The E-Interview in Qualitative Research

Abstract

In this chapter the authors consider using email as a method for carrying out in-depth, qualitative research interviews. Prompted by an experience of conducting e-interviews, they set out some of their key characteristics, embedding their discussion in the methodological and conceptual literature on qualitative interview and on-line research. The authors then offer a methodological consideration of e-interviewing, focusing on three broad areas: the practical, the interpersonal, and the ethical, highlighting the ways in which e-interviewing transforms aspects of each. They end by offering a view of the future of e-interviewing in the broader landscape of on-line qualitative research methods in general and interviewing in particular.