The Qualitative Research Methods for Everyone podcast brings author and professor Karen O’Reilly into challenging conversations with students, academics and practitioners around the world. Together, they explore how the toolkit approach - a curated collection of expert skills, knowledge, procedures, tools and information - can help navigate the complex terrain of contemporary qualitative research methods. 

This week’s guest is the wonderful and tireless Dr Zsuzsanna Iyizoba-Ebozue. Zsuzsanna is Clinical Oncologist at the Leeds Cancer Centre with research interests in radiotherapy trials, survivorship and quality of life in head and neck cancers. She also works with the Royal College of Radiologist to promote diversity, equality and inclusion in clinical oncology education and research. I have been working with her recently on qualitative research about differential attainment and a reverse mentoring scheme she has been piloting.

Our discussion centers on Chapter 4, Interviewing. Zsuzsanna talks about her research with oncology patients and professionals and how adapted her original approach to interviewing to be more open and flexible. We discuss what objectivity and interpretivism mean in practice and conclude that an interview that proceeds as a conversation involves learning on both sides.

Zsuzsanna reflects on how her interview participants must have seen her—as either a fellow professional or as a clinician—and how this may have shaped their responses. We agree this is something to think about before, during and after an interview. We share a great discussion about creative and alternative approaches to interviewing and I give a few examples from my own work, including photo elicitation and online interviews. 

Special thanks to Bahar Celik Muller, Senior Marketing Executive and Martha Gleeson, Digital Marketing Executive, for their support, advice and expertise.

Find out more about the book: https://policy.bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/qualitative-research-methods-for-everyone

Intro music: Good Times Are Coming by Bohdan Kuzmin from Pixabay.

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