Eliittihaastattelu

Authors

• Juri Mykkänen

Abstract

As a research method elite interviewing differs from other types of interviewing in several ways. In this article elite is narrowly defined as the people occupying the highest posts in large organizations, following Mills’ notion of power elite. These people have unique resources at their disposal, which results in a status discrepancy between interviewer and interviewee. It is not uncommon for an elite interviewee to control the interview situation, for instance by following a special agenda unrelated to the themes of the interview or by giving elaborate but standardised responses, often to interviewer’s disappointment. The interviewer may feel intimidated by or reluctant to challenge elite subjects. In this article these and related problems of elite interviewing are discussed and some ways to overcome them are suggested. The discussion covers problems related to access, preparation, the interview situation, and control of interpretations made from interview data. Issues of data analysis are excluded.