Qualities of a Good Interview: Non-

verbals and Question-Asking

Adapted from San Francisco Peer Resources - 60-75 minutes

Objectives
 To learn the elements of an effective interview
 To practice non-verbal communication
 To develop skills for asking questions

Materials
 Computer access with A/V capacity and Internet to show video clips
 Video clip of an interview
 “Watching Interviews” handout (1 per participant)
 “Changing Leading Questions” handout (1 per participant)

Prepare Before
Pick a 2-3 minute clip of an interview that feels relevant for your group. We have used the below interview
clips before because they are all one-on-one interviews without an audience. These interviewers all have very
different styles — you might want participants to watch more than one for examples of different styles. While
all the interviews are lengthy, watch 3-4 minutes of the interview from the recommended time.
Participants will probably have to watch the clip more than once. It might also be helpful for them to watch
part of the interview with the sound off if you want them to focus on non-verbal behavior.

 Nas on Charlie Rose: (start at 2:30)

o http://www.charlierose.com/watch/60399055
 Michael B Jordan/Ryan Coogler on Tavis Smiley, talking about Fruitvale Station (start at 4:00)
o http://video.pbs.org/video/2365048462/
 Amy Tan on Tavis Smiley
o http://www.pbs.org/wnet/tavissmiley/interviews/amy-tan/
 Michael Jackson on Oprah (start at 4:50)
o http://vimeo.com/64605674

Warm Up
How many of you been interviewed before, either for a job, for a school assignment, or by the media? How
comfortable were you in the interview?
What, if anything, did the interviewer do to make you feel welcome? To show they were listening?
Did they ask questions that you did not know how to answer? What did you do?
As a group, list 5-10 qualities of a great interviewer. Ask for an example and definition of open, closed, and
locked questions. Review if necessary.

Experience
We are going to watch some interviews to get some ideas on different strategies for interviewing someone.
Pass out the “Watching Interviews” handouts. During the interview, watch carefully what the interviewer does
and what the interviewer says. In particular, pay attention to how the interviewer shows they are listening and
how they make the interviewee feel valued and welcomed. During the interview, take notes on your worksheet.

Reflect
Review answers to the worksheet.
As a group, discuss the following reflection prompts:

 What did the interviewer do to make the person feel comfortable?

 How did they set up the space?
 What did they ask at the start of the interview?
 What did the interviewer do to make the person feel listened to? How did they sit? What non-verbal
cues did they give? What verbal cues did they give?
 What type of question did they ask the most?
 Give an example of an open question they asked.
 Give an example of a closed question they asked
 Did they keep a neutral tone or not? How could you tell?
 Did they ask any locked questions or questions that felt too personal?
 What, if anything, did they do to keep the person talking and to get long answers?
 Did they paraphrase? When?
 The interviewer has a list of prepared questions and topics they want to discuss. What do they do to
make these prepared questions seem natural?
 What do they do to steer the conversation the way they want to?

Summarize
In a good interview, we will use all the communication skills we’ve learned so far, including question-asking,
paraphrasing, and all non-verbal skills. In addition, the interviewer has to listen very closely to be able to ask
follow-up questions and to get the information they are looking for. The interviewer sets up the environment to
convey the atmosphere they want — serious, relaxed, professional, casual, etc. When you conduct an
interview, you will have to think through all these factors ahead of time. In addition, the interview has to make
sure that their questions are not leading. You don’t want to influence their answers to fit what you want to hear
or to fit what you believe yourself.

Demonstrate
PART 1: ESTABLISHING NON-VERBALS
Come to a consensus to the following questions:
ENVIRONMENT: Interviews should be in a place without interruptions or distractions, in a place that is not
too hot or too cold.
  In this school/organization, where are some places we could do an interview?
 How should the space be arranged?
 As the interviewer, how should you dress?

NON-VERBALS: What should the interview do non-verbally to show they are listening? To show they are
not taking sides?
PART 2: QUESTION ASKING
It’s hard to write good questions for an interview. The interviewer should stay neutral, even though they may
already have an opinion on the topic. One of the most important goals in interviews is to be open-minded and
really hear what people have to say.
Remember that in an interview you want the interviewee to express their own thoughts, not respond to your
thoughts or opinions.
When developing questions, ask yourself:

 Does this question assume a certain opinion?

 Does this question lead someone to a particular answer?

