Life History Interview Research
life history interview Introduction and Guidelines
The purpose of getting a life history on a person is to be able to "paint a picture" of who they are. The information from the history should not just be a random collection of facts. The history should be an account of the person's life story, including important themes in their life that reflect the development of their personality and their relationships with other people.
Life histories play key roles in psychological treatment and research. While the following guidelines are rather typical of the sort of questions asked, interviews vary considerable depending on who's doing them and why.
Your purpose in conducting this interview is educational. While your objective is collecting …show more content…
If they leave out a parent or grandparent, inquire about them)
2. Early childhood (before school):
"What do you know about yourself as a baby." "What was your mother's pregnancy like?" "Were there any family stories or jokes about what you were like as a child?" "What are your earliest childhood memories?" "What do you remember or know about major early events in your life - like eating habits, walking, talking, and toilet training?" "Were there any stresses in your family at that time?"
3. School Years:
"What were your early years in school like?" "Do you remember the very first day of school?" "How did you do at school work through the years?" "What were your relationships like with your teachers and schoolmates?" "Who were your friends and what sorts of things did you do with …show more content…
Adult Life (including college):
"What has been important about your adult life?" "What have your adult relationships with friends and co- workers been like?" "What has your relationship with your (husband/wife, fiance, boyfriend/girlfriend) been like? "What types of jobs have you worked at, and what did you think about those jobs?" "What was college like for you?" "What hobbies or other interests do you have?"
6. Family Information (if you didn't already get this info):
"What has your family been like over the years." "Tell me about your brothers and sisters" (age, education, marital status, their relationship with the interviewee) "How would you describe the personalities of the people in your family?" "What role did each parent take in raising you?" "Were there any emotional problems in the family, or conflicts between family members?" "Did your family ever move? What was that like?" "What is the ethnic background of your
The purpose of getting a life history on a person is to be able to "paint a picture" of who they are. The information from the history should not just be a random collection of facts. The history should be an account of the person's life story, including important themes in their life that reflect the development of their personality and their relationships with other people.
Life histories play key roles in psychological treatment and research. While the following guidelines are rather typical of the sort of questions asked, interviews vary considerable depending on who's doing them and why.
Your purpose in conducting this interview is educational. While your objective is collecting …show more content…
If they leave out a parent or grandparent, inquire about them)
2. Early childhood (before school):
"What do you know about yourself as a baby." "What was your mother's pregnancy like?" "Were there any family stories or jokes about what you were like as a child?" "What are your earliest childhood memories?" "What do you remember or know about major early events in your life - like eating habits, walking, talking, and toilet training?" "Were there any stresses in your family at that time?"
3. School Years:
"What were your early years in school like?" "Do you remember the very first day of school?" "How did you do at school work through the years?" "What were your relationships like with your teachers and schoolmates?" "Who were your friends and what sorts of things did you do with …show more content…
Adult Life (including college):
"What has been important about your adult life?" "What have your adult relationships with friends and co- workers been like?" "What has your relationship with your (husband/wife, fiance, boyfriend/girlfriend) been like? "What types of jobs have you worked at, and what did you think about those jobs?" "What was college like for you?" "What hobbies or other interests do you have?"
6. Family Information (if you didn't already get this info):
"What has your family been like over the years." "Tell me about your brothers and sisters" (age, education, marital status, their relationship with the interviewee) "How would you describe the personalities of the people in your family?" "What role did each parent take in raising you?" "Were there any emotional problems in the family, or conflicts between family members?" "Did your family ever move? What was that like?" "What is the ethnic background of your