“I never thought I could be seen as an oral historian” – Fritz Schütze about the autobiographical narrative interview and oral history in conversation with Jakub Gałęziowski

Abstract

Interview with Fritz Schütze – sociologist, professor emeritus of General Sociology / Microsociology and former director of the Institute of Sociology at the Otto von Guericke University of Magdeburg, widely known as a creator of the autobiographical narrative interview research method – a coherent theoretical and analytic approach including a method of data collection, and procedures for data analysis based among others on grounded theory, symbolic interactionism, sociolinguistics, social phenomenology and ethnomethodology. His approach was developed long before the “narrative turn” in the social sciences and is an inspiration for both biographical researchers and oral historians.The interview was recorded remotely on Zoom, 11 October 2021, then carefully reworked and supplemented by Fritz Schütze, including many additional footnotes.