If you answer Yes to either of these questions, your question is probably leading. We are going to practice
rewriting leading questions.
Get students into groups of 3-4 students. Each group will get a worksheet of leading questions that they will
turn into open-ended questions. All groups should share out what they have written and compare examples of
open-ended questions.

 How can you show you are listening in an interview?

 Why is it important that your questions are neutral?

Characteristics of a Good Interview

Characteristics of a Good Interview
Adapted from Paula J. Paul
OAH Magazine of History, Spring 1997
1. Come to the interview well prepared with background knowledge of the subject, familiarity with
your recording equipment, a consent form that the interviewee will sign giving you permission to use
the tape recorded interview for research purposes. You should also mention that the interview will be
archived as part of a larger project documenting the lives of Latino migrants in the United States.

2. Make the narrator as comfortable as possible; polite, friendly behavior will put your interviewee at
ease. Interviews should not begin abruptly. Take the time to introduce yourself and to talk about your
project. For example, “Hello Mr. Jones, I’m Jill Savage. How are you today? Thanks for taking time
to let me interview you about your migration experiences for my oral history project. Let’s find a
quiet place where we can sit down and talk. Where would you like to sit to do the interview? How
would you like to proceed with the interview?”

3. Take time to find a quiet spot in which to conduct the interview. Remember that even the sound of
clocks, pets, chatter, add distracting noises to the recordings and may also distract you and the
interviewer, affecting the overall quality of the interview & recording. Set up the recorder between
yourself and the interviewee. Before you turn on the recorder, ask if the narrator is ready to begin.

4. Begin the interview with a few simple questions that the interviewee can answer easily and
comfortably.

5. Ask questions one at a time and do not rush the interviewee to respond. Allow the interviewee
time to think and respond. Do not become anxious by silence. Silences will make for a better
interview; pause at least ten seconds before asking a new question.

6. Speak clearly so that the interviewee can easily understand and hear you. Keep the questions as
brief as possible so that what you are asking will be clear to the interviewee. Repeat the question if
you need to.

7. Ask as many open ended questions as possible. These questions encourage the interviewee to tell
stories rather than providing yes/no responses.

8. When constructing your questions, write them in clear, plain English. Remember that your
interviewees are not academics.

For example, do not ask: “How has gender impacted your migration experience.” Rather, ask, “What
was your experience like as woman crossing the border?” “How did being a woman affect your
decision to migrate?” “How was your experience as a woman different than that of other migrants
you know?” “Tell me about what your experiences as a single man were like immigrating to the
United States.”

Another example. Do not ask: “Did you access social networks?” or “what social networks if any did
you access?” Instead, consider: “Were there people (family members, friends, or co-workers, for
example) that you depended on to help you with your trip?” Or “Were there family members or
friends that you were able to depend on when you first came to the United States?” Then you can
ask follow up questions if they answer yes…For example: “Who were they? And, in what ways (or
how) did they help you? Was that common practice?”

9. Listen actively to the interviewee’s answers and then ask follow up questions like, “how did you
feel about that?” or “what happened next?” to bring out more details before you go on to the next
question on your page. Respond appropriately to the interviewee. Pause or say something like “that
must have been difficult” if the interviewee describes a painful memory. Also, if the interviewee is
clearly overcome by emotion, ask if they would like to take a break and/or stop the interview and
return to it later.

10. Do not contradict or correct your interviewee and keep your personal opinions to yourself as
much as possible. Do not ask leading questions like: “Tell me about that winter, you must have had a
miserable time.”

11. Do not rush the end of the interview. Have a good closing question that helps the interviewee
summarize or come to a conclusion. You might consider asking them if there is anything they wish to
say that they may not have already told you, before pausing the recorder.

Always thank your interviewee for the time and generosity in helping with your project. Remember
to have the interviewee sign the release form.

Interviewing techniques

Get the most from your meetings

Interviews are an integral part of the recruitment process. The one-to-one contact can provide an
in-depth impression of how a candidate would perform on the job. Getting the most out of
interviewing is a combination of preparation, suitable questioning and listening.

Methods of interviews
There are a number of different approaches to interviews, an example of which is behavioural
event interviewing. This delves into the past and examines how the applicant handled a previous
task or duty. This method works on the premise that the way an applicant worked in the past will
dictate performance in the future.

