Semi-Structured Interview Guide (~ 1 hour)

1. Introduce yourself and this study (2 minutes)

  • “Thanks so much for making time to talk with us today. My name is (your name). I am a researcher, who is studying human-computer interaction. This is (note taker’s name), who will be helping me out with taking notes during our session today. We are trying to understand how distributed work teams coordinate their activities, especially when robots are involved. We are collaborating with the MBARI Telepresence Project team so that we can use the results of our research to drive toward more user-centered designs and configurations of telepresence for ocean exploration teams. Did you have a chance to review and sign our online consent form?”
    • If yes, move on. If not, give them the link to the consent form.

2. Ask for permission to record the interview (3 minutes)

  • “I’d like to ask for your permission to video or audio record our conversation today so that I can make sure that I can represent your perspectives as accurately as possible. I also want to focus on our conversation rather than be distracted by taking notes. With your permission, I will only share these recordings with our research team. If you give us permission to share this recording with the MBARI team, we will do that, too. We want to create a safe space here, where you can be honest in sharing your perspectives. We can pause or stop recording at any time. When we write up the summary of these interviews for internal use and for research publications, we will anonymize quotes. Would you be willing to give me permission to video or audio recording this conversation?”
    • If yes, start video recording. If not, take notes.

3. Start easy and personal, but not too personal (5 - 10 minutes)

  • “For starters, could you tell me a bit about yourself? What brought you into your current job?”
    • If they do work in ocean science… ask about Research Vessel (R/V) experience (5 min)
  • “How long have you been working with Research Vessels at-sea? What aspects of this work are the most rewarding? What aspects of this work are the most challenging?”
  • (optional) “How do you describe your work when talking with visiting groups of students?”

4. Telepresence Experience (20 minutes)

  • “In the past year, have you used the telepresence system that’s being used on the R/V [VESSEL B], R/V [VESSEL A], or other research vessels (e.g., R/V Falkor)?”
    • If yes… ask why? (inquisitively)
      • “Could you tell me what it was like for you when you used it? Who else was there? What were they doing? What went well? What went poorly? If you were offered a chance to do it again, what would you do differently? What would you keep the same?”
        • Listen for concrete stories that reveal latent needs, insights, concerns, etc. Let them tell the stories they want to tell.
        • If needed, coax them to say more.
      • “What was that like for you? Could you tell me more about that? What thoughts were running through your mind at that point? What feelings did you experience then? Why do you think it happened that way?”
    • If no… ask why not? (inquisitively)
      • What have you heard about it? Are you interested in trying it out? Why / why not?
  • “What comparable communication systems have you used before? How was it similar to the current MBARI telepresence system? How was it different? What worked well with that system? What worked poorly with that system?”

5. Telepresence Perspectives (10 minutes)

  • “What benefits or opportunities do you see for using telepresence here?’”
  • “What kinds of information are you looking for when engaging in telepresence sessions?”
    • “Which data feeds besides just the video feed?”
  • “What concerns do you have about using telepresence here?”
  • “What do you see as the best alternative to using telepresence on research vessels?”
  • “What are the most important ways that using telepresence is worse than being there in person?”
  • “In what ways could using telepresence be better than being there in person?”
  • “After this global pandemic is under control, do you anticipate using telepresence on future Research Vessel cruises? How? Why? Why not?”
    • Let them elaborate!

6. Wind Down (5 minutes)

  • “Ok, I want to be respectful of your time so we will start wrapping up now. Are there any things you’d like to add to your comments so far?”
  • “Is there a question that I should have asked you (but didn’t)?”
  • “Do you have any questions for me?”
  • Stop video recording
  • “Is there anyone else you think we should interview for this project?” (for recruiting more participants)

7. Wrap Up (2 minutes)

  • “Thanks again for making the time to talk with us today. I really appreciate the time and effort that you’ve put into sharing your experiences and thoughts with me.’”
  • “If you are interested in hearing about any of our analysis or participating in any follow-up telepresence studies, we’d love to get more of your input as we develop this project.”
  • “It would be great if we could keep in touch.”