Conducting the interview: Students will conduct an approximately 1hr interview with their participant. With permission (only), interviews should be audio-recorded for transcription later. Students will attend carefully to their own demeanor, body language and probes (“can you tell me more about that experience…?), while also noting significant changes in the participant’s gestures, behavior and tone. When the interview is over, students should appropriately thank the person but also ask them if it is ok to contact them with any further clarification questions that come up.

Interview Plan Guidelines                                                                                                                                      

Your task is to conduct an interview with a person with a disability, a parent of a child with a disability, or an advocate working on behalf of individuals with particular disabilities.

1.     Record: You should, with permission only, make an audio (not video) recording of the interview. This will help you with your Interview Notes assignment and paper. However, if someone refuses to be recorded, you will have to just take notes during the interview or even jot them down afterwards from memory.
When this assignment is completed, you should permanently delete/erase this recording.

2.     Give context: “My name is ________ and I’m a student at Towson University in a class about disabilities. My assignment is to learn something about what it’s like to be a person (or family member of a person, or an advocate working behalf of individuals) with ____________.”
(Do NOT say this is a “study” or “research.” You are not doing research in a scientific sense.)

3.     Confidentiality: “When I’m sharing anything about my experience talking to you, I will be changing your name and any other details that might lead someone to be able to identify you. I am required to protect your privacy as part of this assignment.”

4.     Some closed-ended “factual” questions:

a.     “How old are you?”

b.     How long have you known you had ____________?

c.     When were you diagnosed with ____________?”

d.     Education background and
(THESE ARE JUST EXAMPLES – PLAN WHAT YOU WILL ASK TO LEARN WHAT YOU WANT TO KNOW)

5.     Some open-ended question ideas:

a.     “Can you tell me about your experience as a person with ____________?” or “What is it like for you to have ____________?

b.     “What is the most challenging thing about having ____________?

c.     “What do you like or dislike about having a visible/invisible disability?”

d.     “How does having _________ affect your physical and mental health?”

e.     “Are there ways in which you wish people would be more supportive of you? What’s the best way people can be supportive?”

f.      “Can you tell me about a time when someone was very insensitive regarding your disability? What was going on there?”

g.     “Can you tell me about any positive aspects of having ____________?

h.     “What do you wish people knew about having _______________? If you could explain anything at all to the world about it, what would you say?”

6.     Prompts: Don’t forget “tell me more,” “uh huh,” “that must’ve been hard/cool/inspiring,” or just nodding.

7.     One more question as you close: “Is there anything else you would like me to know about your experiences as a person (or family member of a person who works as an advocate) with______________?”

8.     Thank them!

9.     Jot down a few notes: Describe the context of your meeting (setting and atmosphere). Write down some of your most significant reactions to the material shared. Were there things said that surprised or moved you?

10.  Reflect: Think about how the interview was influenced by the fact that you were interviewing a stranger, or a close friend or relative. What do you think they may have shared or withheld? Think about what may have been different because the disability was life-long or acquired later, or how things were different because this was a visible or invisible disability. Think about the role of stigma and ableism, and the role (or not) that they played in this person’s experiences and choices.