12 tips for a better oral history or folklore interview

Nervous about your first oral history or folklore interview? It's OK, I'm here to help! Here are some tips and tricks to get you ready. And if you want, you can download this as a one-page PDF for handy reference.


1. If you haven't done any oral history interviewing before, think first about a focus or theme for your project.  Ask yourself, “Why am I doing this interview? What information do I want to get?”

2. Think about the type of interview you wish to do.  Life History Interviews focus on the life history of a person and the changes they may have experienced;  Topic Interviews collect information about a specific subject, workplace, skill or occupation.

3. Do an informal “pre-interview.”  Be clear with your “informant” - the person you are interviewing - that the interview is being recorded, and what it will be used for. Have a discussion in advance about the type of information of interest to you.

4. In general, have a list of topics in mind you want to cover in the interview, rather than a set list of questions. You might have some written starting questions to begin with, but then shift to your topic list and be flexible.

5. Start off with some easy questions, such as short biographical questions about name, date of birth, parents and the like. This gives you good identifying information at the start of the interview, and helps relax your informant. You can ask more detailed or personal questions after you both settle into the conversation.

6. Ask questions one at a time. If your question has two or three parts, ask them separately.

7. Ask open-ended questions that require more than a "yes" or "no" answer. Questions that start with “how” or “why” get you more interesting answers.

8. Use plain, straightforward words and avoid leading questions. Rather than asking “I suppose life as a fisherman was hard?”, ask “Can you describe what life was like for a fisherman?”

9. Ask follow-up questions. Then ask some more! If something is unclear, ask for clarification.

10. Don’t be afraid to ask questions to which you think you already know the answers. You might get suprising answers!

11. Be a good listener, and refrain from talking too much yourself. Use body language, nodding, and smiling to encourage your informant. Let them know, visually, that you are interested.

12. Don't let periods of silence fluster you. Just wait and don’t rush the interview. Sometimes people need a moment to complete their thoughts. If you are silent, chances are your informant will fill the gap by saying something more about the question you asked last.

• Have questions about questions? Ask your friendly neighbourhood folklorist, Dale Jarvis, at ich@heritagefoundation.ca

Top four YouTube resources for oral history and folklore interviews

Over the past couple weeks, I've been doing a number of workshops introducing people to the art and techniques of doing oral history and folklore interviews. Along the way, I've shown a few YouTube videos to illustrate certain points.  For those of you who haven't been able to take in a workshop, I'm presenting my top four favourites below.

1) Why do Oral History?

The first is from the Minnesota Historical Society. Why is oral history important? What is oral history? How is it different than a simple interview? This is the first of a series of video podcasts prepared by the Society that addresses some of these issues.





2) How do you record an oral history interview?

Prepared by the East Midlands Oral History Archive based at the University of Leicester, I've used this video several times. I like how it presents the material in a "Do and Don't" fashion, which is great for a workshop.

3)  How do you get interesting answers?

In this video, Traditional Arts Indiana shares tips and suggestions for folklorists conducting fieldwork. The video discusses how to get complex answers instead of a yes/no response, an important trick for interviewers to know. I love the work that Traditional Arts Indiana is doing, and like the Minnesota Historical Society, they've produced a series of videos for folklore interviews.

4) What can I do with the information I collect?

This is one of my favourite YouTube videos that show what can be done with oral history material. Beautifully shot and edited, Jewish Care's Pearls of Wisdom campaign aims to highlight the value and importance of older people in today's ageing society. According to its YouTube page, it "challenges people, especially younger people, to alter their perceptions of this elder generation, presenting them as wise, funny and worthy of their attention."

Oral History/Folklore Interview workshop added for Grand Falls-Windsor

Introduction to Folklore and Oral History Interviews Workshop

Saturday, March 24, 2012
Mount Peyton Hotel, Grand Falls Windsor

This workshop is open to anyone with an interest in local history, culture and folklore. It is intended to give a background on how to conduct research interviews in the field, and will give people a chance to try their hand at creating interview questions and conducting an interview. It will provide an overview of the methodology and explore the practical matters of creating, designing, and executing effective oral history research projects. Topics that the workshop will address include project planning, ethical issues, and recording equipment.

