Methods of deciding who to interview
I chose Ethnography of vegetarians, cooking clubs, dining hall interactions as my topic and I intend to base most of my discussion on ethnography of vegetarians. Being a qualitative research paper and a topic on vegetarianism my scope on who to interview was narrow as many people did not associate themselves with vegetarianism. Due to gender equality, I chose two females and two males of ages twenty to forty. My candidates were familiar with the topic (Ethnography of vegetarians) and comfortable with the questions I had for them. I selected them randomly for better and more accurate results.
The main criteria I used to decide on who to interview was diversity. I wanted to have opinions and views of various people of the subject matter. The age difference of between (20-45 years) as mentioned earlier is significant as eating habits in people change with, among other factors, age, and personality. The goal was to focus on acquiring different character types alongside dietary patterns. I accumulated data on what sorts of foods my participants took and why they eat them, as background knowledge to build up the interview guide. I also observed the eating routines of my participants as well as put into consideration where they were raised and the childhood diets they had.
Interview Guide
An interview guide is a list of points of a specific topic that one plan on covering in the interview with the critical questions that need to addressed by the researcher and interviewees to make the study a success. Most of my questions were open-ended to elicit more discussion on the topic.
- Good afternoon. First, I would like to thank you for making time for this interview. My name is …………. From ………… school. As I had informed you earlier, we are going to have a discussion on the topic “Ethnography of Vegetarians.”
- May I record this interview referencing purposes? Your identity will be concealed, and the recording will be used solely on research purposes.
- Please can you tell me your name and occupation, and what you grew up eating as your staple food?
- Is what you grew up eating the same kind of food you mostly eat today? If Yes/No give a reason.
- Do you think what you eat today, can be termed as a healthy diet? Or as eating healthy?
- Have you heard of vegetarians? What is the first impression you always have when someone tells you they are vegetarians? That is interesting. Please elaborate.
- Why do you think people choose to be Vegetarians?
- There is a lot of stereotyping when it comes to the ethnography of vegetarians. What is your take on this?
- Do you think by being a vegan you are leading a healthy life? Or do you believe vegans are eating healthy?
- If vegetarianism entails eating plant-based foods (vegetables and fruits), then does it mean vegans lack essential nutrients and minerals found in other foods such as carbohydrates and proteins?
- How much do you use on food a month?
- Between eating out and cooking your food, which do you find to be cheaper? Explain.
- Do you think being a vegan or eating a vegetarian diet is expensive as many say it is?
- Lastly, would you become a vegetarian? If Yes/No give a reason.
- Thank you very much for your time to participate in this interview. I appreciate it.