The Advantages of Online Interviews for Transmigrants and Transnational Migration Studies

Abstract

<i>This paper discusses interviewing migrants via</i><i> </i><i>online platforms and phone, claiming that remote interviews using these tools can be equivalent to and possibly even more effective than face-to-face interviews. It is based on 83 interviews conducted in person, by Zoom, and by phone with Jewish migrants to Israel from North America. Some interviews were conducted via Zoom and phone due to the concurrent COVID-19 restrictions. Previous papers have demonstrated that interviewing online or by phone can complement face-to-face interviews or be equivalent. This paper claims that in the case of interviewing migrants, remote interviews are, at least in some cases, more effective than in-person interviews for several reasons: This type of interview reduces the power relations characteristic of interviews, eliminates physical bodies, and also moves interviews to an online space that is transnational in nature (principally if interviewee and interviewer are not in the same country). Thus, the interview takes place both in the transnational online space and in each participant’s space. Logistically, it also makes the interview much more convenient.</i>