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Dervin 1997 New Technologies

Sense-Making Sample Interview

1997 New Technologies Interview #1

Respondent: female, 78 years old (interviewer's grandmother)
Interviewer: female undergraduate

1. When you hear the phrase communication technology...

1a. What does it mean to you? Oh I don't know, a telephone.
2a. What leads you to say that... How does it connect with your life? N/A

TECHNOLOGY LIST
2. 1 am going to read a list of some of the new communication technologies and the services connected with them. Please indicate which ones you have had some experience with -- either .because you tested it and rejected it, or learned to use it and made it a part of your life, or had it imposed on you....

	TECHNOLOGIES	2a. Any experience	2b. How much experience	2c. Extent imposed on you?	2d. How much help?
2a.	regular dial phone	yes	7	1	6
2b.	touch-tone phone	yes	7	1	7
2c.	VCR	no	.	.	.
2d.	cellular phone	no	.	.	.
2e.	portable phone	yes	7	1	7
2f.	desk-top or personal computer	no	.
2g.	world wide web	no way
2h.	automatic banking machine	yes	4	2	6
2i.	pay-your-bills-by-phone service	no
2j.	computerized library catalogue	no
2k.	computerized shopping	no
2l.	on-screen TV games	no
2m.	email	no
2n.	programmable stereo	no
2o.	programmable cable TV service	no
2p.	caller id	no
2q.	call forwarding	no
2r.	call waiting	no
2s.	computerized class enrollment	no
2t.	phone answering machine	no
2u.	programmable phone	yes	7	1	7
2v.	other:
2w.	other:
2x.	other:

In- depth analysis : Apply five times , to;
3a. telephone
3b. N/A
3c. N/A
3d. N/A
4a. automatic banking machine

5a. What was it that lead you to use this a technology (phone)? What happened ... what happened first (first memory), second, and so on?

Well we got the phone when I was going together with my husband 60 years ago, I suppose I called my mother from school to ask her if I could stay for play practice. It was the last year of high school when we got it, I think, in 1937.

5b. Did any barriers or constraints stand in the way of your use of this technology?

5bl. What barriers or constraints stood in the way?
The line was always busy, we were on party lines, you shared the line with 5 to 7 other people.

5b2. For each: How did it stand in the way? How did it hinder you?
You couldn't get through if you had a party line.

5b3. For each: How did this hindrance connect to your life?
You had to be patient.

5c. Did anything facillitate or help your use of this technology?

5cl. What facilitated or helped?
We took it up because we knew we needed it, to use it.

5c2. For each: How did It help or facilitate your use of this technology?
You could get a hold of people quicker.

5c3. For each: How did this help connect to your life?
You know we only used it when we had to, you just thought of the other person.

5d. Looking back over your uses of technology, what have been the big questions or confusions you have faced in using it? None

5d1. What were these?
N/A
5d2. For each: how did the question relate to your life?
N/A
5d3. For each: did you get a complete answer? partial? no answer at all?
N/A
5d4. For each: if not a complete answer what stood in the way?
N/A
5d5. For each: Did asking the question impact or change you? how?
N/A

5e. Looking back over your uses of this technology, what have been the emotions or feelings you have had in connection with its use?

5e1. What were they?
Well sometimes you got irr-atient, everybody couldn't get through, there to many people on the iine.
5e2. For each: how did this emotion/feeting relate to your life?
It was a bother but didn't really effect me.
5e3. For each: Did the emotion/feeling impact or change you? how?
No.

5f. Looking back over your uses of this technology, did you come to new ideas or conclusions in the process of using it?

5f1. What were these?
You tried to call certain times during the day, when it wasn't going to be so busy, like in the evening.
5f2. For each: how did this relate to your life?
N/A
5f3. For each: Did this idea impact or change you in any way? how?
No

5g. Looking over your uses of this technology, name any ways in which the technology has impacted your life at home and/or at work in good ways, in ways that were helpful or facilitating to your life?

5gl. Ways technology has helped?
In a rural setting it meant we didn't have to travel and go so much.
5g2. For each: How did this help connect with your life?
It helped a lot you could call and find out what you needed to know without traveling.
5g3. For each: Did this outcome help you in any way? how?
Yes, you could call and check on your mother, or call a doctor.

