In 2015 I did three months of field work in Colombia for my doctoral thesis in public policy. During these three months’ time, I carried out 72 semi-structured interviews with a range of actors related to natural resource governance in the country. The list included public officials, politicians, journalists, academics, members of extractive companies and NGOs. The objectives of my work were threefold: 1) map the actors that influence decision-making processes regarding investment of natural resource rents by local governments, 2) identify the formal and informal rules that operate in these processes, and 3) explore the drivers of public investment decisions.

This was the first time I conducted this type of work at a DPhil level and I wanted to make the most of my time in the field. Different courses at Oxford and a few texts guided my preparatory work. However, after being on the ground I must confess that it was the student testimonials of DPhil colleagues at the University that helped me the most. This is why I decided to share my fieldwork “takeaways” with you.

Below you will find ten thoughts on the process of preparing, carrying-out and processing elite interviews. One important caveat: this is not a one-size-fits-all exercise. The topic and research questions, the type of interviewees and the context where the fieldwork is carried out will affect how you prepare and implement your research. Moreover, although these issues are pertinent to most social sciences researchers, perhaps my contribution will be particularly relevant if you are researching policy-related issues.

Preparing for fieldwork

• Ethical implications. Ethics clearance is not only a bureaucratic process and you should take it seriously. When researching public policy, you may want to ask your interviewee about topics that involve sensitive political issues and you may even get answers about criminal activities (from third parties or even self-incrimination!). Hence, you really have to think about the ethical implications of your research. For example, how to ensure confidentially and anonymity? What’s your strategy to obtain consent? Your research design should put the interviewees’ welfare and security as a top priority.
• Networking and access. Before requesting interviews to prospective interviewees, it may be helpful to get acquainted with them. Frequently, if you contact the interviewee through another person that introduces him or her to you the interview will flow more smoothly. A colleague who researches human trafficking policy told me that he spent more time building connections before formally contacting people for interviews improved access, particularly when dealing with public officials and politicians.
• Draft, draft, draft. Draft model emails you will use, for example, to request interviews or simply to introduce yourself or your research. Believe me, this will save you time.

During interviews

• Patience. Arrive a bit earlier to your interview. Sometimes you will be able to speak with the person before the agreed time and you may win valuable time. Bring a book in case, public officials and politicians tend to postpone or delay meetings. Waiting hours in public transport or for an interviewee to show up is not infrequent. Having something to do meanwhile helps to cope with these situations.
• Icebreaking and warm-up. Try to start with a topic that makes the person comfortable even if the query is not related to the research. Also, it is helpful to begin by asking the interviewee who they are and what they do. Even if you already know their background, politicians and senior public officials like to talk about themselves… so it is a good warm-up!
• Some key queries. Regardless of your topic, I found some silver-bullet questions that I suggest you bear in mind. For example: When the interviewee makes a key statement, but it is not clear why he or she knows it, ask why! Do not forget asking an essential ethics issue: May I cite you and how? Finish the interview by asking about other people to contact or about any other thing they would like to add. In some interviews, this last query was key to get information that otherwise I would not have obtained.
• Processing as go. Whether you are transcribing the interviews or just taking notes on the most important points, it is sensible to start processing the data from day one. If you are not audio recording, write down right away your notes on the interviews, don’t let too much time pass. If you delay the transcription you are likely to find the accumulation of work very burdensome and maybe you will forget things that you were not able to annotate during the interview.
• It is not just about interviewing. Do not underestimate administrative work required to conduct interviews! Researching the background of your interviewees, organizing your day-to-day agenda, contacting people… even getting around the city or between meetings may take hours every day. 

Back from the field

• Decanting your experience. Talk to other colleagues about your experience, this will help you reflect on what you can do better next time (as I am doing right now!). It is reassuring to know that others had to struggle with similar issues and to learn how others cope with the challenges of fieldwork.
• Brushing and rinsing. Making sense of the data is probably the biggest challenge I have encountered so far. Sometimes I am in the stage where I am processing my data to distinguish between information, perceptions and patterns that are pertinent for my research from those that have other type of pertinence. For example, some anecdotes from my fieldwork may be great icebreakers for pub-talk and even for academic presentations, but they are not central to my research.

To finish, I have three extra messages that are a bit more personal, but I think may be particularly interesting for those of you who are going to jump for the first time into the fieldwork experience. First, getting to know so many new people in a short span of time is a great experience. Embrace that idea and enjoy meeting new people! Second, humility, not false modesty, should guide your mission of learning from your interviewees. Third, sometimes we forget the obvious: in an interview, listening is essential. Only as you give your full attention to listening to what they are saying can you gather more information. Not in vain nature provides us with two ears and a single mouth.

