Hermeneutic interviewing: An example of its development and use as research method
Rene Geanellos
Lecturer (Mental Health Nursing), School of Nursing, Family & Community Health, University of Western Sydney, Parramatta NSW
Abstract
In a study exploring the practice knowledge of nursing on adolescent mental health units, I chose hermeneutic philosophy to guide the conduct of the research. Immediately, I encountered the problem that hermeneutic foundations and the methodological processes of the research, led me to develop a style of hermeneutic interviewing for the purpose of information gathering. I did this using Gadamer's (1979) fundamental principles of: (1) tradition, (2) dialectics of interpretation, and (3) dialectic of question and answer. These principles are examined and discussed.
The actualisation of hermeneutic interviewing, as a means of information gathering, proved challenging. Using interview excerpts, I demonstrate my use hermeneutic interviewing as research method, and critique my interviewing skills in relation to the fundamental principles from which this style of interviewing was developed.
Keywords
hermeneutics, research interviewing, information gathering
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