02A.3.4 Unstructured and semi-structured interviews Quiz: OCR Sociology, Unit 5

The 20 questions

1. Which interview type uses a flexible checklist of topics rather than strict predetermined questions?

   • Semi-structured
   • Unstructured
   • Structured
   • Group

2. What primary advantage do unstructured interviews offer researchers regarding sociological data validity?

   • Quick coding
   • High reliability
   • Easy replication
   • High validity

3. Which sociological perspective strongly favours unstructured interviews for capturing authentic lived experiences?

   • Interpretivism
   • Positivism
   • Functionalism
   • Marxism

4. What major practical issue arises when researchers try to compare data from totally unstructured interviews?

   • Hawthorne effect
   • High financial cost
   • Difficult to compare
   • Low response rate

5. Which term describes the personal rapport built between a sociologist and an interview respondent?

   • Detachment
   • Rapport
   • Objectivity
   • Triangulation

6. What risk occurs when a friendly interviewer unconsciously nods or smiles to encourage specific answers?

   • Social desirability
   • Interviewer bias
   • Attrition rate
   • Sampling bias

7. Why are unstructured interviews generally considered unsuitable by positivist sociologists?

   • Too quantitative
   • Lack of reliability
   • Official statistics
   • Strict standardisation

8. Which interview format is best suited for exploring sensitive topics like domestic abuse safely?

   • Closed survey
   • Structured schedule
   • Questionnaire
   • Semi-structured

9. Applying research methods: A study on hidden criminal subcultures uses flexible dialogues. Which method is used?

   • Official statistics
   • Postal surveys
   • Structured interviews
   • Unstructured interviews

10. Applying research methods: An interviewer strays completely from the guide. What is this approach?

    • Longitudinal
    • Unstructured
    • Semi-structured
    • Structured

11. Applying research methods: A researcher notices respondents lying to look better. What is this problem called?

    • Sampling frame
    • Interviewer bias
    • Social desirability
    • Random error

12. Applying research methods: A sociologist records body language alongside speech during an informal interview. Why?

    • To capture nuance
    • To ensure coding
    • To save time
    • To gain statistics

13. Applying research methods: Interviewing powerful politicians requires flexibility because they may...

    • Lack confidence
    • Control the agenda
    • Be illiterate
    • Refuse payment

14. Applying research methods: A researcher uses open-ended questions to let youths explain poverty in their own words. This achieves...

    • Reliability
    • Verstehen
    • Generalisability
    • Positivism

15. Applying research methods: Transcribing hours of unstructured audio data creates a significant bottleneck in...

    • Sample selection
    • Access gaining
    • Hypothesis testing
    • Data analysis

16. Applying research methods: If an interviewer's gender or class alters the respondent's answers, this demonstrates...

    • Hawthorne effect
    • Structural bias
    • Sampling error
    • Interviewer effect

17. Harder concepts: Why is it impossible to generalise findings from a typical unstructured interview study?

    • Closed questions
    • Postal delay
    • Small sample size
    • Lack of funding

18. Harder concepts: What epistemological stance underpins the use of unstructured interviews in sociology?

    • Social constructionism
    • Quantitative empiricism
    • Value-free science
    • Structural determinism

19. Harder concepts: How do unstructured interviews attempt to overcome the traditional power imbalance between researcher and researched?

    • Equalising power
    • Using closed scales
    • Random sampling
    • Standardising questions

20. Harder concepts: What methodological limitation makes replicating unstructured interview findings practically impossible?

    • Uniqueness of interaction
    • Rigid question order
    • Numerical coding
    • Computer tabulation

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