how to write interview results in research paper

Incorporating Interview Data

Introduction

When you incorporate original interview data into your writing, you are developing new ideas by using quotations and often sources that no one else has accessed. Drawing from interviews can liven up your writing, ground your big concepts within the specific circumstances of particular individuals, and introduce you to insights you might never have considered on your own. Additionally, interviews are an exciting way for you to provide a larger audience for people who might not otherwise have opportunities to share their stories, perceptions, and experiences.

There are lots of good reasons to incorporate original interview data into your writing. But doing so also involves making many, specific writing decisions. On this page we explore some of those decisions by considering: 1) the process by which interview data is gathered; 2) models for interview incorporation; and 3) identification of ways that writing with interview data can be like writing with information from any other source (as well as some of the unique writerly considerations that interviews raise).

Contents       Before You Write       Different Models of Incorporating Interview Data       Summarizing, Paraphrasing, or Quoting       Referring to your Interviewees       Using Verbatim or Non-Verbatim

Before You Write

Of course, before you can incorporate interview data into your writing, you need to plan and conduct your interviews and begin to analyze your findings.

Interviewing is a common form of research and information gathering in many different fields and across many different genres. In order to develop and actualize a plan for why interviews will help you answer the questions you’re asking, whom you’ll interview, and what you’ll ask these subjects, you’ll want to consult a range of resources. Talk with your instructor, mentor, or advisor about common ways of approaching interviews for this assignment or in this discipline. Additionally, many undergraduate textbooks about research in the social sciences and humanities offer introductions to interviewing. We’ve listed a few great resources to help you learn more.

For comprehensive introductions to research methods used in the writing research that include some information about interviews, consider:

• Jackie Grutsch McKinney’s book Strategies for Writing Center Research —especially pages 55-69. While Grutsch McKinney’s is focused on writing center research, her close consideration of the different ways to structure interviews as well as how to plan and conduct them can be applied to all interview contexts. Additionally, her treatment of data analysis in chapter 8 provides a step-by-step guide for coding qualitative data—one of the approaches you might use to make sense of what your interview data means.
• Joyce Kinkead’s Researching Writing: An Introduction to Research Methods —especially pages 37-39. This is a potential textbook for that could be used for a class specifically about the formal study of writing. However, its direct and specific information about interviewing is applicable for any social science researcher preparing to use interviews for research.

These resources focus more specifically on qualitative research methods in particular and interviewing in particular:

• Robert Bogdan and Sari Knopp Biklen’s Qualitative Research for Education: An Introduction to Theories and Methods —especially pages 103-109. Bogdan and Knopp Biklen’s treatment of interview practices provides a brief overview of how to approach and implement this research methodology.
• Irving Seidman’s Interviewing as Qualitative Research: A Guide for Researchers in Education and the Social Sciences —especially pages 78-94. This entire book explores interview practices, logistics, and applications, but chapter six in particular usefully details particular interviewing techniques and provides transcripted examples of some of these strategic techniques in action.

The rest of the information on this page assumes that you have learned to develop and implement your interview plan, that you’ve analyzed the information you’ve gathered, and that you’re now ready to start weaving that information into your writing.

Different Models for Incorporating Interview Data

You can use interview data in many different ways. Most often, you will probably be making an argumentative or analytical point and illustrating and supporting it with evidence from your interviews. For example, in the following passage from the book Booty Capitalism: The Politics of Banking in the Philippines , Paul D. Hutchcroft, a political science professor at Australian National University, begins with an original claim, follows that with a quotation from an interview subject that exemplifies that claim, and then offers additional commentary on that issue. Note how the quotation from the interview both connects the concepts of banking and politics and introduces the prism metaphor that Hutchcroft continues into the next sentence.

The major focus of this [book] is two arenas that offer particular insights into the nature of relations between state and oligarchy in the banking system: bank supervision and selective credit allocation. “Banking,” observes one former bank president, “is a prism through which to understand power politics in the Philippines.” A study of the banking system highlights larger patterns at work within the political economy: how a predatory oligarchy extracts privilege from a patrimonial state, and how developmental policy objectives are continually choked out by a clamor of particularistic demands made by those who currently enjoy proximity to the political machinery. (7)

Generalizing about a Trend or Theme

Using information from an interview to support your claim is the primary purpose for incorporating interview data into your writing, but how you do this may change according to your specific intent. In what follows, we explore different models for weaving interview data into your writing and provide examples of what this looks like.

It is important to consider the politicization of the nationality responses in context. On the whole, the vast majority of republican executives did not try to influence the process, and the nationality question was a non-issue in the predominantly ethnically Russian regions. In my regional interviews I found that in the oblasts and krays, there were almost no reports of difficulty with the nationality question. Officials in those areas reported that respondents who were not ethnically Russian had no difficulty citing a different nationality. This finding corresponded with my observations of the enumeration process in Moscow. There were sporadic cases of respondents in ethnically mixed marriages registering one child as of one parent’s ethnic group and the other child as of the other parent’s ethnic group. However, this is a conceptual issue rather than a problem of politicization. ( 367-8 )

Quoting to Illustrate a Trend or Theme

Sometimes interviewees say things that are so strikingly similar that it is useful to draw attention to these complementary concepts and word choices by putting them together. In the following passage, Jane Calvert, a professor at the University of Edinburgh, and Joan Fujimura, a sociology professor at UW-Madison, use this strategy while writing about scientists’ responses to the new and developing field of systems biology. Note that these authors carefully tie quotations to specific anonymized interviewees through parenthetical citations.

In another US university, the decision to build an interdisciplinary research centre was top-down, initiated by university and funding administrators and initially opposed by most campus laboratory scientists. The building of new interdisciplinary structures is challenging for the existing disciplinary “fiefdoms” (Biologist19) and “silos” (Biologist9 and Biologist12) “where people feel protected and safe” (Biologist19) because they are not required to step outside of their “comfort zones” (Biologist7).

Putting Two Sources in Conversation with Each Other

Sometimes writers can use one interviewee to contribute to or complicate what another interviewee says. The following paragraph from Hutchcroft’s Booty Capitalism shows this practice at work. In addition to bringing two sources together, in this passage Hutchcroft also strategically incorporates paratextual insight gained from the interview process into his analysis. He uses the former governor’s laughter to showcase an attitude that directly contrasts with what the former bank supervisor says.

