Interviewing Elite-Experts: When the Few Matter More Than the Many

Authors

• Jo B. Helgetun, SHIFT Research Unit, CRSE, Université libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
• Thibault Coppe, SHIFT Research Unit, CRSE, Université libre de Bruxelles, BelgiumFollow

Abstract

In this methodological essay, we discuss the ontology and epistemology of research interviews. We anchor our methodological reflection in our experiences interviewing elite-experts. Our goal is to highlight the strengths of research interviews, particularly elite-expert interviews, as well as the importance of using a qualitative rather than quantitative logic when conducting and analyzing such interviews. In discussing this case, we reflect on qualitative research and take a critical stance toward practices that undermine the field of qualitative research. Specifically, we reflect on the process of analyzing interviews—what we refer to as “the quantification of qualitative research”—and how it has become tainted and poorly executed due to a fixation on counting codes to construct patterns under a quantitative epistemic logic. This essay is written in the form of a dialectic between reflections on interviewing elite-experts and the qualitative logic this requires.

Keywords

qualitative research, interviews, ontology, epistemology, elite-experts

Author Bio(s)

Jo B. Helgetun ( https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0512-286X) is a Postdoctoral research fellow in the SHIFT Research Unit at the Université libre de Bruxelles, Belgium. His research focuses on the emergent digitalization of teachers’ voice, the use of evidence in policymaking, and teacher education policy. His research attempts to bridge ontological and epistemic challenges when analyzing policymaking in education.

Thibault Coppe ( https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5886-5435) is currently Professor of Educational Sciences at the Université libre de Bruxelles (Belgium) and leads the SHIFT Research Unit. His research interests focus on the professional development of (beginning) teachers and comparative analyses of policies affecting second-career teachers. Through his research, he has developed a strong interest in reflecting on the use of methods in the social sciences (quantitative, qualitative, and mixed) and in discussing the nexus between research and practice.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Thibault Coppe, Faculty of Psychology, Educational Sciences, and Speech and Language Therapy, Avenue Franklin Roosvelt, 50, 1050 Brussels, Belgium; Email: thibault.coppe@ulb.be

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the F.R.S.-FNRS (Belgium) through an Incentive Grant for Scientific Research (MIS). We have no known conflict of interest to declare.

Publication Date

8-2-2026

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

Recommended APA Citation

Helgetun, J. B., & Coppe, T. (2026). Interviewing elite-experts: When the few matter more than the many. The Qualitative Report, 31(7), 6308-6327.

ORCID ID

0000-0001-5886-5435