SUGGESTED LITERATURE ON CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS:

Alvarez-Gayou, J. (2003). Cómo hacer investigación cualitativa: Fundamentos y Metodología. México: Paidós.

Hernández Sampieri, R., Fernández Collado, C., & Baptista Lucio, P. (2010). Metodología de la investigación (5a. ed.). México: McGraw-Hill.

Guber, R. (2001). La etnografía: Método, campo y reflexividad (Enciclopedia latinoamericana de sociocultura y comunicación, 11). Bogotá: Grupo Editorial Norma.

Leech, B. L. (2002). Asking Questions: Techniques for Semistructured Interviews. PS: Political Science and Politics, 35(4), 665–668.

Mosley, L. (2013). Interview research in political science. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.

El blog del profesor Raul Pacheco-Vega tiene una entrada con apuntes de lectura del libro editado por Mosley.

Rathbun, B. C. (2008). Interviewing and Qualitative Field Methods: Pragmatism and Practicalities. En J. M. Box-Steffensmeier, H. E. Brady, & D. Collier (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Political Methodology.

Strauss, A., Corbin, J., & Zimmerman, E. (2002). Bases de la investigación cualitativa: Técnicas y procedimientos para desarrollar la teoría fundamentada (Contus). Medellín (Colombia): Universidad de Antioquia.

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Note: A previous version of this article was published in English in November 2015 on the blog of the U. Oxford School of Government and later it was published in Spanish, July 2019, on the GPP Forum blog. I thank Sarah M. Muñoz Cadena for assisting me in translating the text from English to Spanish.

“La mayoría de lo que sé sobre escribir lo he ido aprendido corriendo cada mañana”, escribió Haruki Murakami en su libro best seller de 2007 What I talk about when I talk about runing. No puedo ser tan asertivo como este escritor japonés contemporáneo, pero correr ha influido significativamente en mi vida y durante mi doctorado en la Universidad de Oxford. Para mí, correr no es solo una cuestión de bienestar físico y mental, correr es también un recurso constante de ideas, como por ejemplo escribir esta pieza.

Empecé el programa de doctorado en política pública en la Escuela de Gobierno en otoño de 2014 y durante casi cuatro años pude disfrutar de todas las posibles y hermosas rutas que la ciudad de Oxford ofrece para los corredores. Además, participé en algunas de las carreras en diferentes ciudades del Reino Unido y logré finalizar en Manchester mi primera maratón.

Entrenar para la maratón me ayudó a lidiar con el invierno, muy duro para mi por la falta de luz más que por el frío. Correr también me dio una mejor perspectiva de qué significa hacer una investigación de doctorado. 

A continuación, les compartiré ocho razones por las cuales considero que la analogía entre entrenar para una maratón (o correr regularmente, en general) y hacer un doctorado ofrece luces acerca de la naturaleza de la investigación doctoral.

