Elite Interviews in Educational Policy Research:Interviews with Senior Man-agers of Teacher Unions in New Zealand
Elite interviewing is an important method of collecting data by interviewing powerful people.Based on the experiences of interviewing senior managers of teacher unions in New Zealand during their doctor-al studies,the authors explore the unique challenges to elite interviewing as a method of data collection.Elite interviews are relatively difficult to recruit interviewees,require a high level of researcher knowledge and mas-tery of background material,have complex power relationships between interviewer and interviewee,and non-anonymity is accompanied by ethical dilemmas.These challenges can be effectively addressed by build-ing the researcher's professional reputation,making full use of documentary aids,gradually building a trusting dialogue relationship,and treating interview data with respect and discretion.Elite interviews allow for effi-cient collection of"behind-the-scenes"information and help open the"black box"of the policy-making pro-cess.The potential for the use of elite interviews in educational policy research in China needs to be further explored.
elite interviewseducation policieseducational research methodsresearch ethicsmethod of interview
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