However it is not necessary that this person is actually present in the same room - this may be undesirable in certain cases for methodological reasons, e.g. where it might introduce some bias in the responses. The researcher must take into account the degree of maturity of the child or young person involved when considering what subjects may or may not be safely dealt with in an interview. This again is a question of good research practice as much as of ethics. Examples of topics where special care is needed when interviewing children and young people are ones which could disturb or worry them, such as their relationships with others in their peer group, or ones which risk creating tensions between them and their parents. It is not generally necessary to use special types of interviewer for surveys among children and young people.
Many experienced interviewers are quite capable of being trained for such work.
However, it is very important that anyone who is going to carry out such interviewing is carefully screened for their suitability for this responsibility, given the growing concern of parents and the general public about the protection of young people and especially of children. However, despite these difficulties the researcher should still try to follow the principles set out in this Guideline.