Dyad Open Questions

I observed and analyzed the financial information interviews you assigned for me to observe. From observing with an interpersonal communication and interview concept perspective, I found that interview structure and types of questions asked during the interviews affect the level of disclosure and relational lifecycle among members of a dyad.

Making the Interviewee Feel Comfortable

Questions asked during an interview play a large role in helping the interviewee feel more welcomed and relaxed. Interviewees in a positive environment will generally feel less tension and be more open with sharing information.

Questioning the Interviewee

When the interviewer used closed questions, he had to ask more follow-up questions to gather information compared to

When the interviewee seemed to feel more comfortable through his facial expressions and posture, he was more likely to elaborate on certain topics without the interviewer having to probe him to disclose more information. Reducing the amount of short answers allowed the conversation to flow more naturally and helped the interviewee feel more comfortable with disclosing the private information to the auditor.

In addition, using more open-ended questions helped the interviewer demonstrate that he was interested in building a positive relationship with his client from the interview.

Open questions help the interviewer learn about the interviewee’s:

• Values

• Feelings

• Knowledge

Building a positive relationship leads to the interviewee disclosing more information. Disclosure will increase with relational intimacy. More disclosure will reduce the interviewer’s efforts to try and probe information and increase the closeness of the dyad during its relationship lifecycle.

Interview