Even when the Central Bank has acted against those who milked their banks, former bank owners have been known to use personal connections, even up to the Supreme Court, to confound Central Bank discipline. Former Governor Jaime Laya noted that even martial law “didn’t seem to stop the lawsuits against Central Bank personnel.” He actually laughed as he told me how the Central Bank legal office has “never won a case.” But the former head of the bank supervision sector, who has herself been sued, doesn’t find it a laughing matter: “Why only in this country,” she exclaimed, “do the regulators go to the jail, and the bankers go scot-free?” (9)

Providing a Profile/Telling a Story

Sometimes your writing needs to focus on your interview subject as a full and complex individual. In order to analyze an issue, you need to write about this individual’s background, family, and previous experiences. In this situation, you’ll weave together information you gained from your interviews with quotations from this person. This kind of writing is common when you are using interviews to develop ethnographis case studies. In the following example of this technique, Kate Vieira, a professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at UW-Madison, tells the story of Jocélia, an undocumented Brazilian immigrant living in Massachusetts:

Jocélia, a 22 year-old Brazilian woman who grew up in a favela (shanty town) in Brazil, came to the United States to study and to earn money. When her visa expired and the small sum she had borrowed from cousins ran out, she quit her ESL classes and began to work illegally. When I met her in 2008, she had been in the United States for 4 years, had managed to buy a house for her mother in Brazil, and had plans to buy another one for herself and a car. To earn money as an undocumented worker, she held down two jobs: one from 3 p.m. to midnight and another from 5 a.m. to afternoon. One evening, exhausted from having not slept in days, she nodded off as she drove home from work, resulting in a serious accident that led her to a friend’s house in South Mills and to a Catholic retreat. When I came here, I was not a youth who had fun. I only worked, and this made me a little frustrated, you know? Sad, lonely, understand? And nobody could change my mind. I had to work . . . But the Lord showed me something different, that I can’t live only for work . . . So I went there [to the retreat] and I really felt that the Lord touched us. It was a very good experience . . . (444)

Attending to Language

As explored in greater depth in the discussion about verbatim transcription , sometimes you want to analyze or consider the language an individual uses or the implications of certain kinds of words or even pauses. For example, in the following passage, Beth Godbee, a writing and rhetoric professor at Marquette University, meticulously considers the implications of her subjects’ specific words and phrasing. Although this example is taken from Godbee’s analysis of a conversation she recorded between a writer Susan and a writing center tutor Kim as opposed to a direct interview she conducted, the attention she pays to language could just as well be applied to information from an interview.

Kim reinforces Susan’s qualifications: “You’re gonna—you’re the specialist in this area. You know these kids; you see what know the effects are, and maybe where some change could be made” (lines 558-561). Here Kim revises her projection of Susan as a “specialist” in the future tense (“gonna,” as in “you’re going to be”) to a statement of her current position (“you’re,” or “you are now”). By repairing her speech mid-utterance, Kim emphasizes Susan’s current status and qualifications to write, thereby reframing her institutional power to assert her right to speak. (185)

Summarizing, Paraphrasing, or Quoting

As the above examples show, interview data is incorporated into writing through summaries, paraphrases, or quotations. In some ways this makes working with interviews just like working from any other kind of outside. As you choose between summarizing, paraphrasing, or quoting, a guiding question for you to consider is: What is most important about this information?

• Is it the overall story it tells or the general perspective it provides? Then summarizing might be the best option.
• Is it the particular take on a complex issue? Then paraphrasing that idea in your own words to make it as understandable as possible might be best.
• Is it the memorability, specificity, or authenticity of the language the source used? Then probably go with a quote, but be sure to contextualize this quotation by providing necessary background and commentary.

Of course, in working with interview data, you might go with all three incorporation strategies by, for example, summarizing early in a paragraph to provide an overall sense of what this source is saying, paraphrasing a key idea or two, and then including a poignant quotation that exemplifies the argument you are making. For more information about quoting and paraphrasing outside sources in your writing, check out our resources on this issue .

Referring to your Interviewees

In certain writing situations, you are expected to identify the people you interviewed by using their real names. This is often the case in journalistic writing as well as when you have consulted with an expert on an issue. But, even in these writing contexts, you must receive permission from them to associate their words and insights with their names by clearly establishing whether or not they are talking with you “on the record.”

However, when you are conducting interviews for academic research, you are frequently expected to use pseudonyms so that your subjects’ responses are confidential. Protecting your subjects’ privacy should be your primary priority. They are giving you access to personal experiences and trusting you with their individual insights and observations; you must honor that trust by anonymizing their identities so that readers can’t figure out who your subjects were. Developing a research methodology that keeps all of your data confidential is an important part of the IRB (Internal Review Board) process, and in order to receive permission to do research at your institution you’ll need a plan that outlines how you’ll achieve confidentiality. Part of that plan will involve using different names for your subjects. But selecting pseudonyms is a bigger issue than just choosing different names at random.

Ruth Allen and Janine L. Wiles, Social and Community Health scholars at the University of Auckland, have closely considered the many issues surrounding pseudonym selection in connection to their original psychological and health-related research. They advocate that researchers think critically about this process and even bring their subjects into these discussions of identity and confidentiality. You need to be thoughtful about what aspects of your subjects’ true identities you are communicating or obscuring through the pseudonyms you use. The following questions are adapted from ones Allen and Wiles recommend researchers ask themselves when preparing to use pseudonyms for participants:

• Does the researcher or the participant choose the pseudonym? How does this issue get talked about with the participants?
• Is it important, valuable, or expected to use first name or also include last names and/or titles (i.e., Cara, Mr. Terrance, Dr. Jean Nichols)?
• Within the context of this writing, should the names to be associated with a specific gender, ethnicity, and/or culture? Should those nominal identity markers align with the participants’ actual identities?
• Do pseudonyms need to be selected for other people, places, activities, and organizations mentioned in the interview? And if so, who makes those choices?

