Advantages of conducting a focus group interview are the flexibility in questioning, the encouragement of dialogue and exchange of ideas, the generation of hypotheses, being relatively fast and inexpensive and producing findings in a form that most users fully understand miller, 2000. Compare, contrast, and combine the focus group information with information gathered from other sources such as surveys, interviews, or secondary research sources. Data gathered through individual interviews and focus groups from a study on patterns of cancer informationseeking behaviour are used to exemplify the addedvalue but also the challenges of. Planning and research design for focus groups in line with the resources of corporate clients rather than academics.
Focus groups are indepth group interviews employing relatively homogenous groups to provide information around topics specified by the researchers. This session examines a more involving activity which collects information in a group setting. On this question, the answers gained in focus group and in indepth interview were quite different. Conduct the focus groups or interviews focus groups and interviews typically begin with the moderator welcoming participants and briefing them on the process e. Using focus group interviews for planning or evaluating. Online focus groups and qualitative research in the social. This brief serves as an introduction to focus groups. People in a focus group may be interviewed on an individual basis as well as part of the group. The focus group fg has been actually employed by marketing, and is becoming importanct also in other areas. The focus groups are though collaboration of experienced and intelligent people but they are unstructured. Your situation or environment and the type of study you are doing.
Rather, a focus group consists of participants who are guided via a facilitated discussion. Focus groups were originally called focused interviews or group depth interviews. What is the purpose and advantages of focus group interviews. How to conduct a focus group by judith sharken simon while focus groups are often seen as a technique reserved for corporations involved in expensive, competitive advertising, they can also be extremely useful for nonprofit organizations wishing to connect with their communities. The use of focus groups is a research method that is intended to collect data, through interactive. A focus group is a carefully planned discussion led by a moderator designed to gather opinions on a defined topic. Aug 16, 2011 the results of the focus group interviews helped us design parent lounges that met the unique needs of parents who often spend days, weeks or even months in the hospital with a sick child. All of these materials ought to be gathered, labeled, and saved for later analysis. Most of the focus group time is devoted to exploring and examining the key questions. Focus groups are in depth group interviews employing relatively homogenous groups to provide information around topics specified by the researchers. Focus groups typically involve a moderatorled group discussion with between eight and 10 people.
Focus group interview and data analysis fatemeh rabiee school of health and policy studies, university of central england, birmingham b42 2su, uk in recent years focus group interviews, as a means of qualitative data collection, have gained popularity amongst professionals within the health and social care arena. Focus group methodology offers a more indepth understanding of participants perceptions than do quantitative measures such as test scores and surveys, thereby. Part 1 article pdf available in british journal of nursing mark allen publishing 221. Focus groups and interviews focus group methodology focus groups take time out of peoples days, so to be respectful of their time, it is best to keep the focus group fairly short, perhaps one and a half or two hours at most. Focus groups and interviews food choices at the uc are limited and lines often back up lounge areas are not considered comfortable and welcoming itive side, there is general agreement at the uc is in a good, central location and both the uc and satellite have good presence on campus, when you mention either people know where it is located. For example, focus group recruiting may be a problem if the type of person recruited responds differently to the issues being discussed than do other target segments. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Number of focus groups conducted date of focus group case study area number of participants. Just as important for the budgetwise nonprofit, focus groups. Reveals how a group thinks about a topic, thier common beliefs about it, as well as the range. New questions or lines of research can also be generated by the conversations. The interview results in a wealth of data that can be applied in many different ways. Compared to individual interviews, it more easily provides opportunities for participant involvement and interaction. These sessions with consumers are used to solicit the customer perspectives and opinions about new ideas, products or services either being offered or in product development focus group participants are asked questions in an interactive setting and are encouraged to discuss.
The impression is that fg is often adopted without any prior consideration of whether it. Using focus group interviews for planning or evaluating extension programs 2 of focus groups over oneonone interviews is that it is not possible to probe the answers of the participants in depth due to time constraints. Disadvantages of focus groups marketing research assignment. Focus groups are forums used to gather qualitative data on the customer experience. Focus group interviews are better for a small number of issues. Focus groups have long been used in marketing, urban planning, and other social sciences.
