The interactive construction of narrative styles in sensitive interviews: The case of domestic violence research

Awareness of the possible power relations and conflicts between interviewer and interviewee in qualitative research has grown in recent years; however, scant attempts have been made to analyze this phenomenon empirically. The current work uses interviews conducted with battered women and batterers to understand the co-construction of the narrative of domestic violence. The emergent narrative style is shown to be the product of the interaction between interviewer and interviewee. Four different narrative styles are identified: the narrative style (a) as a struggle, (b) as deflection, (c) as negotiation, and (d) as a self-observation process. The divergent goals and agendas of interviewers and interviewees are discussed, as well as the replication of relational patterns of the interviewee in the interview process. Emphasized are the implications for the study of sensitive domains and power relations in qualitative research.