Discussion guide
Also known as Interview guide, Interview script
A discussion guide is the plan for a research interview: the goal, the topics to cover in order, and the questions and follow-ups to ask, written so every interview in a study covers the same ground.
What is in a discussion guide?
The decision the research should inform, a short opening script, then sections for context, a recent real example, what the participant has tried, and a closing. Each section has a few open questions and prompts for following up.
Should you follow a discussion guide exactly?
No. It is a guide, not a script. Its job is to make sure you cover the same ground in every interview so the results can be compared, while leaving room to follow the participant when they say something interesting.
What is the difference between a discussion guide and a research plan?
The research plan says why you are doing the study, what you need to learn and who you will talk to. The discussion guide is what you use in each session. The guide's questions should follow from the plan's research questions.
Discussion guide, in brief
- What is a discussion guide?
- A discussion guide is the plan for a research interview: the goal, the topics to cover, and the questions and follow-ups to ask, so every interview in a study covers the same ground.
- How long should a discussion guide be?
- Usually one or two pages. For a thirty-minute interview, around fifteen to twenty questions is plenty, most of them about a single recent example.
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