I will be interviewing Randy from Southern New Jersey on Friday, March 27 at his coffee shop, The Treehouse, in Audubon.
The Background
Our third week of class this semester was canceled, but Elaine, Kristen, and I used the time to complete some work ahead of time for class. We met at The Treehouse to enjoy the coffee and the ambiance while we worked. About an hour in to our meeting, a group had formed in the space behind us, and they were watching a video via a large projector screen. We halted our conversation for a few minutes to see if we could figure out what the video the group was watching was about, and we begin to hear religious dialogue.
That’s when Elaine, a frequent customer at the shop, had a mini-epiphany. She said that she thought they were a group from a seminary school, and that she thinks they met there weekly. She also exclaimed–she couldn’t believe she had forgotten–that the owner of the shop was a youth pastor at his church and she believed he was still studying at seminary school.
I got in touch with Randy, the owner, through Facebook, and after hearing about his experiences, I knew he would be a perfect interviewee.
Around the time Randy was 13, he said that he felt God calling him to become to serve Him by working as a pastor. Eight years ago, he attended seminary for one year, and there he met the pastor of Oaklyn Baptist. Randy worked with this pastor as a youth pastor for seven years and was named Associate pastor last summer.
He shared that he and his wife, Tina, opened The Treehouse so that there would be a place people could feel God’s love and peace without it being shoved down their throat. They seem to enjoy running the small but warm, welcoming, and family-oriented business.
The Topics
In my research proposal, I mentioned that I had questions about millenials and their church going habits.This is something I hope Randy can shine a bit of light on, as he had been raised in a deeply faithful family and spent three to four nights a week at church in his youth. I’d be interested to see what it was that kept him so actively engaged in the church community. Adding to this topic, I would like to know more about what it was like to receive a calling from God about a path for one’s life, especially at such a young age. I wonder if it would be something obvious or subtle; after all, I’ve heard the phrase “a calling” many times, but I don’t have a clear picture of what that might mean.
As a student, the idea of schooling in preparation for becoming a minister is fascinating to me. I plan to ask Randy about the classes and lessons he had while at seminary. It might be interesting to see how it compares to a secular college experience, particularly in terms of practicality and applicability. I know teaching school was highly theoretical and not as practical as a teacher candidate might hope. I’m curious to see if this is a transferrable phenomenon.
Because he is a youth pastor, I’d also like to hear some of the ways he adapts messages to help engage and reach a younger audience. I wonder if this would include events outside of the weekly church service.
Finally, I would like to see if he can take me through The Treehouse and share some of the ways he feels the elements of the business reflect God’s love.
The Method
I will be preparing an outline based on the topics featured in the section above, and each item in the outline will have a list of potential questions to ask. The outline will have focus, which Brinkmann and Kvale mention as a major characteristic of a qualitative interview in InterViews: Learning the Craft of Qualitative Research Interviewing. The topics above focus on youth in church, which is a topic in which I have been extremely interested since the start of this research project. This will keep the interview from being too scripted but also too nondirective (34). I believe it will prompt my interviewee to share what he finds most important, and, as he is an expert in this area of the field, I am excited by the prospect of new information he might share with me.
I have already explained the purpose of the interview to Randy, as I included the details in my original introduction, but I don’t necessarily want to get to The Tree House tomorrow and start asking questions. In InterViews, Brinkmann and Kvale suggest that an interviewer can engage in a funnel-shaped interview, an interview that features a roundabout approach with indirect questions until the purpose is revealed later in the interview (156-7). I would like to try and start a general, more roundabout conversation with Randy before I jump into the questions, even though he already knows the purpose of the interview, because I want to work to establish a rapport of comfort and interest. This way, the interviewee will have a grasp of me, the interviewer, so that he can feel comfortable to talk freely and expose his experiences. Brinkmann and Kvale recommend this in InterViews (154), and they suggest that this can be established by showing interest, understanding, and respect for what the interviewee is saying.
I am a stranger, and I know that I would be nervous if a stranger were asking me personal questions about my religious beliefs.
Final Thoughts
Am I nervous? Extremely. This is the first interview I have had to conduct since I wrote for The Whit during my freshman year of Rowan. I used to rehearse interviews and phone calls that I would have to make and my palms would sweat through the process.
Knowing that I’m going into this with a plan, but a plan that is not set in stone, is nervous, but I know that I am taking a risk to develop my interviewing skills.
Practice makes perfect, after all.
Wish me luck!
Lauren Addeo's Research Blog: Entrances and Exits 