When should occupant interviews supplement questionnaires?

• A. Always
• B. When conditions in the complaint area can be compared to conditions in similar building locations where there are no complaints
• C. Never
• D. When the complaint is severe

Answer: (B)

Occupant interviews add valuable context when you have a basis to compare conditions. If you can look at the complaint area alongside similar locations in the building where there are no complaints, interviews help you understand why the conditions differ and whether the issue is tied to a specific area, occupant behavior, or a local building system problem rather than a building-wide factor.

This approach allows you to validate questionnaire responses, uncover nuances that surveys might miss (such as timing, frequency, or recent changes), and gather details like occupant tasks, behavior, or recent events that could explain the discrepancy. In short, interviewing becomes particularly helpful when you can contrast a known problem area with unaffected areas to pinpoint likely causes and appropriate remedies.

Other scenarios aren’t as strong a fit because, without a comparator, the added value of interviews is more limited and can lead to over-interpretation of subjective responses, whereas the key strength here is leveraging a control condition to interpret the data accurately.