Interviews

One of the most important sources of case study information is interviews (Yin, 2009). Interviewing is often regarded as verbal questioning (Sarantakos, 2005: 268). It is a procedure used for gathering oral data according to particular categories.The major advantage of using an interview as a data collection method lies in its strength as a strategy to find out from people things that we cannot directly observe; it also provides potential access to understanding what people know, what they like or dislike, and what they think (Cohen, Manion and Morrison, 2000: 268). In terms of a case study, Yin argues that ‘interviews are an essential source of case study evidence because most case studies are about human affairs or behavioural events’ (2009: 108). In his view interviews are ‘verbal reports only’ (ibid). The researcher, throughout the interview process, can follow his/her own line of inquiry, as reflected by the case study protocol, to obtain responses to actual questions in an unbiased manner that also serves the needs of the line of inquiry (Yin, 2009).

With this in mind, three different types of interviews were conducted in order to understand translation students’ worlds from different angles. They were post-task focused-group interviews with students, focus group interviews with Chinese teachers and individual interviews. Relevant interview questions were developed for these different interviews. They were predetermined and drafted in the case study protocol. These interviews served first, to gather information and opinions or perceptions from interviewees; second, for further exploration and interpretation; and third, the interview data were analysed in combination with those from the translation task and document analysis. Themes and details were to be explored

101 according to the research questions (See Section 3.11). They are discussed in greater detail in Chapter 5.

Table 3.2: Interview types and questions Interview types

Post-task focused group interviews with students

Central questions Main issues

1. How do you feel about the translation task? Is this translation task difficult for you?

Students’ retrospective views of the task, their feelings and attitudes

2. Can/Do you apply the theories of translation you have learned in this task?

Students’ knowledge of theoretical elements of translation in application 3. Do you think that your curriculum reflects

what you need in your study?

Students’ opinions on their study of translation Focus group

interview with Chinese teachers of translation

1. I would like to know the role of translation theory in your teaching. Would you please describe it and link it to your practice?

Teachers’ pedagogical opinions in teaching translation theory and practice

2. Can you tell me what theoretical content you have for your students in teaching?

Theoretical elements in pedagogy

3. What are your examinations and assessment in the courses of theory?

Assessment methods 4. How do you think of theory in translation

teaching?

Translation as ‘a subject’; role of theory

Individual interviews with - department head

Some relevant questions are chosen and listed as follow:

1. Can you tell me some information about the translation courses in your school?

General comments on translation course 2. Have you any problem arranging

theoretical courses?

Teaching and staffing in relation to theory elements 3. How about your teaching staff in

translation?

Staff deployment for translation courses - librarian 1. What are the translation textbooks you

have?

Teaching materials 2. Do the translation students use resources,

like books and journals?

Sustainable learning environment - secretary 1. Do your students take interest in choosing

courses relating translation practice?

Curriculum design 2. How do you know how many students

choose translation courses?

Students’ interest and attendance

Amongst all kinds of interviewing techniques, I took a standardized semi-structured format. Interview questions were developed in relation to the research questions and literature review. A preliminary list of questions for each type of interview was developed to explore the meaning which may relate to the students’ construction of

102 knowledge (see Table 3.2). Though the format allowed flexibility and freedom, carefully worded and considered interview questions were written in advance exactly as they were to be asked during the interview (Patton, 1990). Each question was checked to ensure that it was free of jargon, idioms or syntax likely to cause interference with the participants’ understanding.

All interviews were semi-structured, in particular with the student participants and teachers. On one hand, semi-structured interviews were designed to follow up what the participants thought of translation, in particular about the translation theories they had encountered in their courses. This would lead to finding out principally what they thought of translation theories embodied in their programmes. On the other hand, semi-structured interviews were designed to find out the opinions of the teachers who taught the participants. The structured elements allowed me to cover similar areas with the participants of the three different groups in this study. This is important as the case study is a multiple case study (see Section 3.2.3): gaining equivalent coverage and obtaining similar contributions for each case can ground the exploration and analysis. This can help analyse the results meaningfully and enhance understanding of the participants in different contexts. Each interview took an approximately similar length of time and common topics and areas were covered from different perspectives.

In addition, some less structured elements which may take place during interviews are considered valuable. For example, I predicted that some questions would be open in the group interviews with Chinese teachers. It would be at my discretion whether I should probe for more details or not. This is particularly necessary as

103 qualitative interviews explore deepening understanding instead of merely accumulating information (Richards, 2003). I assume that allowing a respondent ‘narrative’ rather than seeing the interview as a ‘question-and-answer’ in some way provides more opportunity for the teachers to foreground their thoughts and to articulate complex understandings. To conclude, a semi-structured interview was employed because it can ‘facilitate a strong element of discovery, while its structured focus allows an analysis in terms of commonalities’ (Gillham, 2005: 72). There are more specific descriptions of each interview in the following sections.