Application of Interview Protocol Refinement Framework in Systematically Developing and Refining a Semi-structured Interview Protocol

A semi-structured interview is a data collection method used in qualitative inquiry. It involves the use of preconstructed questions to elicit information about a topic under investigation. A well-prepared interview protocol is an important tool for collecting quality data. Hence, preparing interview protocols and refining them to ensure precision and relevance is an important step to warrant the credibility and quality of data. This article discusses the steps taken to refine an interview protocol developed to conduct an analysis of the English language speaking skills needs of front office operators in the Maldives tourism industry. It describes the application of the Interview Protocol Refinement (IPR) Framework to refine the interview protocol. The four phases of the IPR Framework were used: (1) ensuring interview questions aligned with research questions, (2) constructing an inquiry-based conversation, (3) receiving feedback on the interview protocol, and (4) piloting the interview protocol. The application of the IPR Framework resulted in a fine-tuned interview protocol. The first phase helped to attain interview questions aligned with research questions. This phase helped in fine-tuning the interview protocol by ensuring that the interview questions aligned with the purpose of the research. The second phase allowed the building of an inquiry-based conversation that reflects the context of the research, thus creating an interview protocol designed to obtain specific information through conversation. The next phase aided in improving the protocol based on readers’ feedback. This phase helped in refining the interview questions by changing the content and wording of some questions and reordering them. The last phase resulted in conducting an interview in a real setting and testing the interview protocol. This helped to refine the interview protocol further by rephrasing interview questions for clarity, adding details to some questions, and modifying the linguistic composition of some questions. The IPR Framework involves an iterative refining process, thus enhancing the quality and trustworthiness of the interview protocol.