Handbook of Interview Research
Context and Method
- Jaber F. Gubrium - University of Missouri, USA
- James A. Holstein - Marquette University, USA
The Handbook offers a comprehensive examination of the interview at the cutting edge of information technology. Drawing upon leading experts from a wide range of professional disciplines, this book addresses conceptual and technical challenges that confront both academic researchers and interviewers with more applied goals. From interview theory to the nuts-and-bolts of the interview process, the coverage is impressively broad and authoritative.
The Handbook of Interview Research is both encyclopedic and thematic. As an encyclopedia, it provides extensive discussions of the methodological issues now surrounding interview practice, offering a multi-faceted assessment of what has become the method of choice for obtaining personal information in today's society. But the Handbook also is a story, which spins a particular tale of interviewing, one that moves from the commonly recognized individual interview to what is called `the interview society'. The gist of the presentation is that we can no longer regard the interview as simply an instrument for gathering data, but must now also view it an integral part of society.
"A shrewd and sensitive overview . . . The book is a really useful and innovative approach to the quite large issue of what interviewing is and where it can be used as well as the cautions that need to be considered when interviewing in various settings. The selections offer a shrewd and sensitive overview to the problem of placing the interviewer in the setting and allowing for the interaction between the informant and the interviewer as part of the analysis. I think the book would be EXCELLENT for graduate classes."
"A sourcebook that any researcher should have in her/his reference library. The chapters cover virtually every conceivable interviewing situation as well as discuss larger ‘meta-issues’ that face the survey researcher. The volume also tells a story: The editors have created a volume that tries to link each chapter by threading a theme through each chapter. That theme is the argument that interview situations are social situations and should be viewed as such. This is an important way to contextualize what would otherwise be merely guidelines for technique and methodological points."
"The editors’ vision and effort makes HANDBOOK OF INTERVIEW RESEARCH: CONTEXT AND METHOD a volume of exceptional breadth and depth. To the editors’ credit, the volume addresses the interview as both a tool and topic of social analysis."
The Handbook is a stunning accomplishment. Congratulations to Gubrium and Holstein, to their contributors, and to the visionaries at Sage! With this work you have totally transformed the field of qualitative inquiry.
". . .serving students who are preparing for a degree or training in a field in which interviewing is an important skill, this is an instrumental addition."
"The Handbook of Interview Research offers a comprehensive examination of the interview at the cutting edge of information technology in the context of a challenging postmodern environment. Encyclopedic in its breadth, the book provides extensive discussions of the conceptual and methodological issues surrounding interview practice"
