Computer-Mediated Anthropology

An Online Resource Center

CMA Methodology: Online Interviews

by Noah Porter, 2004

These interviews were conducted over the Internet to investigate a topic not specifically Internet-related: people's work experiences. (However, some people's jobs involved the Internet.) This section shows how Internet methodology might be used to supplement more traditional anthropological subject matter.

Commentary about the interviews are in red.

 

 

Interview 1: Daniel

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Daniel: ok, you can ask questions, but expect delays, heh
----It is important to note that the pace of a conversation over chat varies by culture, individual, and situation. In this case, Daniel has indicated to me that I should be patient with his responses. Establishing consensus about the pace of conversation facilitates rapport.

Noah: Okay. First one is just to get some background on you...

Noah: What is your age, sex, race/ethnicity, religion, marital status, and location? Is there anything else you would like to add that you think is important to understanding who you are?

Daniel: I am 26, male, white, borderline agnostic, single and in Michigan. Any other necessary information would have to be specifically asked for, as basic details like that really do not explain identity or help fasciliate much understanding

Noah: Tell me about your job.

Daniel: I work in technical support in a large corporation enviornment supporting proprietary software on UNIX servers.
----Here is where a lack of technical knowledge is a disadvantage for the anthropologist. I lacked the knowledge to ask any meaningful follow-up questions to these specifics.

Noah: Describe a typical work day for you.

Daniel: I take calls from people who need technical help with their servers. I talk to people all over North America. There really isn't much to go into as it is rather routine.
----As with any interview, the informant makes assumptions about what is common knowledge that may be incorrect. In retrospect, I could have asked a lot more specifically about who these callers were, their problems, their conversations, and so on.

Noah: Do you have a lot of time between calls for other activities, or do the calls keep you busy?

Daniel: Depends. Sometimes it's terribly busy, sometimes it is slow. I work a later shift, so usually by the end of the day, I have lots of free time

Noah: What do you usually do when it is slow?

Daniel: Chat with people, post on message boards, and browse web sites

Noah: Are you allowed to do that, or do you have to be secretive about it?

Daniel: It's against the rules, but there is sort of a "don't ask, don't tell" policy in effect.
----I have just uncovered some information that could get my informant in trouble here if he was still working at that job. Online or offline, the ethical principle of protecting one's informants still applies.

Noah: Do you the same people consistently call you for tech support, or are you constantly dealing with new people on the phone?

Daniel: It's mostly new people, but there are a few people I am familar with.

Noah: Do you talk with any of them on a more friendly basis?

Daniel: I mean, on a chit chatty level, sure. Sometimes. If they are cordial. I'm not too particular with how friendly the interaction is or is not.

Noah: Are you always able to solve their problems, or do you ever get stumped?

Daniel: Most of the problems are routine. Occasionally a call with crop up with a seemingly unknown solution, but 99% of the time a solution is found. I mean, it's Unix, not Windows.
----I could have followed up here and asked what he meant by this. However, the anthropologist must make decisions about what is the best use of the informant's time, and I felt that was not it.

Noah: What do you do when a solution is not found?

Daniel: Put them on hold... umm... indefinately? heh

Noah: How long have you worked at your job?

Daniel: Just this year.

Noah: What made you decide to take the job you have?

Daniel: The opportunity presented itself, and the job I was working wasn't particularly ideal.

Noah: What was not particularly ideal about the job you were working?

Daniel: The schedual among other things. It was 6 days a week, working both weekend days and I had to be there at 6 am. It was a job I took when I first moved here and needed money. This job cropped up and I defected immediately.

Noah: How many hours do you work a week at your current job?

Daniel: 40. Very strict 40 hour schedual, which is fine by me. 40 is enough to live on, and not enough to be oppresive.

Noah: Does your schedule fluctuate or stay consistent?

Daniel: Consistant. Very consistent.

Noah: Does your job ever call you in to work on your off days? If so, why and how often?

Daniel: No, they do not. As I said, the schedual is very non-flexible, and is extremely consistant.

Noah: How do you get to work?

Daniel: I drive. It's about 13 miles from my home.

Noah: How do you get along with your boss and coworkers?

Daniel: I really try to communicate with them all as little as possible. Fortunately, the nature of my job requires very little "team work", and thus little contact with them. I prefer to work alone. Although, most of my coworkers and supervisors are "cool", I simply prefer to come to work and not be bothered.

Noah: Do they respect your preference to be left alone?

Daniel: I do not know. I assume so, since they leave me alone.

Noah: Why do you prefer to be left alone at work if they seem "cool" to you?

