Which research method uses open-ended questions to gain insights into participant thoughts and feelings?

Interviews are an effective research method that utilizes open-ended questions to delve deeper into the thoughts and feelings of participants. This format allows for a more conversational and flexible interaction, enabling the interviewer to probe further based on the participant's responses. Open-ended questions encourage participants to express their views and experiences in their own words, which can lead to richer, more nuanced data.

Using interviews can provide qualitative insights that are often more difficult to capture through structured surveys or quantitative methods. This depth of understanding is particularly beneficial when exploring complex topics where the emotional or subjective elements are significant, such as in market research where consumer attitudes and perceptions are essential.

In contrast, surveys typically consist of closed-ended questions designed for quantitative analysis, while experiments focus on manipulating variables to observe outcomes. Archives involve analyzing existing historical data rather than gathering new qualitative insights. Therefore, the method that best aligns with the goal of exploring participant thoughts and feelings through open-ended questioning is interviews.