• Resistencia y ritmo. Los proyectos de largo plazo no se logran a partir de pequeños sprints, requieren esfuerzo constante y paciencia. Entrenar tampoco rinde sus frutos cuando usted corre 21 kilómetros un día y luego procastina el resto del mes. Del mismo modo, un doctorado requiere hacer frente a un ritmo en el que se repiten procesos similares una y otra vez. Básicamente, usted requiere un ritmo persistente de lectura, redacción reelaboración y discusión diaria de su investigación con colegas.
• Autodisciplina e independencia. Tener un coach o entrenador experimentado en deportes o supervisores expertos en un doctorado es clave para mantenerse en la carrera. Pero el progreso depende enteramente de su determinación. Establecer su propio horario y planificar con anticipación es importante para mantenerse enfocado en la meta final. Por ejemplo, establecer una rutina diaria para escribir sus ideas, incluso si solo es por media hora, es un ejercicio muy fructífero que depende enteramente de usted.
• Mantenerse centrado y equilibrado. La concentración es un rasgo clave en los buenos correderos. De la misma forma, un doctorado requiere que se mantenga centrado en el objetivo final: terminar su tesis. Esto no significa que usted debería rechazar o ignorar otras oportunidades académicas, sociales y culturales. Solo dedicarse al doctorad podría ser una actitud muy contraproducente. Además, tener tiempo para hacer cosas diferentes a su proyecto de investigación es uno de los encantos del PhD. Sin embargo, no pierda de vista lo fundamental: el progreso en su investigación demanda concentración y priorización. Al final, la clave es lograr un buen balance entre el trabajo doctoral y la vida fuera de la academia. 
• Entrenamiento y mejores prácticas. Su talento puede contribuir a obtener muy buenos resultados, pero entrenar definitivamente lo llevará un paso más allá. Hay muchos métodos diferentes de entrenamiento para una maratón o un doctorado, pero solo seguir sus instintos no es una buena idea. Millones de personas han tomado la misma ruta antes que usted y puede aprender mucho de ellas. Leer textos de “cómo hacerlo”, especialmente las guías basadas en evidencia, es clave para un corredor o un investigador principiante. En el caso de que esté considerando realizar un doctorado puede encontrar recursos, pero yo recominedo puntualmente uno que fue clave para la escritura de mi tesis: “Authoring a PhD: How to Plan, Draft, Write and Finish a Doctoral Thesis or Dissertation” de Patrick Dunleavy.
• Cometer errores y adaptarse es parte del proceso. Las decisiones sobre qué camino tomar, son en última instancia, su propia responsabilidad. Pero los maratonistas novatos y los estudiantes de doctorado tienden tomar caminos que los desvían de la ruta planeada. Es normal, es parte del aprendizaje. La investigación es un proceso iterativo donde los planes iniciales podrían cambiar en la medida en que usted aprende más acerca del tema o en la medida en que analiza los datos que usted recolecta. Ser capaz de redirigir, recalcular y adaptar su trayectoria es una herramienta crucial en el proceso.
• Establezca metas claras y alcanzables/logrables. Cuando usted está planeando entrenar para una maratón usted empieza por definir un tiempo deseado de finalización. De la misma forma, uno de las primeras tareas de un estudiante de doctorado consiste en formular una pregunta de investigación pertinente y en diseñar una estrategia adecuada de investigación. Los entrenadores y los supervisores de doctorado son estrictos controlando la claridad y la viabilidad de sus planes. De lo contario, las metas u objetivos podrían no lograrse del todo. Por lo tanto, es importante que usted reconozca sus limitaciones y establezca unos objetivos claros y alcanzables.
• El apoyo de sus pares y su familia. Entrenar para una maratón y realizar un doctorado tiene altibajos. Incluso si le gusta correr, leer o escribir, el proceso no es una camino de rosas. Dado que estos proyectos de largo plazo implican desafíos físicos y mentales es necesario el apoyo de sus compañeros, amigos y familiares. No puede subestimar la importancia del entorno donde estudia y el rol de los amigos y la familia para mantenerlo a flote. Por ejemplo, interactuar regularmente con sus compañeros puede inspirar nuevas vías de investigación, entretanto, el amor de su familia mantendrá su espíritu en alto cuanto lo necesite.
• Las maratones y los doctorados no son para todas las personas. Por mucho que me gustó la vida de estudiante de doctorado y que me gusta correr, pienso que no todo el mundo tiene que sentir lo mismo. No todos disfrutan de golpear compulsivamente el piso con el pie miles de veces o sentarse por días para leer y escribri sobre el mismo tema. Incluso para un atleta o investigador experimentado la rutina puede ser difícil. Por lo tanto, si usted intenta hacer un doctorado o correr una maratón, asegúrese de que esto es lo que le apasiona.

Gocé el proceso de empezar a ser un investigador independiente en Oxford tanto como disfruté correr en las calles empedradas, parques, prados y caminos fluviales de la ciudad. Hay una simbiosis entre estas actividades: correr me saca de mi escritorio, me ayuda a reflexionar sobre argumentos e ideas, me relaja, me ayuda a liberar valiosas endorfinas y, luego, cuando regreso me siento preparado para sentarme en mi escritorio y enfrentarme a la pantalla en blanco… esto me recuerda que debería regresar a mi proceso de lectura, escritura y re-escritura, entretanto le envío mis mejores deseos para que usted supere su próxima maratón.

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Nota: Una versión previa de artículo fue publicado en inglés en mayo de 2015 en el blog de la Escuela de Gobierno de la U. de Oxford y castellano en septiembre de 2019 en el blog Foro GPP. Agradezco a Sarah M. Muñoz Cadena por su asistencia en la traducción del texto en inglés al castellano.

“Most of what I know about writing I’ve learned through running every day”, wrote Haruki Murakami in his 2007 best seller What I talk about when I talk about running. I cannot be as assertive as the famous contemporary Japanese writer but running has significantly influenced my life and during my doctorate at Oxford University. For me, running on a regular basis is not just a matter of physical and mental wellbeing; running is also a constant source of ideas, such as writing this piece.

