Two-Person Interviews

 

"Susan continually impressed me with her ability to create and transform evaluation tools so they generated effective, valuable information and gave feedback on the true impact of the program. And because she asked that I be equally involved in this process, I feel empowered. I learned a tremendous amount about program evaluation and I feel that, down the road, I will be able to confidently reflect upon what is still working and what’s not. She’s incredible at this work and I highly recommend her. Evaluation has never been so enlightening!" --Amarylis F. Morrow, Program Director, Partnerships for Student Achievement

 Defined 

The two-person interview is a modified focus group that occurs between two participants and one interviewer. It's designer, Dr. David Morgan (Portland State University), considers it a hybrid between a focus group and an interview. Recruiting pairs of individuals for several two-person interviews can be a great alternative to recruiting one larger group when circumstances prohibit several individuals from coming together at the same time in the same place. It is also an ideal strategy when the individuals you want to interview have the ability to engage in an interesting and intelligent self-directed conversation. 

 

Approach 

Participants are chosen for the two-person based on their genuine interest in talking about and comparing notes with someone else who has a similar experience--something Dr. Morgan refers to as "sharing and comparing."  The interviewer poses the question(s) and allows the two individuals to converse as though they were having a conversation just between the two of them, absent the interviewer. Only when the interviewees have exhausted the topic or gone off topic does the interviewer intervene. An interview almost always generates more depth and contextual understanding than a focus group. The two-person interview shares that advantage. 

 

Use

The two-person interview is particularly useful for eliciting information from individuals who have deep knowledge of a topic or a rich, extended experience with a certain circumstance. These individuals are eager to speak with one another about their similar experience or knowledge base. Because they share a common situation, each is captivated by the differences and similarities between themselves and the other. The two-person interview is particularly well-suited for individuals with a high level of training like physicians, who often feel more comfortable talking to and listening to someone like themselves. It can also be used with students who have a similar background, academic major, or class standing or with human service providers whose clients and client needs are very similar.

 

An Example

Here is an example of a study I conducted using two-person interviews. See more examples of interview work I've done.

Implementation of Electronic Medical Records (EMR)

Solo practitioners who were engaged in the installation of electronic medical records systems (EMRs) in their practices participated in two-person interviews as part of a larger evaluation study. The evaluation was designed to capture the physicians’ perspectives on the challenges and merits of installing the technology in their practices. Specifically, physicians assessed the impact of the new technology on efficiency, workflow, productivity, quality of care, and patient relations. I chose the two-person interview methodology for three reasons: 1) to allow physicians to share their perceptions with other doctors like themselves; 2) to increase comfort level and disclosure regarding potentially sensitive topics; and 3) to support the learning community model on which the EMR implementation project was designed. All interviews were conducted by phone, recorded, and transcribed.