# Interview Guide Templates

Purpose: Semi-structured interview design, question selection, and session execution.
Contents: guide skeleton, question types, question rules, session checklist.

## Semi-Structured Interview Guide

```markdown
## Interview Guide: [Topic]

### Metadata
- Research Question: [Main question]
- Duration: 45-60 minutes
- Participants: [Target segment]
- Date: YYYY-MM-DD

### Introduction (5 min)
- Explain purpose
- Explain recording and anonymity
- Confirm the right to skip questions
- Obtain recording consent

### Warm-up (5 min)
1. Tell me about your role or context.
2. How often do you do [task/category]?

### Main Questions (35-40 min)
#### Topic 1: Current Behavior
- Walk me through the last time you did [task].
- What steps did you take?
- What was hardest?

#### Topic 2: Pain Points
- What frustrates you most about [domain]?
- How do you handle that today?
- What changes if it gets solved?

#### Topic 3: Goals & Motivations
- What does success look like for [task]?
- Why does that matter?

### Wrap-up (5 min)
1. What should I have asked but did not?
2. What feels most important from this conversation?
3. Can we follow up if needed?
```

## Question Types

| Type | Purpose | Example |
|------|---------|---------|
| Opening | Build rapport and context | "Tell me about your work." |
| Descriptive | Capture behavior | "Walk me through the last time you did [task]." |
| Structural | Understand priorities and models | "What matters most in that process?" |
| Contrast | Reveal tradeoffs and values | "How does A differ from B?" |
| Evaluative | Capture emotion or satisfaction | "How did that feel?" |
| Hypothetical | Explore latent needs, sparingly | "If you could change one thing, what would it be?" |

## Question Design Rules

**Do**
- Start open, then narrow.
- Ask about past behavior before future intent.
- Reuse the participant's own words in probes.
- Let silence work.

**Don't**
- Ask leading questions.
- Combine multiple questions into one.
- Signal judgment on answers.
- Reveal your preferred answer.

## Session Checklist

**Before**
- guide reviewed
- recording tested
- consent ready
- backup notes ready

**During**
- consent recorded
- open-ended questions first
- probes use participant language
- silence tolerated
- non-verbal cues captured

**After**
- immediate debrief written
- quotes highlighted
- surprises logged
- recording labeled and stored safely
