(1) Interview someone over the phone or in-person about his or her housing history. Do
not conduct the interview by email. This places a burden on your interviewee and does
not result in the depth of information provided by a face-to-face or phone conversation.
(2) Compare the housing history of the person you interviewed the model of housing choice
or other residential mobility content.
(3) Complete a written report of your findings. Submit to the assignment dropbox in ELC.
You will need to write at least 3 pages, double-spaced to do an adequate job covering the
content of this assignment. There is no need to include citations for this assignment unless you
use published sources. Your paper should include the following information:
a) the first name of the person you interviewed
b) when you conducted the interview and the time involved in the interview
c) a summary of the person’s housing history including notes about the social,
psychological, and physical aspects of the homes as provided by the interviewee
d) a discussion of how the history fits or does not fit with the residential mobility models
(housing choice/housing adjustment theory, housing career).
e) a comment about your experience doing this assignment: Why did you select this
person to interview? Did you learn something new about this person? Did you enjoy
doing the assignment? In what ways did it further your understanding of residential
mobility?
This assignment can be overwhelming. Try to limit your interview to 1 hour.
• Can you tell me about the first home that you remember?
• How many places have you lived in your lifetime?
• Where have you lived in your lifetime?
• Which one was your favorite place to live? Why?
• What was the neighborhood like?
• How big was your home? Who lived there with you?
• Why did you move? Did you consider the move an upward, downward or lateral move?
• What is most important about where you live now?
• What do you like least about your current home?
• What did you pay for your first house? (if a homeowner)
• Did you ever rent an apartment or a room?
• Did you ever live in a dormitory?
• When you were in the military, where did you live? (for a veteran)
• What does your home mean to you?
• If your home burned to the ground tomorrow, what would you miss the most?
• My home is important to me because __
• Have you ever lost a home because of a disaster- tornado, fire, or flood?
Sample Solution