Daniel: Because I really am not here to socialize, and my mind set is largely just "work". I talk with people on chat lines while at work, but that isn't nearly as distracting as trying to have a conversation in "real life" and getting interupted by a phone call.
----Note how Daniel adds quotation marks around certain words. In an offline interview, the anthropologist would have to listen for certain intonations of speech and translate them into the appropriate punctuation. In online interviews, there is a trade-off between a restricted range of intonations with perfect replication of the informants' intended punctuation.

Noah: Do you get a lunch break at your job? If so, what do you usually do for your lunch break?

Daniel: I get 30 minutes a day. I just go to a store and look for food. As you can see from this diagram I just walk to 7-11 and buy food.
----Despite what I just said about the perfect replication of intonation through punctuation, this part of the interview cannot be reproduced here. The chat program I used includes a feature whereby images can be inserted, and Daniel inserted an aerial map of his work and vicinty. The reason this cannot be reproduced here is that I do not think it would be ethical to do so, and even if I did, I do no't think I saved the image.

Noah: What do you usually eat?

Daniel: There is no "usually" to it. I just go in and buy whatever it is I feel like eating and is available. I try not to have a pattern of eating.

Noah: Where do you usually go to eat after buying your food?

Daniel: Sometimes my car, sometimes my desk, sometimes to the break room where I can often find Jehova's Witness propaganda to read.

Noah: Do you know who leaves the Jehova's Witness propaganda there?

Daniel: I don't have an 'inkling'. Im not sure if I want to know. But it's amusing to read anyways.

Noah: Do you eat alone?

Daniel: Yes. They setup breaks so no one goes at the same time.

Noah: Do you like your job? Why or why not?

Daniel: I like the job, the pay could be better. I don't really care for the actual work, but the enviornment is relaxed and I work a later shift. Both of these are usually things I prefer to have in a work place.

Noah: Tell me about something interesting or amusing that happened at your job.

Daniel: Working in technical support tends to yield rather amusing stories. Earlier today I was working with a guy who was confused as to why his server wouldnt work after he was picking it up and dropping it on the concrete floor.

Noah: Would you like to work where you are working for the rest of your life?

Daniel: Most definately not.

Noah: Do you have another job in mind that you would like to work at?

Daniel: I'm not presently looking for something. But eventually I will likely leave Michigan, so naturally, finding a new job will be an issue

Noah: Is there anything else you'd like to say about your job that we haven't covered?

Daniel: mmmm, I can't think that there is anything relevent to share regarding employment.

Noah: Okay. Thanks for letting me interview you.
----As with offline interviews, it is helpful to thank the informant for helping you out. Most likely, they gave their time as a favor to you rather than deriving any tangible benefit from doing so, and it's only polite that you recognize that. Do not assume that just because someone is online, they have plenty of time to indulge your each and every whim.

Daniel: most certainly welcome:d

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Interview 2: Beth

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Beth: fire away

Noah: What is your age, sex, race/ethnicity, religion, marital status, and location? Is there anything else you would like to add that you think is important to understanding who you are?

Beth: 22, female, white, no religion, married, bay city MI

Beth: nothing else to add

Noah: Tell me about your job.

Beth: what about it?
----Sometimes a general question works well because your informant is free to interpret the question as they see fit. Other times, informants get confused by general questions and need specific ones. This certainly falls into the latter category.

Noah: Where do you work and what do you do?

Beth: ok

Beth: i work at Family Dollar. What I do is we unload the trucks, put stock out, run the registers, we have to set the store up by monthly plans that the company wants done

Beth: thinking.........

Beth: tons of paper work, cleaning the store, customer service,

Noah: Describe a typical work day for you.

Beth: pricing items and that is all i can think of

Beth: oh shit, well i wait on customers, straighten the store, put out stock that needs to be done,

Beth: and any other tasks that need to be done

Noah: What kind of stuff do you sell at the Family Dollar?

Beth: a little bit of everything

Noah: Is it like Wal-Mart?
----Here, another issue of familiarity arises. Unlike with Daniel, however, this is not technical knowledge, but rather location-based knowledge. Were I to be in her area, I would probably not need to ask about the store. If the anthropologist was to interview someone from a different country rather than just a different state, the knowledge gap would presumably be much wider.

Beth: cleaning products, clothing, toilet paper and stuff

Beth: some food

Beth: a very small walmart

Beth: tiny tiny one

Beth: best way to put it is a little variety store

Noah: What kind of people shop there?
----This was admittedly a semi-vague question, although not as vague as the earlier one, as evidenced by her willingess to answer this one. By keeping the question a bit vague, I discovered what categories of identities were salient to her. (Anthropologists would probably assume ethnicity to be worthy of mention and olfactory-status not to be, but this was not the case here.)