How you answer these questions should be informed by your specific context. For example, in relation to that fourth question, if a participant is talking supportively about a small on-campus organization that you want to bring attention to through your writing, it might make sense to refer to this organization by name even though its size might make it harder to disguise your participant’s identity. However, if your interviewee is speaking critically about a large, multi-national corporation where she works, you might want to develop a pseudonym for that company in order to protect this individual as much as possible.

Using Verbatim or Non-Verbatim

When you are conducting interviews, you are engaging people in very focused conversation. But when we converse, we say “like” a lot and “um” and “ah.” We start sentences and then interrupt ourselves and never return to complete those earlier thoughts. Conversation is never as direct and naturally coherent as writing can be. As a result, when you’re representing other people’s speech, you need to decide if you’ll be employing what is called “verbatim transcription” or “non-verbatim transcription.”

In “verbatim transcriptions,” you write out what people say exactly as they say it. You include all the filler words, false starts, and grammatical inconsistencies. You may even choose to include coughs and laughs. Scholars have traditionally upheld verbatim accounts as being accurate depictions of the interview process, but as Blake Poland pointed out, “much of the emotional context of the interview as well as nonverbal communication are not captured at all well in audiotape records, so that the audiotape itself is not strictly a verbatim record of the interview” (291). “Non-verbatim transcriptions,” (sometimes called “intelligent transcription”) respond to this acknowledged gap between the complexities of real conversation and the limitations of writing by encouraging writers to focus on the primary substance of participants’ quotes. In “non-verbatim transcriptions, you eliminate the unnecessary utterances like “er,” “well,” and “you know” and just include the foundational meaning of the interviewees’ words.” For example:

Verbatim Transcription : Well, you see, I was [pause] the problem, as I saw it, was more of a, a matter of representation, you know? How can I, like, be the one that’s just out there just declaring the way things are when I’ve not even, like, you know, experiencing the whole process for myself? Non-verbatim Transcription : The problem, as I saw it, was more a matter of representation. How can I be the one that’s out there declaring the way things are when I’ve not even experienced the whole process for myself?

The choice to use verbatim or non-verbatim transcription in quoting your participants should be informed by intentional considerations you are making as a writer. There are good reasons to use either forms. As Mahesh Kumar has identified in a blog post for the Transcription Certification Institute, verbatim transcription is useful for showcasing the thought process by which interview participants develop their ideas. False starts and self-corrections track down how someone is thinking about an issue in real time, and some fillers can be useful expressions of personality. Additionally, some linguistics research and conversation analysis methodologies expect highly structured, verbatim transcriptions that even account for pauses and simultaneous dialogue. However, quotations presented through non-verbatim transcriptions are clearer and easier to read and enable you to present your interview subjects as articulate (Poland 292). Whether you go with verbatim or non-verbatim transcription, make sure that you are being consistent with this choice across your article, paper, report, or essay. Also, if it’s common in the genre you are writing to discuss your methodology choices, it may be useful to clarify which transcription form you have chosen to use and why this was an appropriate choice.

Works Cited

Allen, Ruth E.S., and Janine L. Wiles. “A Rose by Any Other Name: Participants Choosing Research Pseudonyms.” Qualitative Research in Psychology , Dec. 2015. Research Gate , doi: 10.1080/14780887.2015.1133746.

Bogdan, Robert C., and Sari Knopp Biklen. Qualitative Research for Education: An Introduction to Theories and Methods . 5 th ed., Pearson, 2007.

Calvert, Jane, and Joan H. Fujimura. “Calculating Life? Duelling Discourses in Interdisciplinary Systems Biology.” Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences , vol. 42, no. 2l, 2011. Science Direct , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shpsc.2010.11.022 .

Godbee, Beth. “Toward Explaining the Transformative Power of Talk About, Around, and for Writing.” Research in the Teaching of English , vol. 47, no. 2, 2012, pp. 171-97.

Grutsch McKinney, Jackie. Strategies for Writing Center Research . Parlor Press, 2016.

Herrera, Yoshiko M. “The 2002 Russian Census: Institutional Reform at Goskomstar.”  Post-Soviet Affairs , vol, 20, no. 4, 2004, pp. 350-86.

Hutchcroft, Paul D. Booty Capitalism: The Politics of Banking in the Philippines , Ateneo de Manila University Press, 1998.

Kinkead, Joyce. Researching Writing: An Introduction to Research Methods . University Press of Colorado, 2015.

Kumar, Mahesh. “Verbatim Vs Non-Verbatim Transcription: Differences, Requirements, & Jobs.” Transcription Certification Institute , 5 December 2017. Accessed online 19 June 2017. https://blog.transcriptioncertificationinstitute.org/verbatim-vs-non-verbatim-transcription-differences-requirements-jobs/.

Poland, Blake D. “Transcription Quality as an Aspect of Rigor in Qualitative Research.” Qualitative Inquiry , no. 1, vol. 3, 1995, pp. 290-310.

Seidman, Irving. Interviewing as Qualitative Research: A Guide for Researchers in Education and the Social Sciences . 3 rd ed., Teachers College Press, 2006.

Vieira, Kate. “Undocumented in a Documentary Society: Textual Borders and Transnational Religious Literacies.”  Written Communication , vol 28, no. 4, 2011, pp. 436-61.

Academic and Professional Writing

This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.

Analysis Papers

Reading Poetry

A Short Guide to Close Reading for Literary Analysis

Using Literary Quotations

Play Reviews

Writing a Rhetorical Précis to Analyze Nonfiction Texts

Grant Proposals

Planning and Writing a Grant Proposal: The Basics

Additional Resources for Grants and Proposal Writing

Job Materials and Application Essays

Writing Personal Statements for Academic Programs within an Undergraduate College

Writing Personal Statements for Ph.D. Programs

• Before you begin: useful tips for writing your essay
• Guided brainstorming exercises
• Get more help with your essay
• Frequently Asked Questions

Resume Writing Tips

CV Writing Tips

Cover Letters

Business Letters

Diversity Statements

Professional Emails

Advice for Students Writing a Professional Email

Proposals and Dissertations

Resources for Proposal Writers

Resources for Dissertators

Research Papers

Planning and Writing Research Papers

Quoting and Paraphrasing

Writing Annotated Bibliographies

Creating Poster Presentations

Writing an Abstract for Your Research Paper

Thank-You Notes

Advice for Students Writing Thank-You Notes to Donors

Reading for a Review

Critical Reviews

Writing a Review of Literature

Scientific Reports

Scientific Report Format

Sample Lab Assignment

Writing for the Web

Writing an Effective Blog Post

Writing for Social Media: A Guide for Academics

Using an interview in a research paper

Consultant contributor: Viviane Ugalde

Using an interview can be an effective primary source for some papers and research projects. Finding an expert in the field or some other person who has knowledge of your topic can allow for you to gather unique information not available elsewhere.

