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TL;DR: Silent participants aren’t disengaged—they’re often thoughtful, overwhelmed, or processing. Instead of filling the quiet, researchers can build trust, slow down, and reframe questions to invite reflection. This article shares practical ways to engage quieter voices - with non-verbal methods, inclusive language, and rewarding thoughtful (even dissenting) responses.
Silent participants. I’ve worked with many. I’ve been one.
If you are reading this, you realize that silent people are most definitely part of the discourse. THANK YOU for thinking about how to hear them. In market research, we love it when participants are emotive, descriptive & brimming with comments. Often, we fall in the trap of thinking that quieter participants are ‘bad’. Or, that quieter participants have nothing to say or ‘no strong opinions’. This suppresses the voice of participants who may not be as vocal - given their comfort, culture, societal positioning or bandwidth…
A silent participant could be someone who is generally quiet. Or, deep in thought - not wanting to give you a surface-level answer. They may otherwise be talkative - but may feel overwhelmed, intimidated or powerless in particular situations. They may be thinking in different terms and having a hard time communicating with you.
1. Silence doesn’t suck.
Silence doesn’t need to be overcome. Maybe the participant is organizing their thoughts or digesting a question. Maybe you’re going somewhere the participant isn’t ready to go yet. You can listen to silence. There’s no need to put words in their mouth. Don’t fill up silences because they feel ‘awkward’. That doesn’t set us up for thoughtful interaction.
INSTEAD OF…
Putting words into the participants mouth
WHY NOT TRY…?
Not expecting participants to say anything.
Blink. Relax your muscles. Silences are a very regular part of things. You probably hear them all the time outside of interviews.
2. Building trust
In many dynamics, researchers can feel like an authority figure - a position of power over them. And very few people have great relationships with authority. On top of that, many sections of our population are generally not used to being listened to.
It’s important that your participants trust you want to listen. Easier said than done.
You can try to make them feel heard in whatever little they say. Reflecting what they are saying back at them, to see if you get the core of their idea. There may be a back-and-forth (which is excellent). Try to keep going till they indicate that they feel heard. Challenge power dynamics by listening like a good friend.
INSTEAD OF…
Overlooking silence or sparse response.
OR
Moving onto the next question
WHY NOT TRY…?
“It sounds like you would rather go to a tutor that can joke around with you than one who is more ‘qualified’. What do you think of this? Does that resonate?”
3. Rewarding dissent equally
There are no ‘right’ answers. If you are a brand researcher, you probably WANT participants to trash-talk your brand. Even if the brand is your ‘baby’. It would be SO helpful to know what consumers think. Even if what they say feels ‘wrong’ to you.
Reading on ‘demand characteristics’ is very interesting. We have a tendency to reward what we want to hear & see. This is something we often do unconsciously. We may smile, nod, make more eye contact when we feel supported. Participants can often see through this. This can suppress dissent. They may present their answers - or lack thereof - accordingly. They may not even necessarily ‘lie’. However, you may be missing out on more nuanced data tailored to help your brand.
Participants should feel like a ‘good’ response is a thoughtful response.
INSTEAD OF…
Nodding, smiling when only you agree
WHY NOT TRY…?
Nodding, smiling hard whenever you get a thoughtful response
4. Quiet time
Your participants may be quiet by nature. Instead of having them talk, can you gauge their thoughts and feelings in another way? Sometimes, words fall greatly short. For example, when there are entangled histories or many co-dependent factors. In these cases, a timeline or a mind-map may help participants communicate.
INSTEAD OF…
Making a participant respond verbally, when they might not be inclined
WHY NOT TRY…?
Asking them to make a mind-map, draw, write a response or a list
5. Break up the question
Often, participants are not seeing things in your terms. This is great for an interview! And exactly why we do the work we do! Silence, in these cases, may result from communicational gaps. You may think something is simple. Participants may be able to see the messiness on their end. Break up the question into parts. For example:
Interviewer: “Do you use Broodle's online tuition system?”
Respondent: “Yes, I do”.
Interviewer: “Do you like it?”
Respondent: “Yes, it’s nice….”
INSTEAD OF…
Moving on to the next question
WHY NOT TRY…?
Probing:
“Do you find it convenient?”
Yes
“Is it easy for you to find an online tutor that meets your needs?”
Yes, I do find it convenient. When it works, it works well. But often, it's hard to find someone who is good at the topic I am studying
“I imagine that is very important for you? To find an expert?”
Yes, it’s very important.
“How important is time? Do you move your schedule to meet an expert tutor?”
6. Use a common language, or translate
Conventional wisdom suggests: the interview should be in a language both parties are comfortable with. In practice, this often does not happen. Especially in India. Recognize that this might be stressful for the participant.
Translate your questions to the language you both have in common. Make sure it is a plain translation. Keep a back-up explanation, in case you struggle to communicate and a translation in their preferred language handy.
Instead of relying on words only - use charts, diagrams, photographs - and other non-verbal tools. When vocabulary may fall short in describing particular feelings, a body map could be a useful tool.
INSTEAD OF…
“Do you ever want network bandwidth check in online education?”
WHY NOT TRY…?
“Have you ever wanted to see everyone’s internet connection in an online class?”
Show a picture of a network check, like this one:
FAQs on How to interview silent participants
1. What does it mean when a respondent is quiet in an interview?
A quiet respondent doesn’t necessarily mean the participant is ‘bad’ or has nothing to add to the discussion. A quieter participant could be deep in thought, generally quiet, overwhelmed, intimidated or needing support to translate their thoughts.
2. How to best harness silence before an interview?
Before an interview, ensure you have multiple ways - different languages, analogies, pictures - to explain your questions. Keep tools like pencils and paper handy, in case it may benefit a participant.
3. How to harness silence during an interview?
Blink. Relax your muscles. Silences are a very regular part of things. You probably hear them all the time outside of interviews. Do not expect participants to say much. Positively reinforce thoughtful responses non-verbally (nodding, smiling, eye contact, posture…) and/or verbally (‘Thank you for bringing that up. It is an extremely thoughtful response.’).
4. What are alternatives to speaking in an interview?
In an interview, you could use tools like lists, mind-maps, body maps (to track feelings in the body), timelines (to help organize complicated events).
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