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Chapter contents. Elizabeth Stanley. Introduction. Interviews
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CHAPTER CONTENTS
· Introduction 322
· Interviews 322
· Interviewing Victims of State Violence 324
¡ Choosing interviews 326
¡ Doing interviews 327
¡ Reflections 332
· Summary and Review 335
· Study Questions and Activities for Students 336
· Suggestions for Further Reading 337
· References 337
GLOSSARY TERMS
storytelling structured interviews critical research reflexivity emotionality
praxis
USING INTERVIEWS AS STORYTELLING IN CRIMINOLOGICAL RESEARCH
ElIzaBeth Stanley
INTRODUCTION
Some of the most interesting and useful criminological research has interviews at its core (see, for example, Kelly, 1988; Lasslett, 2014; Scraton, 1999). The narratives in these works have changed the way many of us think about crime, harm and criminal justice. A significant part of this education has been that we connect with interviewees’ narratives on a deep, human level. Testimonies allow us to move beyond numbers, percentages or ‘facts’ to consider experiences, perspectives and understandings. For social researchers, interviews are a main route to original findings.
Interviewing also often holds appeal among fledgling researchers – after all, there is a sense of safety in just having a conversation with someone else. However, as this chapter demonstrates, doing interviews does not equate to just ‘having a chat’. Further, deciding to interview cannot be taken lightly, particularly when a researcher wishes to explore aspects of violence or harm by powerful individuals or organizations.
This chapter considers ‘doing interviews’ with victims of state violence – in this case, individuals who were harmed within state-run children’s homes in New Zealand. Following an initial overview of interviews, and the storytelling approach that I have pursued, the chapter reflects on why interviews were so necessary for this study. I then consider the sometimes turbulent process of doing interviews with vic- tims, charting the issues of access, building trust, the difficulties in speaking out and the emotional impacts of the research on all involved. Finally, the chapter reflects on the personal, social and political implications of collecting and using this interview data.
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INTERVIEWS
Interviews vary enormously – from highly structured meetings in which a researcher asks prescribed questions through to unstructured conversations that involve deeper interactions between the researcher and interviewee (Davies, 2000). Structured inter- views are easily replicable and their resultant data can be quickly compared; however, they also produce results that might be ascertained through other methods such as questionnaires. The real strength of interviews comes from unstructured or semi- structured encounters during which interviewees can speak more freely about their understandings, experiences or perspectives of the social world (Kvale, 2007).
Social research is produced through interactions. It is established through verbal exchange, but also through other elements that are often overlooked – such as vocal intonation, body language or preconceived assumptions of what should be said. There is a power dynamic in every interview situation, and both parties have the capacity to fundamentally change the research outcomes as a result (see Kvale, 2007), as outlined in Box 14. 1.
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