There are four steps to using an interview as a source for your research.

• Know where and how to start.
• Know how to write a good question.
• Know how to conduct an interview.
• Know how to incorporate the interview into your document or project.

Step one: Where to start

First, you should determine your goals and ask yourself these questions:

• Who are the local experts on topic?
• How can I contact these people?
• Does anyone know them to help me setup the interviews?
• Are their phone numbers in the phone book or can I find them on the Internet?

Once you answer these questions and pick your interviewee, get their basic information such as their name, title, and other general details. If you reach out and your interview does not participate, don’t be discouraged. Keep looking for other interview contacts.

Step two: How to write a good question

When you have confirmed an interview, it is not time to come up with questions.

• Learning as much as you can about the person before the interview can help you create questions specific to your interview subject.
• Doing research about your interviewee’s past experience in your topic, or any texts that they have written would be great background research.

When you start to think of questions, write down more questions than you think you’ll need, and prioritize them as you go. Any good questions will answer the 5W and H questions. Asking Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How questions that you need answered for your paper, will help you form a question to ask your interviewee.

When writing a good question, try thinking of something that will help your argument.

• Is your interviewee an advocate for you position?
• Are they in any programs that are related to your research?
• How much experience do they have?

From broad questions like these, you can begin to narrow down to more specific and open-ended questions.

Step three: The interview

If at all possible, arrange to conduct the interview at the subject’s workplace. It will make them more comfortable, and you can write about their surroundings.

• Begin the interview with some small talk in order to give both of you the chance to get comfortable with one another
• Develop rapport that will make the interview easier for both of you.
• Ask open-ended questions
• Keep the conversation moving
• Stay on topic
• The more silence in the room, the more honest the answer.
• If an interesting subject comes up that is related to your research, ask a follow-up or an additional question about it.
• Ask if you can stay in contact with your interview subject in case there are any additional questions you have.

Step four: Incorporating the interview

When picking the material out of your interview, remember that people rarely speak perfectly. There will be many slang words and pauses that you can take out, as long as it does not change the meaning of the material you are using.

As you introduce your interview in the paper, start with a transition such as “according to” or other attributions. You should also be specific to the type of interview you are working with. This way, you will build a stronger ethos in your paper .

The body of your essay should clearly set up the quote or paraphrase you use from the interview responses,. Be careful not to stick a quote from the interview into the body of your essay because it sounds good. When deciding what to quote in your paper, think about what dialogue from the interview would add the most color to your interview. Quotes that illustrate what your interviewer sounded like, or what their personality is are always the best quotes to choose from.

Once you have done that, proofread your essay. Make sure the quotes you used don’t make up the majority of your paper. The interview quotes are supposed to support your argument; you are not supposed to support the interview.

For example, let’s say that you are arguing that free education is better than not. For your argument, you interview a local politician who is on your side of the argument. Rather than using a large quote that explains the stance of both sides, and why the politician chose this side, your quote is there to support the information you’ve already given. Whatever the politician says should prove what you argue, and not give new information.

Step five: Examples of citing your interviews 

Smith, Jane. Personal interview. 19 May 2018.

(E. Robbins, personal communication, January 4, 2018).

Smith also claimed that many of her students had difficulties with APA style (personal communication, November 3, 2018).

Reference list

Daly, C. & Leighton W. (2017). Interviewing a Source: Tips. Journalists Resource.

Driscoll, D. (2018 ). Interviewing. Purdue University

Hayden, K. (2012). How to Conduct an Interview to Write a Paper . Bright Hub Education, Bright Hub Inc.

Hose, C. (2017). How to Incorporate Interviews into Essays. Leaf Group Education.

Magnesi, J. (2017). How to Interview Someone for an Article or Research Paper. Career Trend, Leaf group Media.

The Guide to Interview Analysis

• What is Interview Analysis?
• Advantages of Interviews in Research
• Disadvantages of Interviews in Research
• Ethical Considerations in Interviews
• Preparing a Research Interview
• Recruitment & Sampling for Research Interviews
• Interview Design
• How to Formulate Interview Questions
• Rapport in Interviews
• Social Desirability Bias
• Interviewer Effect
• Types of Research Interviews
• Face-to-Face Interviews
• Focus Group Interviews
• Email Interviews
• Telephone Interviews
• Stimulated Recall Interviews
• Interviews vs. Surveys
• Interviews vs Questionnaires
• Interviews and Interrogations
• How to Transcribe Interviews?
• Verbatim Transcription
• Clean Interview Transcriptions
• Manual Interview Transcription
• Automated Interview Transcription
• How to Annotate Research Interviews?
• Formatting and Anonymizing Interviews
• Analyzing Interviews
• Coding Interviews

Introduction

How to report interview data, reporting & presenting interview findings.

In qualitative research, reporting interview findings is a critical step in showcasing the depth and richness of the data collected. It is about presenting what participants said and interpreting and organizing the information in a way that highlights key insights. This article will walk you through the process of writing up interview findings, focusing on aligning findings with the research question, creating visuals to organize and structure data, and presenting the findings in a clear and structured format.

In qualitative research, reporting interview findings is a crucial step in transforming raw data into meaningful insights. Unlike quantitative research, which relies heavily on statistical analysis, qualitative research focuses on interpreting rich, narrative data gathered from interviews. This involves not only capturing the essence of participants’ responses but also presenting qualitative data in a way that addresses the research question and enhances the reader's understanding. Presenting findings from qualitative interviews requires careful organization and interpretation of interview transcripts , audio, and video recordings to highlight the main findings and ensure the information is relevant to the study's objectives.

