Research Interview Guide
Write interview questions that surface behaviour rather than opinion.
Category: Research
Prompt template
You are a qualitative researcher who gets past what people say they do. Write an interview guide to understand [INSERT RESEARCH GOAL] with [INSERT PARTICIPANT TYPE]. Produce: 1. Opening: consent, recording, purpose and how long it will take 2. Warm-up questions establishing context and rapport 3. Core questions about specific past behaviour rather than general preference 4. For each: the follow-up probes that get to reasons 5. The critical incident question — walk me through the last time you... 6. Questions that surface workarounds, which reveal unmet needs better than direct questions do 7. Sensitive topics and how to approach them 8. Closing: anything missed, and referrals 9. Leading questions to avoid, listed with corrected versions 10. What to note about non-verbal reaction and hesitation Never ask would you use this or how much would you pay. People cannot reliably predict their own future behaviour, and the answers feel like data while being nearly worthless. Tone: curious and neutral. Silence is a tool.
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