The workshop will be taught by folklorist Dale Jarvis. Dale works as the Intangible Cultural Heritage Development Officer for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, helping communities to safeguard traditional culture. He has been working for the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador since 1996, and holds a BSc in Anthropology/Archaeology from Trent University, and a MA in Folklore from Memorial University. He is a past president of the Newfoundland Historic Trust, and has contributed as a board member and volunteer to many local arts and heritage organizations, and is a tireless promoter of the oral tradition.

Date: Saturday, March 24th
Time: 1pm - 5pm
Workshop fee: $40 (preregistration required)
Location: Mount Peyton Hotel, Grand Falls Windsor

To register call Nicole at 1-888-739-1892 ext 3,
or email: ichprograms@gmail.com

photo: Forestry Corps men with nurses, Wandsworth Hospital, London, England, 1917.Courtesy of the Heritage Society of Grand Falls-Windsor, Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland.

Introduction to Folklore and Oral History Interviews Workshop in Corner Brook

Friday, March 16th, 2012
Glynmill Inn, Corner Brook

This introductory workshop is open to anyone with an interest in local history, culture and folklore. It is intended to give a background on how to conduct research interviews in the field, and will give people a chance to try their hand at creating interview questions and conducting an interview. It will provide an overview of the methodology and explore the practical matters of creating, designing, and executing effective oral history research projects. Topics that the workshop will address include project planning, ethical issues, and recording equipment.

The workshop will be taught by folklorist Dale Jarvis. Dale Jarvis works as the Intangible Cultural Heritage Development Officer for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, helping communities to safeguard traditional culture. He has been working for the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador since 1996, and holds a BSc in Anthropology/Archaeology from Trent University, and a MA in Folklore from Memorial University. He is a past president of the Newfoundland Historic Trust, and has contributed as a board member and volunteer to many local arts and heritage organizations, and is a tireless promoter of the oral tradition.

Date: Friday, March 16th
Time: 1pm - 5pm
Workshop fee: $40 (preregistration required)
Location: Glynmill Inn, Corner Brook
To register call Nicole at 1-888-739-1892 ext 3, or email: ichprograms@gmail.com

Top 6 Sites With Sample Oral History Interview Questions

A little while ago, I posted my Top 6 Online Guides for Folklife and Oral History Documentation. In preparing for a couple interviews I'm going to be doing, I was looking up some sample questions for basic oral history and folklore interviews, and so I thought I would post my top picks here for people who were looking for similar resources.

1. The Smithsonian Folklife and Oral History Interviewing Guide
http://www.folklife.si.edu/education_exhibits/resources/guide/introduction.aspx
This is sort of cheating, because I included it in my earlier post, but it still remains an excellent resource, complete with sample questions.

2. Fifty Questions for Family History Interviews
http://genealogy.about.com/cs/oralhistory/a/interview.htm
Subtitled "What to Ask the Relative" this is a good starting list for anyone doing research on family stories, genealogy, or family traditions.

3. Oral History Questions
http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson805/questions.pdf
Also a good list for people doing family oral histories, this collection of questions was compiled specifically for youth researchers.

4. Sample Interview Questions For Veterans
http://www.loc.gov/vets/questions.html
Prepared by the Library of Congress for its Veterans History Project, this is a good list of questions for people doing interviews with members and former members of the armed forces during World War I, World War II, and the Korean, Vietnam, and Persian Gulf wars.

5. Family History Sample Outline and Questions
http://oralhistory.library.ucla.edu/familyHistory.html
This outline can be used to structure a family oral history interview and contains examples of specific questions.

6. Oral History Interview, Questions and Topics
http://www.jewishgen.org/InfoFiles/Quest.html
A list of questions that may be used when interviewing an older member of the family, prepared by the Museum of Jewish Heritage


UPDATE 19 Oct 2016 - I've added a new #6, as the Draft Oral History Interview Questions for the Fairfax County Asian American Historical Project seem to have vanished. But you can still check out their project here.