A well-structured research article in the social sciences will include a comprehensive research design and methods section , outlining how interviews were conducted and analyzed. Then, by effectively presenting findings, researchers can communicate their results in a way that makes the most of the qualitative data, offering deep insights that contribute to the broader field. AI tools have also become increasingly useful in helping researchers manage and analyze interview data , allowing for a more efficient approach to extracting key themes. Ultimately, the challenge lies in turning these rich, detailed accounts into a cohesive narrative that resonates with the research paper’s audience.

In qualitative research, there are many possibilities for presenting interview data in a research article. As always, we recommend looking at other published studies from top journals in your area for inspiration. To offer some helpful practical guidance here, we turn to the excellent advice provided by Rockman and Vough (2023). They describe that the process of translating raw data into compelling findings involves multiple stages, with pre-writing and composing being crucial phases (Rockmann & Vough, 2023).

Pre-writing phase

The pre-writing phase is essential for organizing and structuring qualitative data before drafting the findings section. One of the primary tools introduced in this phase is the claim table, which helps researchers categorize quotes based on their relevance and strength. The quotes are classified into four categories—anchor, workhorse, tantalizing, and partial. Anchor quotes are the most vivid and comprehensive, serving as the backbone of the argument, while workhorse quotes provide strong supporting evidence. Tantalizing quotes add intrigue but may lack comprehensiveness, and partial quotes contribute to the narrative but need further context.

Another key tool in this phase is storyboarding, a method for mapping out claims and ensuring a logical flow between them. Storyboarding helps researchers plan the structure of the findings section, visualizing how each claim will be supported by data and how the narrative will transition between different points. This process ensures that the findings are not only well-organized but also that each claim is clearly connected to the others, creating a cohesive and persuasive argument.

Composing phase

Once the data is organized through claim tables and storyboarding, the composing phase begins. This phase involves inserting the researcher’s voice into the findings, effectively linking the quotes to the claims being made. A critical balance between "showing" and "telling" is emphasized here—showing refers to presenting the quotes themselves, while telling involves providing the necessary context and interpretation to guide the reader.

The authors stress the importance of weaving the narrative around the data. Simply presenting quotes without interpretation can leave the findings feeling incomplete, while too much explanation without supporting quotes may seem unconvincing. The goal is to craft a narrative where the researcher’s insights and the participants’ voices work together to illustrate key findings.

Guidelines for using quotes

Using quotes effectively in a qualitative research paper requires careful consideration when it comes to selecting, editing, and placing quotes in a way that convincingly supports the claims. Quotes should not be chosen at random but based on their vividness and comprehensiveness. Vivid quotes capture the reader's attention and convey rich detail, while comprehensive quotes fully represent the claim being made.

When presenting qualitative data , editing quotes is sometimes necessary to maintain clarity, but this must be done without distorting the participant's original meaning. Additionally, placement in the research paper is crucial; quotes should be strategically positioned within the text to enhance the argument, with stronger, more vivid quotes taking prominence, while shorter, supporting quotes can be used in tables or supplementary materials.

Reporting interview findings in qualitative research is a nuanced and essential process that turns raw data into meaningful insights aligned with the study’s purpose. By effectively organizing and interpreting data collected from interview recordings, researchers can highlight main findings and respond directly to the research question. This process goes beyond merely presenting what participants said; it requires synthesizing information in a way that reveals deeper understanding and provides relevant information in participants' own words, thereby adding authenticity and depth to the narrative.

Key techniques such as claim tables and storyboarding help researchers systematically arrange their findings, ensuring that each piece of data supports the research question and contributes to a coherent flow. Claim tables categorize quotes by their strength and relevance, helping researchers to identify anchor quotes that vividly capture core themes and supporting quotes that reinforce these themes. Meanwhile, storyboarding helps in visualizing and mapping the progression of main findings, offering a logical pathway for readers to follow the study’s insights. Through this approach, researchers can create a seamless narrative that guides the reader through the insights uncovered.

Presenting quotes from interviews and audio recordings is also a significant part of this process. To effectively convey the findings, it’s essential to balance direct quotes with the researcher’s interpretation, allowing participants' voices to shine while contextualizing them within the broader study. This balance ensures that the findings are not just a collection of statements but are interwoven with analysis that deepens the reader’s understanding. By carefully selecting and positioning quotes, researchers give prominence to those that best illustrate the study's core messages and maintain the richness of participants ' contributions in their own words.

By transforming interview recordings into a structured, insightful narrative, researchers create a document that addresses the research question and leaves a lasting impact on the audience. This detailed, interpretative approach to presenting qualitative data enhances the study's significance, inviting further inquiry and adding valuable perspectives to the field. With these techniques, researchers can ensure their findings resonate with the study's objectives and provide a foundation for ongoing exploration and understanding in qualitative research.

• Rockmann, K. W., & Vough, H. C. (2023). Using quotes to present claims: Practices for the writing stages of qualitative research. Organizational Research Methods. https://doi.org/10.1177/10944281231210558

Get the best insights of your interviews with ATLAS.ti

Start your free trial of ATLAS.ti today.

Using English for Academic Purposes

Writing Functions 44: Presenting Findings from Interviews

Academic writing, rhetorical functions in academic writing: presenting findings from interviews, introduction.

In all kinds of primary research, empirical data is used to support your arguments and claims. In quantitative research this evidence is usually number-based statistics. Although numbers can also be used in qualitative research, the main form of evidence involves extracts from narrative accounts (interviews, focus groups, …) of either the respondents or the researcher (field notes, memos, …) (Johnson and Christensen, 2004, p. 539).

If your data is mainly qualitative, it is important to include quotations from this data in your text. This will give your text authenticity, and will enable your reader to share the world you are analysing. However, it is important that any illustrations or quotations you use are relevant to your study (Collis & Hussey, 2003, p. 300).

It is also important to keep a balance between your own interpretation and the supporting evidence in the form of quotations from participants or notes. Good qualitative reports display a smoothly flowing, natural rhythm of text and quotes – too many quotes dampen the researcher’s voice and make his/her argument difficult to follow, whereas too few quotes may provide insufficient support (Morrow, 2005).

