Interview Communication

When conducting an interview, the interviewer must communicate in a positive way towards the interviewee so they feel comfortable and happy, thus giving the interviewer more detailed responses, making for a better interview. 

Building Rapport:

 

Building rapport is building a relationship of trust and understanding with the interviewee through the use of questions and positive body language. It's important to build rapport with the interviewee as the company the interviewer works for will want to be on good terms with the interviewee in case they want to interview them again. Building rapport is usually done by mirroring the interviewee's body language as it makes them feel comfortable and happier to answer the interviewer's questions as mirroring makes them feel like the interviewer is emphasising with them. Another example of positive body language is leaning forwards, as it shows interest in what the interviewee is saying. However, mirroring must be done subtly; if not, it could be perceived as mocking by the interviewee, causing them to react badly. This would loose any rapport built, meaning their responses in the interview wouldn't be as detailed as desired.

Active Listening:

Active listening is when the interviewer pays close attention to the interviewee's responses and asks questions that follow on from said response. Active listening is also done by the interviewer nodding and smiling along to the interviewee's answers as it shows they are paying close attention to what they have to say. This makes them feel as if the interviewer is happy to see them, making them feel welcomed. When the interviewee feel happy to be there, they feel more comfortable to give longer responses. However, an interviewer can get distracted by making sure to nod and smile along to the responses and end up not listening to the interviewee anyway. This would lead to getting short answers from the interviewee as they would feel as if they aren't welcome.

Body Language:

 It is crucial that body language is positive when conducting an interview as it keeps the rapport good with the interviewee. The interviewer must look interested and comfortable while mirroring the interviewee and staying out of their personal space. As previously mentioned, mirroring shows that the interviewer emphasises with the interviewee, showing their respect for them. Body language must not be closed as it comes across as aggressive and intimidating, causing the interviewee to feel unwelcome, which makes them respond with shorter, less detailed answers.

Good Interview Communication:

 

This is an example of using good interview communication as Graham Coxon is being mirrored by Bill Turnbull and Susanna Reid with the crossing of the legs and leaning forward. This makes him feel more comfortable and welcomed in the interview, meaning that he feels happy to talk in detail about his new album, A & E. Their body language is open and they are leaning towards Coxon, showing that they are interested in what he has to say and are not making him feel intimidated. Active listening is used successfully throughout the interview as they nod and smile when he speaks, showing that they're paying attention to each answer. They also ask questions based on his responses, for example, when Graham Coxon is explaining the meaning behind the title, Bill Turnbull doesn't jump to the next question, he asks "so, actually, it has nothing to do with concerns you may, or may not, have about the youth of today?" This shows that he had paid attention to Coxon's previous answer and got him to expand on his point.

Bad Interview Communication:

 

This is an example of using bad interview communication as Krishnan Guru-Murthy does not use active listening as he repeatedly asks Tarantino about the correlation between violence in films and in real life after he has been told repeatedly that he didn't want to answer the question. This shows that Guru-Murthy is not listening to what Tarantino has to say, therefore not responding in the appropriate way. Although there are no wide shots of the interview, we can assume that there is little mirroring taking place as Tarantino feels agitated and only leans forward when he begins to argue back, which is when Guru-Murthy stops leaning forwards as much. As he moves on to the subject of violence early on, Guru-Murthy doesn't build much rapport with Tarantino, meaning that he is already inclined to become agitated.