I started a DPhil (PhD) program in public policy at the Blavatnik School of Government in fall 2014, and since then I have enjoyed all the possible and beautiful routes that Oxford city offers for runners. Moreover, I have run races in different cities of the UK and successfully finished my first marathon in Manchester.

Training for the marathon helped me deal with the winter, very hard for me due to the lack of light rather than the cold. Running also gave me a better perspective of what doing a doctoral research means.

I will give you eight reasons why the analogy between training for a marathon (or running regularly, in general) and doing a doctorate may render interesting insights about the nature of these activities.

• Endurance and rhythm. Long-term projects are not about small sprints, but about constant and patient effort. Training does not render its benefits when you run 21k one day and then procrastinate the rest of the week. Similarly, a doctorate requires coping with a rhythm where you repeat similar processes over and over. Basically, you require a persistent pace of reading, drafting, re-drafting and discussing your research with colleagues on a daily basis.

• Self-discipline and independence. Having an experienced coach in sports or knowledgeable supervisors in a doctorate is key for staying on track. But progress depends entirely on your determination. Setting your own schedule and planning ahead are important to stay focused on the final goal. For example, setting a daily routine for writing your ideas, even if it is just for half an hour, is a very fruitful exercise that depends entirely on you.

• Staying focused. Concentration is a key trait of good runners. Similarly, a doctorate requires you to stay focused on your ultimate output: finishing your thesis. This does not mean that you should disregard other academic, social and cultural opportunities. Such attitude would be counterproductive. Besides, having time to do things different from your research project is one of the DPhil’s charms. However, don’t lose sight of the bottom line: progress in your research demands concentration and prioritization. Ultimately, the key is to strike a good balance between doctoral work and life outside of academia.

• Training and best practices. Talent may determine the result of any endeavor, but training will definitely take you beyond. There are different training methods for a marathon or for a doctorate, but only following your instincts is not a good idea. Millions of people have undertaken your same route before you, and there is much to learn from them. Reading “how to” texts, especially evidence-based guidance, is key for an amateur runner and researcher. In case you are considering doing a doctorate you can find resources, but I promptly recommend one that was key to writing my thesis: «Authoring a PhD: How to Plan, Draft, Write and Finish a Doctoral Thesis or Dissertation» by Patrick Dunleavy.

• Making mistakes and adjusting is part of the journey. Decisions on which paths to take are ultimately your own responsibility. Hence, novice marathoners and doctorate students may take “wrong turns”. It is normal, it is part of learning. Researching is an iterative process, where initial plans may change as you learn more about your subject or as you analyze the data you collect. Thus, being able to redirect your trajectory is a crucial skill in this process.

• Setting clear and achievable goals. When you plan to train for a marathon you start by defining a desired finishing time. Similarly, one of the first milestones of a DPhil student consists on framing a pertinent research question and designing an adequate research strategy. Sports coaches and DPhil supervisors are very strict on controlling the clarity and feasibility of your plans. Otherwise, the goals may not be achieved at all. Hence, it is important to know your limitations and set clear and achievable objectives.

• Peer and family support. Training for a marathon and doing a DPhil has ups and downs. As much as I like running, reading and writing, the process is not a bed of roses. Since these long-term projects entail physical and mental challenges, it is necessary to have support from your peers, friends and family. I cannot understate the importance of the milieu where you study and of the role of friends and family in keeping you afloat. Engaging with peers in a regular basis may inspire new avenues of research and the love from your family will keep your spirits high when in need.

• Marathons and doctorates are not for everyone.  As much as I like doctoral life and running, I don’t think everyone should feel the same. Not everyone enjoys hours of pounding with your feet or sitting days and days reading and writing on the same subject. Even for experienced athletes and researchers, the routine may be hard. Hence, if you intend to do a DPhil or run a marathon, be sure that you feel passionate about it.

I enjoyed the process of becoming an independent researcher at Oxford as much as running in the city’s cobbled streets, parks, meadows and river paths. There is a symbiosis between these activities: running takes me out of my desk, helps me ponder arguments and ideas, relaxes me, releases valuable endorphins, and then when I come back, I am ready to sit in my desk and confront the blank screen… This reminds me that I should go back to my process of reading, writing and re-writing and wish you the best if you think a marathon or a doctorate is your next goal.

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Note: A previous version of this article was published in English in May 2015 on the blog of the U. Oxford School of Government and Spanish in September 2019 on the GPP Forum blog. I am grateful to Sarah M. Muñoz Cadena for her assistance in translating the English text into Spanish.