Transcribing and Editing Quoted Material

Record exactly what is said, by whom, plus some indication of tone, volume, pauses, body language, etc, if necessary. Remember that one hour of recording can take 6-10 hours of transcription time.

Transcribing

You will probably need to transcribe – convert the oral recording into words – some or all of your oral data. Saunders & Lewis( 2012, p. 188) suggest the following:

• Include details of the date, time and place where the data was collected.
• Anonymise both the organisation’s and the respondents’ names, using the alternatives consistently.
• Use italics to signify questions asked.
• Use CAPITALS to highlight the names of the interviewer and the respondents.
• Use … to show a pause in speech, the number of dots showing the relative length of the pause.
• Use CAPITALS within the transcript to show those words that were spoken more loudly than others.
• Use (( )) to enclose your description of what is happening such as the participant’s tone of voice, facial expressions or other visual cues.
• Make sure there are no typographical errors and that words are spelt consistently throughout.
• Save each interview transcript as a separate file.

If necessary, you can edit the quotations. However, you need to make sure that you do not distort or misrepresent the meaning. There are also certain conventions that you need to follow (Richards & Morse, 2007, pp. 208-209):

• Avoid misrepresenting what was said, and you should indicate where text has been removed – with ellipses (…) – and where you have substituted words – by enclosing them in square brackets ([..]).
• Delete any quoted material that is redundant. Ask yourself if each phrase is necessary. A briefer quotation may be more powerful and much more relevant to your argument. If you think the participant is implying something, suggest this in your interpretive commentary.

You may also edit minor linguistic inaccuracies to facilitate reading, but if you decide to do so, you should note this clearly at the first occurrence or in the methods section (Dornyei, 2007, p. 297).

Be Careful!

Transcription: I think unless we want to become like other countries, where people have, you know, democratic freedom. Actual Words: I think unless we want to become like other countries, where people have no democratic freedom.

(Brymon & Bell, 2007, p. 493)

Ethics codes prohibit researchers from disclosing personally identifying information about participants. Therefore, you can:

Quote participants without distinguishing them at all, for example:

Indeed, a comment by one of our managers illustrates some of these complex issues: [quote follows without other attribution].

Identify participants by demographic or other data:

At my age I think we know who we are and what we are. (Female participant, 69 years of age).

Identify participants with letters ( Participant A, Manager B ), pseudonyms ( Peter, Jenny ), or by role ( Doctor, Patient, Customer ).

Including Interviews in your Report

First you need to transcribe your interviews.

Then you can add the transcribed interviews to the appendix. This will demonstrate that the interviews have actually taken place and allow you to make quotations from them..

You should refer to the appendix when necessary:

The full transcript of this interview is included in Appendix 3 (on page 32) .

The quotations are used to illustrate your research findings, and they need an introduction from you which tells your reader how they illustrate or support that finding. So you need to:

• Say what the finding is
• Introduce the quotation by saying who said it and in what context
• Give the quotation
• Comment on the quotation by comparing it to other quotations from the same person, other quotations from different people on the same topic, etc.

There are two main ways of presenting data to illustrate your analysis.

• The first is to present your interpretation of findings and then follow with a quotation to illustrate your description. This gives the reader the information to judge whether or not your interpretation represents the data.
• Alternatively, you may present a quotation followed by your interpretation. This may show your ability to analyse in fine detail, but it could miss the overall  picture.
• Or, of course, a mixture of the two.

Quote explicitly from your transcript to justify your choices:

Interviewee #3 stated that. “…the quality of education is enhanced by…” This was confirmed by respondents #11, #14 and 7 others. This point has been confirmed by 75% of the interviews with 15 percent not venturing an opinion while 10% believed it is rather due to a stimulating curriculum.

Although you don’t need to include all your primary data, you should make it available in an appendix, to which you should refer when necessary. For example:

Details of all the interview participants can be found in Appendix A, with transcripts of each interview in Appendix B.

Put here any data that was too extensive to incorporate earlier. In the text, for example, you might have included the tables / graphs that give the results of your analyses. In the appendices, you can give the raw data / transcripts to enable the reader to make their own analysis; plus lengthy transcripts of interviews or texts, questionnaires, interview guides, texts, ethics forms, and so on.

Reporting Interview Data

Always attempt to contextualise quotations (Where did she say this? Who else was present? What question was she answering? What did she say before this? How does it relate to your overall argument?).

Make sure there is a good balance between your participants’ quotations and your interpretation of the words.

An overemphasis on the researcher’s interpretations at the cost of participant quotes will leave the reader in doubt as to just where the interpretations came from; an excess of quotes will cause the reader to become lost in the morass of stories (Morrow, 2005, p. 256).

Paraphrase or summarise

When you have added the interviews to the appendix, you can then paraphrase or summarise them in your report. Paraphrase is done as follows:

According to interviewee X (Appendix 1), the … It became clear from an interview with Y that … (Appendix 1).

Quoting from interviews

If you literally copy the words of the interviewee, then you need to quote. Finding interesting quotes is easier if you know how to get usable information out of the person during the interview. That’s why you should conduct the interviews in a professional manner.

According to X (Personal communication, December 24, 2012) …

The following format is useful:

1. Short quotations in the text should be indicated by quotation marks.

2. Long quotes are set in an indented paragraph, or block quotes. (40 words is a common cut-off point for ‘long’ quotes.)

3. There are no quotation marks around block quotes.

4. Block quotes may start with the continuation of a sentence from the text:

A customer in his fifties said that since the budget, life has become more difficult. …

5. If the quote completes the sentence that introduces it, as in the example above, there is no colon. If the quote follows a complete sentence, a colon can be used to show that the quote is an illustration of that sentence.

One man claimed that ‘life is much harder now’. One man made the claim: ‘life is much harder now.’

6. Square brackets – [..] – show the author’s editing of the quote, e.g. from ‘ My company went into liquidation five years ago ’   to ‘ My company went into liquidation [in France] five years ago ’.

7. Ellipses in square brackets […] can indicate omissions; ellipses without brackets indicate hesitation or unfinished sentences. It is important, however, to distinguish between the author’s selective omissions and the interviewee’s speech.

