive question and some prompts that might go with it.

PreparingFind a research partner and do your background

research on MPHS Study the interview guide, make sure that you

understand each part of it, practice the interview with your partner

Work out what your interview strategy is going to be, how the work is going be shared.

Make sure you have a tape recorder and note paper for your interview.

Setting Up the InterviewContact the participant and organise the interview

time and place. You’ll need about 1½ hours to meet

If the interview is happening at Unitec or a quiet coffee bar, offer a cup of tea or coffee and have water available. If you are going to their home, bring a packet of biscuits.

Do your greetings and chat briefly about something or a person that connects you, or just talk about the weather, life in general, etc. Get settled.

Use an Information SheetMake sure the participant has a chance to read

Information Sheet and signs a Consent FormGo over what is expected (in detail if you haven’t had a

previous face-to-face conversation) Explain the purpose of the interview and clarify any

doubtsAddress issues of confidentiality, risk and withdrawal.Explain the format of the interview, how long it takes (45

– 60 mins), how it will be recordedExplain what feedback will be providedProvide contact information of the interviewer

Qualities of a good interviewer• Informed – they have many ideas about where the

topic might go• Prepared – they are clear about what they

investigating, and have clear and accessible questions. • Engaged – they are deeply interested in the nuances of

the participant’s discourse• Reflective – follow up on hints and paradoxes, checking

that their interpretation is correct. • Remembering – they don’t ask questions about areas

that have already come up in answers to previous questions.

• Consistent – they ensure that all areas that they needed to cover in the interview have been covered.

What to do• Ask open-ended questions • Ask questions that allow participants to describe

situations and events relevant to the topic • Ask specific, detailed questions in the participant’s

own language• Ask only one question at a time• Ask questions that imply a before, during, and after • Follow the person’s lead• Show interest with nonverbal (leaning forward,

showing concern, looking, nodding) and verbal affirmations “oh”, “mmm”, “ah”, “I see”

• Demonstrate comfort by having a relaxed disposition and posture.

What not to do • Avoid asking closed-ended questions or questions that

ask for levels of agreement, except for confirmation purposes at the end.

• Avoid asking abstract, complex or compound questions • Avoid pursuing areas of clear discomfort • Avoid interrupting the person, don’t rush into the gaps,

be silent while people are thinking• Avoid extreme reactions to any particular details• Avoid agreeing or disagreeing or giving advice• Avoid asking “why" questions early – evaluative

questions should come late in the interview • Take care about asking people about their thoughts,

feelings, or other "internal" states – often these are private or hard to access.

Clarifications and Finishing• When you receive a minimal or unclear answer to a

question seek clarification: use prompts.• If the interviewee doesn’t want to say more about a

particular question, that’s OK• TOWARDS THE END of the interview, check to see

that you have not missed any questions. Fill in any gaps.

• Debrief: When you’ve finished the questions ask them how was it for them to engage in the interview.

• Thank the participant and ask if they would like to see a copy of the transcript, explain to them that they can change things that they don’t think are accurate

Post-interview

Transcribe the taped interview, and when this is done and checked by you as accurate, erase the tape

Send a copy of the transcript to the participant, asking if there is anything that needs to be changed

Two photos (pasted as jpg files) with captions are included in the transcript. See Amplify