Examine the reasons why some sociologists choose to use structured interviews when conducting their research.

explain things the interviewee (or “respondent” - the person responding to the questions) does not understand or finds confusing. Moreover structured interviews are like questionnaires; the interviewer is given strict instructions on how to ask the questions. The interview is conducted in the same way each time, asking each interviewee precisely the same questions, word for word, in the same order and tone of voice.  Both a questionnaire and structured interviews involve asking people a set of prepared questions. In both cases, the questions are usually closed-ended with pre-coded answers. The main difference is that in the interview, the questions are read out and the answers are filled in by a trained interviewer rather than by the interviewee. There are many practical advantages for the use of a structured interview for example training interviewers is relatively straightforward and inexpensive, since all they really required to do is follow a set of instructions. Moreover surveys that use structured interviews can cover quite large numbers of people with relatively limited resources because they are quick and fairly cheap to administer. Structured interviews are suitable for gathering straightforward factual information such as a person’s job or age. Finally the results are easily quantified because they use close-ended questions with coded answers; this makes them suitable for hypothesis testing.   The large numbers who can be surveyed using structure interviews increase the chances of obtaining a representative sample of the population. Although the numbers that can be studied are lower than for questionnaires, structured interviews generally have a higher response rate.  Response rates can be increased if the interview can make several call backs to pursue those who fail to respond initially. However this increases the cost of the survey. High response rates help to produce a more representative result and therefore a better basis for making generalisations. A valid method is one that provides a true, authentic picture of the topic being researched. Critics of structured interviews argue that, like questionnaires, they often produce a false picture of the subjects they are trying to study. Structured interviews usually used closed-ended questions that restrict interviewees to choosing from a limited number of pre-set answers. If none of these answers fits what the interviewee really wishes to say, the data obtained will be invalid. Overall a structured interview has many advantages such as it’s inexpensive, quick and reliable. Sociologists prefer a structured interview because in some ways they can guarantee a positive outcome and it is time efficient.