5h. Looking back over your uses of this technology, name any ways in which the technology has impacted your life at home andi or at work in bad ways, in ways that were hurtful or hindering to your life?
It was good for us.

5h1. Ways technology has hurt or hindered? N/A
5h2. For each: How did this hurt/hindrance connect with your life? N/A
5h3. For each: Did this outcome hinder you in any way? how? N/A

Automatic banking machine
5a. What was it that lead you to use this technology? What happened...what happened second, and so on?
We were on vacation and we needed some cash.

5b. Did any barriers or constraints stand in the way of your use of this technology?

5bl. What barriers or constraints stood in the way?
Well you 'ust had to take your turn, and follow the instructions.
5b2. For each: How did it stand in the way? How did it hinder you?
5b3. For each: How did this hindrance connect to your life?

5c. Did anything facilitate or help your use of this technology?

5cl. What facilitated or helped?
It just made it easier to get cash.
|5c2. For each: How did it help or facilitate your use of this technology?
5c3. For each: How did this help connect to your life?
It doesn't that much, we don't use it that much.

5d. Looking back over your uses of technology, what have been the big questions
or confusions you have faced in using it? None

5d1. What were these?
5d2. For each: how did the question relate to your life?
5d3. For each: did you get a complete answer? partial? no answer at all?
5d4: For each: if not a complete answer what stood in the way?
5d5: For each: did asking the question impact or change you? how?

5e. Looking back over your uses of this technology, what have been the emotion or feelings you have had in connection with its use?

5el. What were they?
Satisfaction.
5e2. For each: how did this emotion/feeling relate to your life? N/A
5e3. For each: did the emotion/feeling impact or change you? how?
When we need it we use it.

5f. Looking back over your uses of this technology, did you come to new ideas or conclusions in the process of using it?

5f1. What were these?
It was good, it was convenient.
5f2. For each: how did this relate to your life?
It helped when we were on vacation.
5f3. For each: Did this idea impact or change you in any way? how?
No

5g. Looking over your uses of this technology, name any ways in which the technology has impacted your life at home and/or at work in good ways, in ways that were helpful or facilitating to ,our life?
I just said that didn't I?

5gl. Ways technology has helped? N/A
5g2. For each: How did this help connect with your life? N/A
5g3: For each: Did this outcome help you in any way? how? N/A

5h. Looking back over your uses of this technology, name any ways in which the technology has impacted your life at home and/ or at work in bad ways, in ways that were hurtful or hindering to your life?
It hasn't, not really in any bad ways.

5h1. Ways technology has hurt or hindred? N/A
5h2. For each: How did this hurt/hindrance connect with your life? N/A
5h3. For each: did this outcome hinder you in any way? how? N/A

The Issues

6. TELEMARKETING: One of the main uses of the new technologies by the commercial world is telemarketing. Some people view telemarketing as a useful service offered to us by companies while others see it as intrusion to our lives.

a. What thoughts or ideas or conclusions have you come to about this issue?
It's an intrusion.

b. What emotions or feelings have you had about this issue?
I'm just annoyed.

c. What questions or confusions have you had about this issue?
I don"t know enough about it.

For each thought/emotion/question:
d. What leads you to this thoughtiemotion/question?
Oh it's all right for some people, not for us now you see, or like us. It's for somebody that wants to advance and keep up with things, I think it's good for them; but we're on our way out as far as business is concerned and working all the time.

e. How does this thought/emotion/question relate to your life? N/A

f. Does having this thoughtlemotion/question impact your life or behavior? How?
It didn't all that much.

