Qualitative Research: in-depth interviews

About Zinc

Zinc Network is an ISO certified international development company headquartered in London and with offices in Washington, D.C. and Poland. We’re on a mission to achieve meaningful, measurable change in international development and security through the application of behavioural science and strategic communications, technology, and human-centred design (HCD).

We have 100+ team members from diverse professional and cultural backgrounds, including, behavioural scientists, creatives, diplomats, digital experts, and campaigners. We work with a broad range of governmental, NGO, and private sector clients, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID); the U.S. Department of State (DOS); the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO); and UN agencies and missions.

Outline of the job

This Scope of Work (SoW) outlines a project outcome and impact assessment for a countering disinformation project in Lithuania. This evaluation task will specifically explore the effects of workshops/gamified events delivered to students in collaboration with Lithuanian high-schools and teachers. The aim is to assess teachers' insights into the importance and the utility of the gamified events in enhancing students' capacity to identify and counter disinformation. In addition, the assessment will explore the potential for integrating such workshops or gamified events as extracurricular activities to ensure their long-term sustainability. This includes examining whether schools have already taken steps or showed intent to independently implement similar initiatives in the future to enhance students’ resilience to disinformation.

Project Background

A Vilnius-based NGO organized gamified workshops in collaboration with Lithuanian high schools to tackle disinformation and teach students responsible online behaviour. These workshops used engaging questions and creative challenges to motivate participants to verify information using open data sources, such as Google Earth, OSINT tools, and social media. The initiative aimed to build students' resilience to disinformation and promote critical thinking.

What you’ll be doing:

1. Collect qualitative data from key target audience through in-depth interviews and triangulate interview data between respondents, and with any written products or reports.

2. Describe key achievements and analyse the factors which have helped and hindered progress towards the specific outcome set out in project proposal.

3. Develop a clear, compelling report to summarise your findings.

This work will be overseen by the MREL team.

Requirements

Task

1. Prepare the evaluation process:

- Read relevant materials related to the project including proposal documents, final report, and preliminary core evaluation questions.

- Facilitate a kick-off meeting with the evaluation team to identify priorities, data sources, timelines and approach.

Deliverables

Evaluation execution plan comprising:

a. Draft interview guide, for review by Zinc Network before execution

b. Finalised timeline

Task

2. Data Collection:

- Conduct approximately 10 in-depth interviews with teachers and school administration.

Deliverables

Raw data:

a. We expect all raw data, including anonymised verbatim interview scripts to be returned to us in Lithuanian language.

Task

3. Analysis and report development:

- Conduct one preliminary finding call with the review team for an early check in on likely findings

Deliverables

a. Final summary report structure outlining the sections, and sub-sections where relevant, to be signed off before the full write-up happens

Task

4. Finalise and disseminate the final summary report:

- Collate and write up the findings per the agreed structure

Deliverables

a. The full evaluation report in English language (report minus annexes should be no longer than 15 pages)

Timeline

Kick-off in the first half of December, aim to have evaluation plan (including interviews scheduled for December) done by December 31 2024. Final report and associated documents to be delivered by January 15th 2025.

Budget and Pricing

Provide a detailed budget based on the following components:

· Work days (level of effort): indicate the total number of work days estimated for each phase of the project (e.g., review of documentation, design of interview guide, data collection, analysis and reporting, etc.).

· Deliverables: Provide a cost estimate for each deliverable as stipulated in the requirements table (e.g., interview guides, in-depth interviews and transcripts, summary report). The cost should cover the entire process from creation to submission of each deliverable.

· As part of the initial project documentation review, you will be required to review the following: project proposal (8 pages), narrative report, (8 pages) and survey findings write up.

What we need from you

· Experience of working with, and gathering data from diverse stakeholders, including school administration and teachers

· Experience with qualitative data analysis, and the ability to facilitate the interpretation of data

· Familiarity with counter disinformation programming is preferred

· Confidence interviewing in Lithuanian, excellent written English

· We expect clear, concise and accessible reporting and writing

Area of Selection

We’re committed to hiring a diverse workforce from different professional and cultural backgrounds, and to that end we encourage a variety of people to apply to join our company to represent the diverse range of subjects associated with our projects.

Conditions of Employment

Candidates who receive a job offer will be required to:

- Disclose any previous disciplinary action against them resulting from a substantiated safeguarding (including any breaches involving trafficking- related activities) or workplace investigation.

- Undergo background checks including employment verification, sexual offender registry (as available), identity confirmation, and anti-terrorism vetting.

How to apply

Please include a proposal of no more than three pages stating your approach and how you meet each of the requirements.

In your proposal submission please outline the number of days you anticipate committing to delivering this piece of work, and an estimation of the amount of data you may collect in terms of informant interviews and a stakeholder surveys.

Please note we may ask for work samples during the recruitment process.

If you require an accommodation to be made at any point throughout the recruitment process, please advise us when contacted.

Please submit your proposal by 6pm on December 9th