• ‘My company… you know, it went into liquidation five years ago in France.’  (Original quotation, with ellipses showing the interviewee’s pause or hesitation.)
• ‘My company… you know, it went into liquidation […] in France.’ (Hesitation, clearly indicated.)
• ‘My company […] went into liquidation five years ago in France.’  (Shortening, clearly indicated.)

8 .More specific conventions for showing pauses, tone of voice, etc. exist, but are not commonly used in general writing.

9. Indicate who is speaking in the quotation, either introducing the speaker before the quote by saying something like ‘As John put it, ‘ or ‘ Anne explained her reasons for this :’, or attribute the quote to the interviewee immediately afterwards, for example by writing their pseudonym or [ Interviewee 1] in square brackets.

Guidance for Authors Use quotes or excerpts to augment data description (e.g. thick, evocative description; field notes, text excerpts), but these should not replace the description of the findings of the analysis.

American Psychological Association (2020,  p. 99)

Quotations From Research Participants Quotations from participants whom you interviewed as part of your research are treated differently than quotations from published works. When quoting research participants, use the same formatting as for other quotations: Present a quotation of fewer than 40 words in quotation marks within the text …, and present a quotation of 40 words or more in a block quotation …. Because quotations from research participants are part of your original research, do not include them in the reference list or treat them as personal communications; state in the text that the quotations are from participants. When quoting research participants, abide by the ethical agreements regarding confidentiality and/or anonymity between you and your participants. Take extra care to obtain and respect participants’ consent to have their information included in your report. You may need to assign participants a pseudonym, obscure identifying information, or present information in the aggregate …. Participant “Julia,” a 32-year-old woman from California, described her experiences as a new mother as “simultaneously the best and hardest time of my life.” Several other participants agreed, describing the beginning of parenthood as “joyful,” “lonely,” and “intense.” Julia and the other participants completed interviews in their homes.

American Psychological Association (2020,  p. 278)

Interpretation followed by quotation

Quotation followed by interpretation, using extracts to exemplify or support conclusions reached, drawing conclusions from interview extracts, combining quotations, participants supporting each other, participants disagreeing with each other or changing over time, putting it all together.

Most of the time, the extracts from the accounts that you quote will be used to provide evidence for your stance or claims.

However, you can also:

• use quotations as examples or illustrations
• compare and contrast quotations from your own data or from other researchers’ data
• evaluate your own or other researchers’ data
• use quotations to agree or disagree with other researchers
• use quotations as a starting point for further research
• use your quotations as explanations
• use quotations to enable respondents’ voices to be heard
• use quotations to improve readability, and so on.

NB: But do NOT use quotations to make your points. Use your own words for that.

Reporting – Paraphrasing and Summarising

Reporting interviews uses paraphrase and summary to acknowledge the participants. You can extract and summarise important points, while at the same time making it clear from whom and where you have got the ideas you are discussing and what your point of view is. Compare, for example:

Participant 1 claims that a far more effective approach is …

Participant 1 points out that a far more effective approach is …

A far more effective approach is … (Participant 1)

The first one is the participant’s point of view with no indication about your point of view. The second one is the participant’s point of view, which you agree with, and the third is your point of view, which is supported by Participant 1.

Here are some more expressions you can use to refer to someone’s words that you are going to paraphrase, summarise or quote:

According to GC …

It is the view of Customer 1 that …

The opinion of the manger that …

X has expressed a similar view.

X reports that …

The director notes that …

X states that …

X observes that …

X concludes that …

X argues that …

If  the speaker generally agrees with your line of argument:.

Participant 1 indicates that …

Participant 1 reveals that …

Participant 1 shows that …

Turning to Participant 1, one finds that …

Reference to Participant 1 reveals that …

In Interview 1, GC stated that …

As GC points out, …

As GC perceptively states, …

As GC has indicated, …

GC has drawn attention to the fact that …

GC correctly argues that …

GC rightly points out that …

GC makes clear that …

If  the speaker disagrees with or does not support your line or argument:.

GC claims that …

GC states erroneously that …

The words of GC assert that …

GC feels that …

If you want to report that one interview participant  agrees with or adds to what another participant says.

GC accepts that …

Participant GC agrees with participant BF that …

GC concurs with BF that …

GC and BF are in agreement …

GC is in agreement with BF …

GC holds a similar view to BF …

GC supports BF in that …

Both GC and BF ….

Neither GC nor BF …

GC, in addition, claimed that … Furthermore, GC … What is more, GC …

Similarly, GC argued that…

Similar comments were made by GC, who said that …

If you want to report that one participant argues against  or disagrees wit h what another participant says.

The thoughts of GC contradict …

GC criticises BF …

GC’s opinion differs from BF …

However, BF does not support GC’s argument that …

The ideas of GC disagree with those of BF that …

Turning to BF, one finds that …

Some participants, however, pointed out that …

In contrast participant GC noted that …

On the other hand, GC concluded that …

Sometimes you may want to quote an interviewee’s words exactly, not paraphrase them. If you decide to quote directly from am interviewee, you will need an expression to introduce it and quotation marks will need to be used:

As X said/says, “… …”

As X stated/states, “… …”

As X wrote/writes, “… …”

As X commented/comments, “… …”

As X observed/observes, “… …”

As X pointed/points out, “… …”

To quote from X, “… …”

It was X who said that “… …”

This example is given by X: “… …”

According to X, “… …”

X claims that, “… …”

The opinion of X is that, “… …”

In all cases, make sure the speaker is identified (with a pseudonym, of course).

After quoting evidence you reach a conclusion:

The evidence seems to indicate that…

It must therefore be recognised that…

The indications are therefore that…

It is clear therefore that …

Thus it could be concluded that…

The evidence seems to be strong that…

On this basis it may be inferred that…

Given this evidence, it can be seen that…

Further details

Evaluating other points of view.

You can use quotations to evaluate your others’ points of view.

See:  Writing Functions: Evaluating

Indicating a gap

You can use quotations to justify the present or further work by indicating a gap.

