Adapting MAIN to eliciting stories from adults and in a remote context: What do we have to consider, and what do we know?

Abstract

The present study suggests guidelines for the successful elicitation of adults’ narratives using an online remote design. In doing so, I have adapted the Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives (LITMUS MAIN) to an adult population and specify possible applications in a remote context. Hereby, I elaborate on various features that impact the elicited data and the testing context. I also report results from a pilot study with 10 adults telling MAIN stories using three different testing methods (two moderated methods using PowerPoint or an external link and one unmoderated) to argue that different methods of remote narrative elicitation do not influence the macrostructure of the narratives. However, by extending the analysis to the context of the testing and including the experimenters’ and participants’ assessments of the testing situation, we can see differences that lead me to recommend the so-called Link method (a moderated remote testing method with a certain degree of autonomy) for remote testing with adults.