Consider criteria-based interviewing. The main advantage of this is the way in which it indicates
levels of candidate performance in different areas. This is achieved by constantly testing the
applicant's knowledge through a series of rigid and structured questioning. This is an extremely
formal but effective way to interview on performance alone. The downfall of this method is that
the interviewer needs to be highly skilled in their questioning and there may be a risk that if he or
she doesn't probe enough, the whole interview could prove ineffective.
Preparation
The variety of interview techniques and structures used reflects the number of factors influencing
employers. Personal preferences, different objectives and the past experience of the company
combine to influence the techniques employed. Planning carefully and employing rigorous
questioning and listening techniques can implement all of these methods. You don't have to use
fancy techniques though. Here's a simple checklist:

1) Your requirements
Think about the job specification. What specific skills are you looking for, what experience is
essential and what is desirable? What are the main duties of your position and what is the scope
for career progression within that role? What characteristics are you looking for? Outlining
specific requirements will help to define your questions, and uncover relevant information.

2) Analyse the CV and / or application form in advance

Important but easily overlooked when time is at a premium. From the applicant's written details,
you can highlight strengths and weaknesses. The CV may also emphasise any gaps or issues that
need to be addressed. From this, you can decide on additional areas to probe. You may also want
to discover more about the companies that the applicant has worked for, and their role within
them. For instance, if the position he or she held was that of supervisor, how many staff where
supervised and how did they feel about that? How did they cope? How do they feel about
supervising even more staff? Or less? Use the CV to ask relevant questions for your position.

3) Ensure you have a detailed brief of the job specification

Be prepared for questions regarding this, as well as the company itself. If you are assertive in
your response, it will give the applicant greater confidence and trust in you, and present you in a
professional light. After all, if this is the perfect applicant for your position, wouldn't you like
them to have the best impression of you and the company?

4) The interview room

To get the most out of the applicant, it's important to put him or her at ease. Choose a room
where you won't be disturbed. If it is to be held in your office, divert your calls and ensure no
one interrupts. Imagine how distracting it will be for you and your applicant if the telephone is
constantly ringing or if there's a knock at the door. An informal setting will also put candidates at
ease. Two chairs at a low table are far less threatening than the barrier of a desk.

Your agenda
Have an agenda prepared for the interview. This will help you remain within your time limit and
keep you focused on the questions you need to ask. Have a plan of which questions you need to
ask and when – formulate a clear structure to which you can stick.
Before commencing the interview, remember you will get the most out of the applicant when
they are feeling at ease. You only have a limited amount of time to achieve this. Introduce
yourself, run through the agenda and tell them how long you plan to take. Informing the
applicant of what to expect should help to put them at ease. Ask permission to take notes, it is
courteous and won't alarm the applicant if you suddenly start scribbling an answer down.
Questioning techniques

 Open – who, what, where, when, how and why. Questions that explore and gather a wide
range of information.

 Probing – specific questions relating to details. Check information gained through open
questions.

 Closed – look for the answer to single facts, again used for probing.

 Hypothetical – "How would you feel if..." - leads the applicant to think on a wider scale.
Gives a feel for how the applicant would react, although don't take their answer literally, they
may react differently in the event.

Leave a lasting impression

The applicant is not the only one being tested during the interview. It is critical that you make the
best impression possible. Applicants form lasting opinions of your company from the interview.
Shabby surroundings, a disorganised interviewer, or constant disruptions all reflect badly on the
company. As soon as you meet the applicant you are portraying an impression of that company.
To exude the desired image be organised, well-presented and on time! Reflect the efficiency you
are looking for in your applicants.

Closing the interview

Closing the interview leaves them with their final impression of you. Invite the applicant to ask
questions. He or she may need clarification on issues or you may not have covered an area of
interest for them. Explain what is to follow next - outline a timescale detailing when you expect
to make a decision and when the applicant will be notified. Discuss the interview process. Will
there be a second or third interview, will there be a panel interview, can they expect any tests?

And finally...
As soon as you finish the interview, make a quick summary of what you thought, felt and any
key points. Outline how you left things with the applicant. It's amazing how much you can forget
if you don't do this, especially if you're interviewing more than one person in a day. This will
help you when you make your comparisons for second interviews or for that all important job
offer.
So, next time you're interviewing a selection of applicants or even just the one, there is no excuse
to rush in sweating with absolutely no preparation! Think about the way you want to interview,
analyse the CV and job spec, decide what you want to ask and how you want to ask it. Consider
the impression you make and take notes. With preparation, you'll become a more successful and
efficient interviewer.