7. BETTER INFO: Another issue relating to the now communication technologies concerns whether these technologies will help us as individuals and as a society obtain better information. Some people say that these technologies will make it possible for us to get better information. Others say the impact will be the opposite?

a. What thoughts or ideas or conclusions have you come to about this issue?
Positive, it's progress.

b. What emotions or feelings have you had about this issue?
Everybody is going to need to know.

c. What questions or confusions have you had about this issue? N/A

For each thought/emotion/question:

d. What leads you to this thought/emotion/question? N/A

e. How does this thought/emotion/question relate to your life? N/A

f. Does having this thought/emotion/question impact your life or behavior? How? N/A

8. FAMILY LIFE: Another concern about the now communications technologies that people disagree about is how these technologies will impact family life. Some folks think the communication technologies will have a very bad impact on family
life; others think they will have a good impact.

a. What thoughts or ideas or conclusions have you come to about this issue?
I think they are Outting to much on that internet, why do they put all this on?

b. What emotions or feelings have you had about this issue?
Confused and concerned.
c. What questions or confusions have you had about this issue?
I'm concerned that the whole world is going to know everything about everybody, and there will be no secrets.

For each thought/emotion/question:
d. What leads you to this thought/emotion/question?
Maybe I'm thinking about the wrong thing, I do think about my privacy.

e. How does this thought/emotion/question relate to your life? N/A

f. Does having this thought/emotion/question impact your life or behavior? How? N/A

 

9. COMMUNITY LIFE: Another related concern is for the impact the new technologies will have on community life. Some folks think the communication technologies will have a very bad impact on community life; others think they will have a good impact.

a. What thoughts or ideas or conclusions have you come to about this issue?
Community life and family life are the same to me.

b. What emotions or feelings have you had about this issue? Refer to 8b.

c. What questions or confusions have you had about this issue? Refer to 8c.

For each thought/emotion/question:
d. What leads you to this thought/emotion/question? Refer to 8d.

e. How does this thought/emotion/question relate to your life? Refer to 8e.

f. Does having this thoughtlemotion/question impact your life or behavior? How? Refer to 8f.

10. INEQUITIES: One other issue that is being raised concerns whether the introduction of the new communication technologies will leave some societal groups behind. Some observers say the technologies will divide us into those with and without the funds and the skills for owning and using these new technologies. Others say the opposite will happen.

a. What thoughts or ideas or conclusions have you come to about this issue?
There will be inequities, that I am 100% sure of.

b. What emotions or feelings have you had about this issue?
I think it will be a problem. Some people won't have the advantage or use of it, and naturally the ones that do are going to have better chances. It'll always be that way, life's always been that way, it can't be stop, stop perfect . You hope that if anyone really wants it they'll find a way to get it if they work hard enough.

c. What questions or confusions have you had about this issue? None

For each thought/emotion/question:
d. What leads you to this thought/emotion/question? N/A

e. How does this thought/emotion/question relate to your life? N/A

f. Does having this thoughttemotion/question impact your life or behavior? How? N/A

 

Conclusion
11. Now that we've talked about all these issues...

11a. Do you have any thoughts about communication technologies that you'd like to share with me?
It's aweful hard for us to understand all this. I am afraid that there is going to be too much technical stuff for people to keep up with.

11b. What leads you to this thought/ idea/ conclusion?
I know a lot of people that way you know.

11c. How does this thought/idea/conclusion relate to your life?

Oh, like we found we wanted to make a phone call from the airport one time, but we couldn't because we didn't have a credit card and that was all that was excepted. That's all right I suspect, it's just hard to keep up enough. We were somewhere we couldn't understand how to put something through (oh, I forget where I shouldn"t have mentioned it), and the only way to do it was the technical way.

11d. Did having this thought/ idea/conclusion change your behavior? How?
Well we try to find out what we have to do if we have to do anything and just work it out.

 

l2. Respondent profile:

AGE: 78
GENDER: FEMALE
#YEARS EDUCATION: 12
ETHNIC HERITAGE: GERMAN
RACE: CAUCASIAN
KIND OF JOB AND KIND OF PLACE YOU WORK AT: FARMING, DAUGHTER, SISTER, WIFE, MOTHER, GRANDMOTHER, GREAT GRANDMOTHER, TEACHER, NURTURER. A 500 ACRE FARM AND A CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY
KIND OF JOB AND KIND OF PLACE YOUR FATHER WORKED AT: FARMER
KIND OF JOB AND KIND OF PLACE YOUR MOTHER WORKED AT:
WENT TO BUSINESS SCHOOL AND WORKED AS A SECRETARY FOR FOUR YEARS, THEN FARMING AND MOTHER, ETC.

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Page last updated 2/26/98