Clean Language Interviewing: Principles and Applications for Researchers and Practitioners

Clean Language Interviewing is a landmark publication that defines the field for this important practice; it is essential reading for all researchers who seek to obtain data that are faithful to the experience of the interviewee. Clean language interviewing aims to improve the ability of academic and applied researchers to minimise the introduction of the interviewer’s own assumptions, to avoid ‘leading’ questions and instead to ask ‘clean’ questions.

Heather Cairns-Lee, James Lawley and Paul Tosey present a state-of-the-art review of the principles and practice of clean language interviewing to make this rigorous and innovative method accessible. Using real application examples, a global group of contributors analyse the use of clean language interviewing in multiple settings including business, education, and healthcare.

Heather Cairns-Lee, PhD, is adjunct professor at IMD, Switzerland and a visiting scholar at the University of Surrey, UK. Her teaching and research focus on metaphor, the development of leadership and sensemaking in organisations. Heather’s award-winning PhD study was the first large-scale application of clean language interviewing in a managerial setting.

James Lawley is an independent researcher and a partner at The Developing Company. He has cooperated with and conducted training for several universities and organisations involving the application of clean language, metaphor, and symbolic modelling to qualitative research. James qualified as a psychotherapist in 1993 after a career as a senior manager in large corporations.

Paul Tosey, PhD, is a freelance consultant and researcher. He first undertook training in clean language in 2006 and participates in the field as a coach, author, and research supervisor. Paul’s career experience includes public sector organisation development and university roles, most recently as Senior Lecturer and Head of PhD Programmes in the Surrey Business School, University of Surrey, UK.