Recording Oral History: A Guide for the Humanities and Social Sciences

Contents......Page 9
Preface......Page 15
Acknowledgments......Page 17
1 Introduction to the In-Depth Interview......Page 19
Brief History of the Use of Oral History......Page 20
Definition of Oral History......Page 21
Oral History: Still a New Kid on the Block......Page 22
Qualitative Research and Quantitative Research: Comparisons......Page 23
Differences in Ways That Disciplines Approach the In-Depth Interview......Page 26
Uses of the Recorded In-Depth Interview......Page 27
The Use of Narrative as a Research Strategy......Page 32
Limitations of the Recorded Life Review......Page 35
Special Strengths of Oral History......Page 39
Recommended Reading......Page 41
Notes......Page 48
Remembering, an Important Act for the Narrator......Page 53
Memory—Fallible or Trustworthy?......Page 54
Psychologists’ General Findings about How Memory Works......Page 55
Aging and Memory......Page 56
Research Methods Concerning Individual Memory......Page 57
Consistency of Factual Content of Long-Held Memories......Page 58
Recall of Daily, Habitual Events versus the Single Episode......Page 59
Consistency in Memories of Feelings......Page 61
Consistency in Memories of Meanings......Page 62
Memories of Traumatic Experiences: Different from Ordinary Memories......Page 63
Physical Sensation, a Spur to Remembering......Page 65
Vivid Images, Recall, and False Memory......Page 66
Remembering the Time......Page 67
Differences in the Way Men and Women Remember......Page 68
Summary of Findings on Personal Memory......Page 69
Individual Memory and Collective Memory......Page 70
Official Memory......Page 72
Power of the Media to Create Popular Memory......Page 73
Conclusion......Page 75
Recommended Reading......Page 76
Notes......Page 80
3 Preparation for the Interviewing Project......Page 86
Conceptualization of the Research Project......Page 87
Composing the Interview Guide......Page 89
Strategies for Questioning......Page 92
Kinds of Words and Phrasing to Avoid......Page 97
Selecting Narrators......Page 98
Contacting Narrators......Page 101
Preparing the Equipment......Page 102
Summary......Page 105
Recommended Reading......Page 106
Notes......Page 108
The Preliminary Meeting......Page 110
Beginning the Interview......Page 113
Building Rapport......Page 114
Diminishing Rapport......Page 118
Using Skill in Questioning......Page 120
Coping with Troublesome Situations......Page 126
Ending the Interview......Page 132
Summary......Page 134
Recommended Reading......Page 135
Notes......Page 136
Legal Issues......Page 139
Ethical Issues......Page 147
Conclusion......Page 166
Recommended Reading......Page 167
Notes......Page 170
6 Interpersonal Relations in the Interview......Page 175
Effects of the Interview on the Narrator......Page 176
Effects of the Interview on the Interviewer......Page 180
Effects of Race, Gender, Age, Class, Ethnicity, and Subculture......Page 187
Summary......Page 196
Recommended Reading......Page 197
Notes......Page 201
7 Varieties of Oral History Projects: Community Studies......Page 206
Tensions in Community Studies......Page 208
Informational Interviews......Page 212
Composing the Interview Guide......Page 213
Choice of Narrators......Page 216
Involving the Community......Page 217
Special Research Situations......Page 218
Commissioned Research......Page 222
Presentation of Findings......Page 224
Looking Deeply and Critically at Your Collection of Oral Histories of a Community......Page 226
Recommended Reading......Page 228
Notes......Page 234
8 Varieties of Oral History Projects: Biography......Page 238
Biography: Literature or History?......Page 239
Why Research and Write Biography?......Page 240
Difference between Life History, Life Story, Autobiography, and Biography......Page 243
Why Tell This Life Story?......Page 244
Setting Up Interviews, Involving the Narrator......Page 245
Effect of the Narrator’s Agendas and Psychology on the Interview......Page 246
Effect of the Interviewer’s Agenda on the Interview......Page 248
The Effect of Gender on Questions and Interpretations......Page 251
Interviewing Friends, Enemies, and Even the Onlookers......Page 254
The Wider World in the Interview Guide for Biography......Page 255
Placing the Subject in the Context of Gender, Race, Class, and Culture......Page 256
Possible Ethical Implications in Biographical Research......Page 257
Effect of the Research on Relationships within the Subject’s Family......Page 259
Topics and Questions to Be Included in an Interview Guide......Page 261
Recommended Reading......Page 262
Notes......Page 266
9 Varieties of Oral History Projects: Family Research......Page 271
Finding Families for Social Science Research......Page 273
Introduction of the Project to the Family......Page 274
Inspiring Narrators’ Interest in Participating in the Research......Page 275
Sensitivity to Members’ Feelings versus Need to Present Evidence......Page 277
Interviewing Techniques with Family Members......Page 279
Use of Artifacts and Photographs in Interviewing......Page 282
Family Folklore......Page 284
Confronting Differences in Interpretation with the Narrator......Page 286
Suggested Questions to Ask in Family History Research......Page 287
Evaluation of Family Members’ Oral Histories......Page 290
Advantages of Studying Family History......Page 291
Recommended Reading......Page 292
Notes......Page 297
Analytical Approaches across Disciplines......Page 300
A Close Look at an Individual Oral History......Page 304
Reflections on This Interview......Page 317
Recommended Reading......Page 325
Notes......Page 327
Evaluation of the Interview......Page 329
Index to Each Tape and Master Index......Page 331
Transcription......Page 333
Return of the Transcript to the Narrator......Page 340
Publication of Oral Histories......Page 343
Citation of Oral History Interviews......Page 346
Sharing Information......Page 348
Recommended Reading......Page 350
Notes......Page 351
APPENDIX A: Sample Interview Guide......Page 353
APPENDIX B: The Oral History Association’s Oral History Evaluation Guidelines......Page 360
APPENDIX C: Principles and Standards of the Oral History Association......Page 371
APPENDIX D: Oral History Excluded from Institutional Review Board (IRB) Review......Page 376
APPENDIX E: Model Record-Keeping Sheets......Page 379
APPENDIX F: Legal Release Forms......Page 382
APPENDIX G: Sample Face Sheet and Information Sheet......Page 390
APPENDIX H: Sample Tape Index......Page 393
APPENDIX I: Sample First Page of a Tape Collection’s Master Index......Page 395
APPENDIX J: Instructions for Indexing a Transcript Using a Computer......Page 397
APPENDIX K: Citing the Oral Histories......Page 398
Author Index......Page 400
Subject Index......Page 409
About the Author......Page 415