Interview
Your goal is to get them talking. Listen for what is said, what is implied, what is not said. Try not to insert your opinions and experience.
Start the interview by explaining who you are and why you are interviewing them. Thank them sincerely for giving you their time and thoughts. Be sensitive throughout the interview to whether the person wants to continue.
Sample Interview Questions
Start with questions that are easy and comfortable to answer: 1. What kind of work do you do? Office manager in a professional medical setting 2. How long have you been doing it? 18 years 3. Can you describe a typical work day? Schedule surgery, verify insurance for new patients and oversight of the daily workings of the office.
Then move to questions that require more thought and rapport with the interviewer: 1. Why did you end up doing this work? What kind of person often does this sort of work? (And would they consider themselves typical?) my son had an injury and I met the doctor, when I assisted with a translation the doctor offered me a position and I have been there ever since. 2. What do you like about this work? I love meeting new people, I work with the doctors, but mostly it is the people I like working with. 3. What is difficult about this work? The staff, I have issues with the staff in general. Not enough time to do all the jobs I am asked to do in a day. I am also forced to cover other jobs and still be responsible for my own position. 4. How do (customers, others in the company...) treat you? What do they think about the job you do? [Adapt this question to fit your particular interview--try to get at how they think they are treated based on their work.] The front office staff, has some respect for me, one of the workers knows to ask me as I have been doing this for years, the other worker avoids me but we tend to have confrontations when we do meet because she does not want to follow the set office protocol. The doctors respect my experience and professionalism. I wish I could have combined the job I do now with the job I used to do, it would have prevented so many issues I have now, but I still have a lot to do in the back office so I guess this way works out. 5. How does being a (fill in the blank with a salient cultural category: man, older person, African-American, 20-something, etc.) play into the work you do? Being bilingual is a major factor in my job, being an older woman allows me the respect of years worth of experience and the point of view being a woman offers to the medical field 6. Has this work changed the way you think about yourself, about the world? Yes…I have gained awareness about medical issues, and perspective about the field compared to what I believed before. I also see a huge diversity dealing with all the people who come in and medical reps that come through. I also learned a lot about myself as I watched patients have procedures done right in the office. I have also learned to deal with and strengthen my stomach against. 7. What are some cultural values that are important to you (can be family, work, or interpersonal)? Do you think these are similar to or different from mainstream American culture? Please explain your ideas. Family comes first, respect for your elders, and the work place as well as home respect should always come first. I think a lot of people feel the same, but the younger generation is lacking in many of the values I hold dear. I wish I could help but educating the world is not my responsibility. 8. What do you like best about American culture? What do you like least? (Even if the person is American, they will have an opinion about this question that gives you some insight about how they view things from their perspective.) I have great respect for the emphasis America places on its military members.I do not like the police, I have never liked how the police in American culture are placed in a position to abuse their power. I have never had a good experience with the police. 9. How does your religion affect your daily life? Yes I have seen many different religions that affect medical treatments in different ways.
Thank them again.
Analysis
Think about your interview, the person, and their work. Please consider these questions as you write your journal assignment: 1. What aspects of this person's work determine or indicate their status relative to others? 2. What are some of the connections between this person's work experience and gender, race, age, and /or ethnicity (etc.)? 3. What kinds of attitudes, values, and behaviors does this person's work culture encourage? 4. What attitudes and values, held by this person, were similar to your own, and which were different? 5. From this interview, what can give us insight into communicating across cultures or across work cultures.