Five types distinguishable by their use of restricted and unrestricted questions

Biased questions also are useful if we are trying to test the respondent. We can determine how independent he is, how well he responds under stress, or how prone he is to provid socially approved responses. For example, if we asked. Are you a sexist? or Are you prejudiced against women in business? he probably would answer no even if he did harbour such prejudices. If, however, we asked, Women really are too emotional to be good administrators, aren't they? we might elicit a true attitude which otherwise might have been suppressed. In any of these situations the biased question, properly applied, would be more useful than an unbiased inquiry.

Question Sequences

Our final consideration here is the order in which questions are to be posed during an interview. While a virtually infinite number of sequences could be identified,

we shall consider five types distinguishable by their use of restricted and unrestricted questions.

The first type of sequence, the pyramid, begins with unrestricted questions and builds upon them with questions of increasing restrictedness. We might begin by asking a general question about the interviewee's attitude toward work and then become increasingly specific by focusing on particular aspects of the interviewee's position, moving perhaps from conditions in general to her to his supervisors and to one paticular supervisor. Rather than focus immediately upon a specific topic which may be personal or difficult for the interviewee to discuss, then, this technique begins with unrestricted questions which are relatively easy to answer and gradually narrows down to more sensitive areas. If the respondent does not touch upon certain areas of interest, the pyramid may be useful in gaining that specific infalmation

A second sequence, the inverted pyramid, is the reverse of the first. The interviewer begins with specific restricted questions and gradually moves to more general:

unresnicted inquiries. This technique is pat1icularly useful when the respondent is reluctant to talk, for often one can be motivated by a restricted question in an area that interests one and, once one begins talking, can be directed toward more general considerations.

The third and fourth sequence types involve

combinations of the first two. The diamond sequence begins with restricted questions, moves to unrestricted inquiries, and then narrows again to a specific -topic through a series of increasingly specif?c questions. If, for example, we were counselling an employee, we might begin with a situation analogous to his. Through resnicted questions, his feelings and thoughts about that situation could be elicited and converted into general principles as the questions become increasingly open. Then, to apply those principles to the interviewee's own situation, a series of questions increasing in restrictedness would again focus the conversation. An alternative to this procedure is the hourglass sequence, in which unrestricted questions become increasingly resnicted and are then followed by questions which again become increasingly open. Suppose we are interviewing a supervisor who has been sharply criticized by her subordinates for her heavy-handed tactics. We might begin the interview with a discussion of human
motivation in general, gradually nan-ow the topic to her specific situation, and then become general again defining principles of appropriate managerial behaviour. This pe of sequence often is useful in changing both the specIfic behaviours and general attitudes of the interviewee.A fifth type of sequence is the tunnel. Interviews of ,his sort employ questions all of the same degree of
trictedness. If we are interested only in the spontaneous ;'

reactions of the interviewee, this sequence may be useful; if, however, we want in-depth information, attitudinal or behavioural change, or a sharing of deep emotions, one of the other formats would be more appropriate.