persuasive essay -Older adults should be protected from the pressure to commit assisted suicide

HDF 247WI Interview Paper

OVERVIEW

You will write a 4 –
5-page paper based an interview with an older adult (65+).  In the interview you will explore their
understanding of some concepts related to aging and ask about some of their
life experiences.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this assignment is for you to summarize
what you learn after interviewing an older adult (65+ years).  During the interview you will ask the questions
provided below. NOTE: the paper should not include ‘transcripts’ of the
interviews, but rather a summary of what you understood from the interview.

PREPARATION FOR THE INTERVIEW

1. Choose
   a setting with little distraction. Avoid loud lights or noises and ensure
   the interviewee is comfortable. Often, they may feel more comfortable at
   their own places of work or homes.
2. Explain
   the purpose of the interview.
3. Address
   confidentiality and that this information will be read by the professor
   for the class.   No one else
   will have access to this information, but anything exceptionally
   concerning will be reported since the instructor is a mandated reporter.  Note that you have the option of
   changing the names of the respondents and may want to ask if they prefer
   you to do that.
4. Explain
   the format of the interview. Explain the type of interview you are
   conducting and its nature. Let them know it is okay to ask you questions
   throughout the interview.
5. Don’t
   count on your memory to recall their answers!  You may want to ask
   for permission to record the interview.

CONDUCTING THE INTERVIEW

1. Ask
   one question at a time.  You may add
   a follow up question not included in your original list of questions IF
   the original question wasn’t answered to your satisfaction.
2. Attempt
   to remain as neutral as possible. That is, don’t show strong
   emotional reactions to their responses. The best interviewers act as if they’ve
   heard it all before!
3. Encourage
   responses with occasional nods of the head, “uh huh”s, etc.
4. Be
   careful about the appearance when note taking. That is, if you jump
   to take a note, it may appear as if you’re surprised or very pleased about
   an answer, which may influence answers to future questions.
5. Provide
   transition between major topics, e.g., “we’ve been talking about
   (some topic) and now I’d like to move on to (another topic).”
6. Don’t
   lose control of the interview. This can occur when respondents stray
   to another topic, take too long to answer a question, etc.

IMMEDIATELY
AFTER THE INTERVIEW

1. Clarify
   your written notes.  Go back through
   your notes from the interview to make sense of any information that may be
   unclear.
2. Write down any observations made during the interview. For
   example, where did the interview occur and when, how long did it last, was
   the respondent particularly nervous at any time? Were there any surprises
   during the interview?

WRITING YOUR PAPER

The
paper should be double-spaced with 12-inch font.  Your paper should be free of mechanical errors
and demonstrate a professional tone as opposed to a conversational tone.  The questions should not be numbered.  The answers to your questions should be
integrated into your paper in paragraph form, although you may use phrases
like, “When asked about ________, she answered with ____________.”  A title page is not necessary for this paper.

Please include the following information in your paper:

• Start by giving a general
  overview of your interview.  Describe
  the demographic characteristics (age, gender, race, living situation, etc.)
  of the individuals you interviewed.  Then use two words to describe the individual you
  interviewed and explain why you chose those words.

·        
Find and explain three
specific connections between your interview and content we have learned in HDF
247WI.  These connections should be quite
specific; for example, if your interviewee discusses physical aging and health
concerns, you might relate that to the wear and tear theory or discuss it in context
of the belief that aging is (or is not) a disease.

·        
You should include the
answers to all the questions you asked your interviewee. 

·        
Be sure to end with a strong
conclusion paragraph.