Beth: old people, young people, teens, business people

Beth: smelly people

Noah: hehe... You've had customers come through your line that smell?

Beth: god yes

Beth: i have puked from 4 people

Beth: nasty ones

Beth: next question
----Again, we have the issue of pace arising. It may have been interesting to ask what they smelled like, as it may indicate something about the community. For instance, people who smell like fish may indicate a large number of fishermen in her community. However, Beth has indicated a desire to move on. A question for your consideration: would it have been impolite or even unethical to continue discussing a subject matter when the informants has expressed a desire to move on?

Noah: How long have you worked at your job?

Beth: 4 months

Noah: What made you decide to take the job you have?

Beth: i knew the manager and she needed someone badly to work there

Noah: She is a friend of yours?

Beth: she was related to my mother in law, she was our first landlord

Beth: her husband was john's mom cousin

Noah: So she was your husband's mom's cousin's husband? That's a pretty distant connection. Was she nice to you as a landlord?

Beth: oh yes

Beth: sweet lady who needs to laid badly
----Here is another comment that could get my informant in trouble. If she was still working the same job, I would have to be more careful about using this interview since she could conceivably lose her job.

Beth: lol

Noah: How many hours do you work a week at your current job?

Beth: she was the wife not the husband

Beth: now it will go down to 20 hours

Noah: (Oops, that's what I meant. =))

Beth: lol

Noah: How much did it used to be?

Beth: 30 to 40

Noah: Why is it dropping down to 20?

Beth: cause xmas is over so it will not be as busy

Beth: and so they cut payroll hours

Noah: So your schedule fluctuates a lot, I take it?

Beth: yes

Beth: it is screwy there

Noah: Does it matter to you whether you work 20 or 40 hours?

Beth: the over work store managers and screw everyone else

Beth: i'm pissed off, so i'm looking for a second job

Beth: in the medical field

Beth: a nursing assistant

Noah: You're pissed off because you don't like the schedule fluctuating like that?

Beth: yes

Beth: i like working there otherwise

Beth: i get along with everyone

Noah: Does your job ever call you in to work on your off days? If so, why and how often?

Beth: not unless the other workers call in

Beth: that is it

Noah: Does that happen often?

Beth: no

Beth: just once

Noah: What happened that one time?

Beth: the other cashier's sister tried to commite suicide

Beth: and was taken to the hospital

Noah: So I take it you understood they had a good reason and didn't mind being called in?

Beth: i don't mind

Beth: more hours

Noah: How do you get to work?

Beth: i drive, lol
----The use of acronyms sometimes says something about the informants' Internet experience and identity. For instance, I have observed that younger people tend to use frequent abbreviations and acronyms, while young adults use them more sparingly. This is an area in need of some study, I believe.

Noah: Is it a long drive?

Beth: no

Beth: 5 to 7 minutes

Noah: You said you get along with everyone. Does that include both your managers and coworkers?

Beth: yup

Noah: Do you talk to any of them outside of work?

Beth: yes, my assistant manager Kathy

Noah: You and her hang out together?

Beth: sometimes

Beth: we chat online together

Beth: and hang out at her house

Noah: Do you get a lunch break at your job? If so, what do you usually do for your lunch break?

Beth: if can have a break if we want, but usually one person will go get lunch for everyone who wants it

Beth: or have lunch delivered

Beth: then we eat it up front by the registers

Noah: What kinds of food do you usually eat?

Beth: fast food, burgers and fries

Noah: Do you socialize with the other employees while you are eating?

Beth: yes

Noah: Do you like your job? Why or why not?

Beth: yes, it is easy and i get along with everyone which makes working fun

Noah: Where did you work before having this job? Why don't you work there anymore?

Beth: i worked at a clothing store called Deb's, and i got fired because John's dad was hospitalized

Noah: Why did they fire you because of that?

Beth: it is a long story, to long to type
----Once again, the informant has set the pace for the anthropologist. It is interesting to note that she says "too long to type" rather than something like "long story". This suggests that typing may be seen as a more arduous form of communication, and I may have had better luck in person or over the phone.

Noah: Do you like your new job better than your old one?

Beth: yes i do

Noah: Tell me about something interesting or amusing that happened at your job.

Beth: like us workers joking around?

Noah: Sure.

Noah: Can you remember any particularly funny instances of joking around?

Beth: mustly it is sex talk

Beth: nothing else comes to mind

Noah: Nothing funny ever happened with dealing with the customers or anything like that?

Beth: no not really

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