A wellorganized study first seeks to understand what, precisely, the client is hoping to achieve in its market testing. Nov 14, 2018 i was recently asked to provide the definition of a focus group, how to conduct a focus group interview and what is the purpose of focus group interviews. Feminist qualitative research can be strengthened and broadened through the development of feminist focus group interviews. Economy is an important benefit but there are other benefits of focus groups when compared to interviews. In this guide you will find checklists and samples of items such as focus group questions, recruitment flyer, invitee tracking form, introductory.
Secondary data sources are datasets that are already in existence, such as census data. In general, focus group discussions are 60 to 90 minutes long. Focus group methods emerged in the 1940s with the work of merton and fiske who used focus groups to conduct audience. Plan the study plan your study with the input of your strategy team, stakeholders, and research experts so that collaboratively you determine. Inperson focus groups allow an organization to gain valuable insight into how their customers think about various topics, products, services or the brand in general. Use of focus groups association of leadership educators. How to conduct a focus group the grantsmanship center. Focus group methodology offers a more indepth understanding of participants perceptions than do quantitative measures such as test scores and surveys, thereby providing potential answers to why a school is failing. Data gathered through individual interviews and focus groups from a study on patterns of cancer informationseeking behaviour are used to exemplify the addedvalue but also the challenges of relying on methods combination. Conduct a focus group of 8 to 12 students using your discussion guide. As in the case of traditional focus groups, online focus group participation is by invitation only. A focus group is basically research that organizations do to gather information. Individual interviews allow more flexibility in setting up interviews, rather than having to schedule a larger group of people. Focus group interviews are an increasingly popular, albeit poorly documented, tool in education research.
Fgi focus group interview is a technique used in conducting qualitative research. The integration of focus group and individual interview data made three main contributions. Researchers can use an unstructured no specific questions, semistructured starts with specific questions, then explores the participants tangents of thought, or structured use of a. Focus groups work better when there are limited time frames. A trained moderator leads a 3090minute discussion within the group that is designed to gather helpful information. In most research situations, an interview is a onetoone interaction and our page interviews for research discusses their use in gathering data for research. Like any tool though, there are advantages and disadvantages, and the focus group is no different. In particular, the need to bring together several participants requires attention to who the participants are and how the researcher will interact with them as a group. As group interviews, focus groups not only occupy an intennediate position between these other qualitative methods but also possess a distinctive identity oftheir own. Facetoface interviews using facetoface interviews as a means of data collection has a number of advantages and disadvantages. As you plan your study you wonder, how are focus groups supposed to work. Focus groups as qualitative research sage companion. Generally, such interviews gather qualitative data, although this can be coded into categories to be made amenable to statistical analysis.
This paper explores the possibility of expanding the focus group interview into the field of english as a second language esl, where this research methodology is yet to be thoroughly explored. Here are the most frequently asked questions and my answers. How focus group analysis is different there is not one way to do qualitative analysis. Focus group interviews are a qualitative research method that consist of a carefully. It has become the subject of important methodological discussions and it is now considered a very innovative research method. This case study details the authors first experiences of using a focus group interview in a smallscale qualitative inquiry and documents some of the practical issues surrounding the responsibilities of focus group moderators. Individual interviews are appropriate for topics that might be sensitive to people or where there might not be enough of a sample to conduct a group interview. Specifically, it aims to challenge popular criticisms about the reliability and validity of the focus group as a qualitative research methodology.
However, there are also some pitfalls to the focus group interview that need to be carefully identified and avoided by researchers who want to generate meaningful. Group interviews allow for a more egalitarian and less exploitative dynamic than. However, the literature on this method is ambiguous in relation to the size, constitution, purpose and execution of focus. Focus group interviews may be more efficient when resourcestime, distance e. Focus group analysis has some subtle differences from analysis of other forms of qualitative data. One might assume that focus groups therefore can be used to investigate private topics. Focus group participants are chosen to represent the larger group of people about whom you want informationyour target. The focus group fg technique has been recently rediscovered by social scientists. Prepare a focus group topline report for gatorade management. A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. However, there are times when a group interview, also known as a focus group, can be the best way to ensure that you gain the range of views that you need.
