Differentiate between structured and unstructured interviews.

Differentiate between structured and unstructured interviews.

Answer:

First and foremost, a structured interview is a sort of personal interview in which the interviewer follows a predetermined pattern and the questions are pre-written. It employs highly systematised recording procedures. It is a quantitative research approach used for survey purposes, with the goal of delivering pre-determined questions. While an unstructured interview has no set pattern, the interviewer may have a few planned questions prepared ahead of time. It is a qualitative research approach in which the interview questions are prepared ahead of time. Because the interview is unplanned, it adopts an informal style in which the interviewer and interviewee engage in a casual dialogue.

The primary distinction between organized and unstructured interviews:

1. A structured interview is one in which the questions to be asked of the applicants are predetermined. An unstructured interview in which the questions to be asked of the applicants are not pre-planned.

2. Structured interview is pre-planned and uses the same set of questions for all candidates, the data gathered is quantitative in nature. In contrast to an unstructured interview where various questions are asked of different applicants and qualitative data is gathered.

3. The structured interview is used to collect information in descriptive research since it is reasonably inexpensive and allows for easy conclusions. In contrast, unstructured interviews are employed as basic tools in experimental studies.

4. In a structured interview, the questions given to the candidate are closed-ended, requiring a specific piece of information from the candidates, or requiring him/her to choose from a set of possibilities. In contrast to an unstructured interview, the questions are open-ended and can be addressed in a variety of ways, allowing the applicant to provide insightful responses and thereby persuade the interviewer.

5. Positivists employ organized interviews, whereas interpretivists prefer unstructured interviews.

6. The structured interview is used for validating results when the number of candidates is quite large. Unlike an unstructured interview, which is meant to get personal information from the candidate in order to determine whether he is the proper fit for the position.

Conclusion, when the interview is structured, the same questions are put before the candidates, which are job-related. When the interview is unstructured, however, questions may change from applicant to interviewee, even for the same position and may or may not be connected to the job.

Furthermore, there is a pre-developed technique or guide to examine the results in a structured interview. As against this, there is no such pre-developed system or guide for checking interview results.