Interview Based Research

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Interview Based Research

• Arnie Wright

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Interview Based Research

• Cohen, Krishnamoorthy, and Wright. 2002.
  Corporate Governance and the Audit Process.
  Contemporary Accounting Research (Winter)
  573-594.
• Conducted semi-structured interviews with 36
  auditors on current audit practices in
  considering corporate governance in the audit
  process.

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Interview Based Research

• Why interviews?
• Little prior research or auditing standards on
  how various actors in the corporate governance
  mosaic influence the audit process.
• Interviews provide an in depth understanding of
  behaviors and attitudes and reasons for such
  behaviors and attitudes.

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Interview Based Research

• Interviews very costly participant/researcher
  time development of interview instrument data
  analysis (transcription and coding).
• Thus, interviews should be carefully designed
  with clear purpose (theory) in mind and plan for
  method and analysis

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Interview Based Research

• Pilot test questions
• Clarity
• Achieve the intended purpose
• Conducting the interview
• Attempt to develop a rapport with the
  interviewee. Explain importance of the research
  and begin with factual questions (e.g., years of
  experience).

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Interview Based Research

• Criteria for questions
• Is question related to research objective?
• Is the type of question appropriate?
• Fixed-alternative (Do you believe the CEO should
  also be the chair of the Board? Yes, No, Dont
  Know)
• Strong reliability of coding
• Little depth and can force a response

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Interview Based Research

• Open-ended questions (How do you feel about
  having the CEO also serve as the chair of the
  Board?)
• Allows for flexibility and depth of response
• Harder to code
• Scale questions (CEOs frequently also serve as
  the chair of the Board. Do you agree with this
  practice? 1strongly disagree 5neutral
  10strongly agree)
• Good coding reliability and means to express
  beliefs
• Can be followed up with open-ended questions (Why
  do you believe this?)
• In all, must decide degree interview will be
  open-ended vs. structured

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Interview Based Questions

• Is the question clear and unambiguous?
• For instance, avoid ambiguous terms such as Do
  audit committees by and large do a good job?
• Is the question a leading question? (Are you
  familiar with SAS 99 on Fraud Detection?)
• Does the question demand knowledge and
  information that the respondent does not have?
• Consider questions to probe level of knowledge

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Interview Based Research

• Does the question demand personal or delicate
  material that the respondent may resist?
• Assure respondents responses confidential
• Ask for such information at end
• Is the question loaded with social desirability?
  (When you are in a dispute with management on an
  ambiguous reporting issue, does the level of
  client fees impact your decision as to whether to
  pursue the matter with the audit committee?)