Qualitative research methods aim to gain insight into the processes involved in the construction of meaning, lived experiences, cultural rituals, and everyday practices, and to understand, describe and sometimes explain social phenomena from the inside in a number of different ways, while bringing an outside perspective to the world under investigation. This study addresses the strengths and limitations of interviewing, one of the most common data collection techniques in qualitative studies. Although different interview types are examined in the study, the main focus of the study is unstructured and ethnographic interviews. Firstly, along with a literature review on the interview technique, interview types and the differences between these interview types are discussed. After examining the ethnographic interview under a separate heading, a critical evaluation of the interview as a data collection technique is made. This section details the limitations and strengths of the interview technique, as well as social, cultural, and individual factors that may affect the development of the interview. In the last part, where the ethical codes of the interviews are examined, the confidentiality of the interview, the consent and approval of the participants, and the politics of the relationships built during the interview are emphasized. Interview techniques need to be examined from different aspects because they provide in-depth data for the interpretation of human experiences, world views, cultural patterns, and because of the direct interaction established with the people being researched. In this context, this study aims to critically examine the importance and limitations of interviews as a data collection technique and to contribute to the evaluations of qualitative researchers in general and anthropologists in particular about interviews.

Interview, Qualitative Research Techniques, Structured Interview, Semi-structured Interview, Unstructured Interview, Ethnographic Interview