Page 66 - Nutrition Counseling and Education Skills: A Guide for Professionals

“Could you elaborate on. . .”
“Will you tell me more about. . .”

Neutral and Leading Questions

Neutral questions are preferred to leading questions. Neutral questions allow the respondent to decide the
answer, whereas leading questions direct the respondent toward one answer, an effect that may be
unintentional on the part of an inexperienced interviewer.3 Leading questions suggest an expected answer, as
in the following examples:

“You drink milk, don’t you?” “Yes, of course.” Instead, ask: “What beverages do you drink?”
“You aren’t going to eat desserts anymore, are you?” “No.” Instead ask: “What will you have for dessert?”
“Breakfast is SO important. What do you have? Cereal?” Instead ask: “What do you have to eat and drink first after you wake up in the
morning?”

One of these questions assumes the client eats breakfast, and in these instances people may answer even if they
usually omit the meal. Clients may change their answers on the basis of a nonverbal appearance of the
practitioner of surprise, disgust, dislike, or disagreement with what clients are saying. To receive uninhibited
responses from clients, the interviewer needs to avoid these appearances.

Discussing interview information.
Source: Photo by Joe Mitchell.

SELF-ASSESSMENT 2

Directions: Identify the following questions as open, closed, primary, secondary, or leading.

1. “You mentioned that the only meal you eat at home is dinner. Can you tell me where you eat your
breakfast and lunch and what you are likely to have?”

2. “Do you put mustard on your hamburger?”
3. “What do you put on your salad?”
4. “How do you cook your meats?”

Directives

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