Structured Interviews
User interviews are one of the most commonly used methods in user research. They can cover almost all user-related topics and be used, for example, to gather information on users’ feelings, motivations, and daily routines. The interviews often follow the same methodology as qualitative interviews in other fields, but with the specific purpose of informing a design project. Besides, user interviews can be a great way to summarize your users because user interviews can give you an in-depth understanding of the users’ values, perceptions, and experiences. They allow you to ask specific questions while remaining open to exploring your participants’ points of view.
Description
This is a structured interview designed for Ege. The goal of this interview is to get to know about Ege’s subjective interpretations of doing group projects, what kind of research interests when it comes to group projects that into him, and the opinion on how the project groups should be determined later in the semester.
Design Process and Rationale
In order to give a deep understanding of Ege’s attitude toward the group projects, I design and create some questions that can get close to his thoughts and reflect his real opinions/feelings on the group project. During the interview and through the questions I asked, can let me get a basic structure of Ege's thinks and what is his perspective on things. While I was talking to him, the things I did which are trying to catch his point on notes, writing down his key words for the response, some points that we resonated with each other, and the empathy map, all of these are generates the behavior and the attitude in an explicit way. Base on his responses, it also brings me to the next level of comprehending his attitude and feelings-somethings that I gain the implied message from it, which the resources he always uses while doing the group project, topics that he always comfortable with, and the working styles that he uses to has, that provides me even much better understanding of his research interests and his thoughts on how project groups should be determined for the group project later in the semester.
Methods
To address all these considerations and to accomplish this goal, the interview provides different aspects of the questions. Besides, Ege’s response can reflect his attitude and research interests toward the goal. Within the empathy map, shows the way how does he thinking about the questions. It’s also provided me with better insights from this interview and his subjective interpretations.
- Interview Questions
- What is your feeling when it comes to the group project? Why or Why not? Please be specific.
- What are some pros and cons of working on a group project?
- Base on the situation(the pandemic) right now, do you think it is good to have a group project or don’t have a group project for online classes? Why?
- Could you share one of your group project experiences before? Do you think the project goes as you expected?
- When you start a new project, what kind of topics pops up in your mind immediately? Why?
- Could you mind sharing your design style? Or what kind of things that you keep gaining information/messages/inspiration from?
- What are some areas(can be anything) that you will never touch while you are doing design?
All these questions that I create are to explore how Ege feels about group projects and his thoughts when it comes to group projects. The questions also relate to some kinds of design styles that lead me to his research interests, which is very important.
- Responses and Keywords
Based on his response and the keywords/notes that I write down during the interview, Ege feels a little bit difficult to do the group project in this kind of situation. However, group projects are great practice to learn how to collaborate with others. The experience of working in a group before gives him a great sense of learning.
- Empathy Map
This is an empathy map of Ege in says, thinks, feels, and does during the interview. It can let me get to know Ege’s attitude and divergent thinking during the interview. It should be a key part of knowing his interests.
- Insights From My Experience
We are indeed in a special period right now, everyone seems to be used to the online platform. But there are lots of unknown things that will show up when it comes to group projects. Probably people in the different time zone that it’s hard to be on the same page of the process. Ege brings up a good point that it does feel difficult to coordinate a group project, even though Zoom helps a lot.
Purpose
The purpose of using all these methods is to make sure I can get a comprehensive understanding of the research interests of Ege and the way how he thinks about project groups should be determined for the group project later in the semester. Also, the explicit and implied information that I could gain from this interview leads me to know more about the personality, the working style, and the things that attract him.
Conclusion
From this interview with Ege, I have a bettering understanding of his research interests and the subjective interpretations of group projects. Ege’s passion for digital products, he considers himself to be someone who can be useful at different levels while doing projects. For the project that he doesn’t familiar with, he still can take in idea brainstorming is to develop ideas. Through the communication with Ege, I know that he doesn’t put aesthetics in the first place when he doing design. However, one thing that he mentions during the interview, he says he wants to explore arts on the internet, which the research interests that he wants to do experiencing art on the internet. That makes me feel he is the kind of person who really wants to put both functional and aesthetics to improve his works to the next level.
