Paired Interview Technique

charukesi April 5th, 2005

Fast-tracking research with paired interviews

(link through elearningpost)

Why why do research agencies still cling to conventional beaten-to-death techniques - even though in many situations it is not the best or most efficient method of data collection / analysis - so much so that qualitative research (atleast in India) has become synonymous with focus groups?

I was doing some research for a large agency recently - on television viewing habits and channel preferences - and data collection was through surprise surprise - focus groups - in that situati0n, paired interviews or even family interviews made so much more sense - television viewing is strictly a family decision and the kind of compromises / interplay between family members would have made for fascinating and useful data - by the time I got involved in the project, there was no scope for any thought other than focus groups… and I feel that frustration each time I encounter focus group situations where other simpler tools would have worked better…

2 Responses to “Paired Interview Technique”

  1. # Twilight Fairyon 05 Apr 2005 at 18.30

    Hey just where are u located? I thot it was in Delhi now.. and then suddenly blr n bombay come into picture..

  2. # Charuon 05 Apr 2005 at 18.37

    :)) I live in Bombay… was visiting Delhi on work… and I used to live in Bangalore before moving to Bombay! and I keep traveling on work, so you will see local updates from lots of places :)