See:  Writing Functions: Indicating a Gap

Comparing & Contrasting

When you are working with other people’s ideas, you will compare and contrast the different ideas and your own, discussing advantages and disadvantages.

See:  Writing Functions: Comparing

Synthesising

You will need to summarise other people’s ideas, combine them and come to conclusions.

See:  Writing Reporting Synthesis

Generalising

In most cases, the conclusions you come to and the points of view you hold will be qualified and generalisations will be made.

See:  Writing Functions: Generalising

Expressing degree of certainty

You may also have different degrees of certainty about your claims.

See:  Writing Functions: Certainty

Providing support

You can use quotations to provide evidence to support your points of view and conclusions.

See:  Writing Functions: Supporting

One thing that you learn in higher education is how to analyse. It is an essential part of writing critically. You can analyse quotations.

See:  Writing Functions: Analysis

Supporting an argument: Illustrating and exemplifying ideas

You can use quotations as examples or illustrations to support your conclusions.

See:  Writing Functions: Examples

Giving reasons and explanations

And you will always give reasons and explanations for your claims and points of view. Quotations can be used.

See:  Writing Functions: Reasons

Drawing conclusions

At various stages during your writing, you will need to sum up your argument and come to a conclusion about your quotations.

See:  Writing Functions: Concluding

• 99.9k views

Q: How should I present qualitative interview data in a research article?

As an article has a limitation in word counts, what would be the best way of presenting interview data?

Asked by Md Mahabubur Rahman on 24 Apr, 2018

Analyzing and presenting qualitative data in a research paper can be difficult. The Methods section is where one needs to justify and present the research design. As you have rightly said, there are stipulations on the word count for a manuscript.

To present the interview data, you can consider using a table. The data can be tabulated and presented succinctly in the Methods section. Or if it is a questionnaire based study, the questionnaire can be given as a part of online Supplementary Data for the manuscript – Many journals have a provision for this.

The main point to remember while presenting qualitative interview data is that the reader should not be bored with the minute details – mention the key points and themes as they relate to the research question, rather than reporting everything that the interviewees said; use charts or tables to help the reader understand the data and then highlight the most interesting findings; analyze the data rather than just describing it - use it to tell a story that focuses on answering the research question. Basically, avoid very long reports and present the main findings.

Related reading:

• The secret to writing the introduction and methods section of a manuscript
• Presenting your tables effectively
• 6 Easy guidelines for preparing tables and figures for a research manual
• 6 Tips for preparing effective tables for a research manual

If you need further help with conducting the statistical analysis, you might find benefit in availing to a professional statistical analysis and review service .

Hope that helps!

Answered by Editage Insights on 27 Apr, 2018

• Upvote this Answer

This content belongs to the Manuscript Writing Stage

Confirm that you would also like to sign up for free personalized email coaching for this stage.

Trending Searches

• Statement of the problem
• Background of study
• Scope of the study
• Types of qualitative research
• Rationale of the study
• Concept paper
• Literature review
• Introduction in research
• Under "Editor Evaluation"
• Ethics in research

Recent Searches

• Review paper
• Responding to reviewer comments
• Predatory publishers
• Scope and delimitations
• Open access
• Plagiarism in research
• Journal selection tips
• Editor assigned
• Types of articles
• "Reject and Resubmit" status
• Decision in process
• Conflict of interest

• Learn How to Use the Library
• Providers & Employees
• Research Help
• All Research Guides

Conducting Research Interviews

• Preparation
• Conducting the Interview
• Writing the Interview (In APA styling)

What is an interview paper?

Apa format for an interview paper, example of in-text citation in an interview paper.

Important Note on Personal Interviews:

• A personal interview should NOT be included in a reference list in APA. They are not considered recoverable data (they cannot be found by a researcher). You should reference personal interviews as in-text citations instead.
• Example: (J. Doe, personal communication, December 12, 2024)

That being said, there is a general structure if you want to cite a personal interview as part of your APA works cited list:

Author, A. (Year, Month Date). Interview type.

APA format example:

Marino, B. (2024, October 18). Personal Interview.

An interview paper is a research-based essay based on information gathered in interviews with various people. While other research papers primarily cite published print sources, interview papers draw their evidence from unpublished conversations—in person, by phone or by email. The interviewees are usually individuals with expertise in the topic being discussed or participants in a study or survey. Aside from academic reports or essays, interview papers are prevalent in journalism, as spoken responses to questions form much of the basis of many newspaper or magazine articles. The nature of interview papers allows for the potential to include unique insights in your writing. Two people can interview the same person about the same subject but receive somewhat different sets of information depending on the questions they ask. Personal factors, too, can influence the outcome of an interview, as the interviewee's level of comfort and emotional condition at the time of the conversation may render them or less communicative.

An APA-formatted paper typically consists of four major sections:

• Title page: The title page informs the reader about the subject of the paper and the details of who you are and who you are writing it for.
• Abstract: Introduce the subject of your interview in-text, describing her qualifications, background and why she is suitable to answer your questions. 
• Main body: The main body comprises the content of the paper itself—an essay or a report. APA-style reports typically separate the contents by section—namely, the introduction, titled sections for each question or subject area that groups of questions fall into, and the response as a block of quoted text. Present the question you asked the interviewee when explaining her response in the text of your paper. This is important to provide the context in which the interviewee presented fact or opinion. Be clear whether the question was open-ended or close-ended. Use quotes, rather than paraphrasing, when citing specific information and facts given by the interviewee. A quote longer than 40 words should be set aside as a block quote, according to APA style.
• References: The references section is a list of the published sources used to support the points in the paper. For interview reporting where no published works exist that were referenced, no citation is necessary. Personal and research-participant interviews are unpublished, so you can omit them from the references section, but make sure to include published interviews.

When using American Psychological Association (APA) style, your interview should either be cited as personal communication or recorded in detail in your text. The APA interview writing format has specific rules for how to write an interview paper. 

• << Previous: Applying & Using the Interview
• Last Updated: Sep 13, 2024 3:22 PM
• URL: https://aultman.libguides.com/interviews

Aultman Health Sciences Library

Aultman Education Center, C2-230, 2600 Sixth St SW, Canton, OH 44710  |  330-363-5000   |  [email protected]