The hidden advantages of focus group interviews in. Focus group discussion is frequently used as a qualitative approach to gain an in. However, each of these methods presents different advantages and disadvantages and researchers should consider context specific is sues in. Focus group interviews as a data collecting strategy background. As discussed previously, fg may be considered as much a standalone research method as one used in conjunction with other methods. Focus group advantages a window into customers heads. Highlight the main themes, issues, problems, or questions that arose in the focus groups. Ten top tips for great focus groups the experience. One costsaving compromise is to hire a moderator whose sole role is to conduct the groups and not to analyze the data. Focusgroup interview and data analysis fatemeh rabiee school of health and policy studies, university of central england, birmingham b42 2su, uk in recent years focusgroup interviews, as a means of qualitative data collection, have gained popularity amongst professionals within the health and social care arena. The environment is interactive where the participants are free to discuss with each other. As data, speeches, and individual interviews have some similarities, however, speeches are. Over the years ive been asked lots of questions about analysis.
Fgi is a discussion facilitated by a trained moderator working to a research guide. A focus group is formed by a group of people who are questioned about a specific concept, advertisement, product or service, idea, etc. Focus group, qualitative research, group interview, data collection. Conducting focus groups the following materials provide guidance on conducting focus groups. Ten top tips for great focus groups theres no doubt that great focus groups require meticulous planning. A focus group is a small, but demographically diverse group of people and whose reactions are studied especially in market research or political analysis in guided or open discussions about a new product or something else to determine the reactions that can be expected from a larger population. Feb 05, 2008 a simple presentation slide about focus group. Throughout the session, the moderator must facilitate the discussion and attempt to elicit participation from all members, ensuring that appropriate direction is maintained. Focus groups are group interviews that give the researcher the ability to capture deeper information. Focus group interview is a tool for qualitative market research where a group of people are selected and asked about their opinion or perceptions about a particular topic. Are the students taught by faculty participants exposed to new standards, materials, practices. The participants attitude in focus group was rather favorable to the research aspects. Focus group interviews are a method for collecting qualitative data and have enjoyed a surge in popularity in health care research over the last 20 years.
Sound conversational use words participants would use are easy to understand are clear are short are openended openended questions are a hallmark of group. If both indepth interviews and focus group all of the participants complained about the present evaluation system, the motives of complains were different. Focus groups are also briefly discussed in one of the archived case. Data is collected through a semistructured group interview process. The method aims to obtain data from a purposely selected group of individuals rather than from a statistically representative sample of a broader population. Advantages of conducting a focus group interview are the flexibility in. A focus group is a market research method that brings together 610 people in a room to provide feedback regarding a product, service, concept, or marketing campaign.
Instead, i find it more useful to think that the degree of formal structure in a focus group is a decision that the research makes according to the specific purposes of the research project. Steps for conducting focus groups or individual indepth. An experienced moderator using a wellprepared guide knows how to garner the views of discussion participants. Individual interviews lend themselves to a larger number of issues. However, such a widespread use of fg seems to have become a fashionable research technique. An experienced moderator using a wellprepared guide knows how to. Focus groups qualitative research guidelines project. Online focus groups and qualitative research in the social sciences. Ten top tips for great focus groups the experience business. Focus group interviews encourage open and honest discussion, giving companies insight into the opinions of the participants. Focus group and interview topic guides and introductory scripts focus group topic guide and introductory script parent advisory group focus group and interview questions explanation of background information purposes the purpose of this study is to do a needs assessment to gather information that will help. Definitions of focus group and consequences for analysis some researchers, such as hughes and dumont 1993.
Combining individual interviews and focus groups to enhance. The advantage of the duration of the focus group compared to the individual interview is that the researcher can also compare results among different groups of participants. Focus group research is used to develop or improve products or services. Sound conversational use words participants would use are easy to understand are clear are short. Researchers may select variables to use in their analysis from one secondary data source or may combine data from across sources to create new datasets. Combining individual interviews and focus groups to. Focus groups are designed to be interactive and are used by marketers, scientists, politicians to gain an in depth understanding of the publics response, reaction, and attitude to a specific idea or concept. Focus group interviews as a data collecting strategy. While focus group research is an excellent methodology to meet many research objectives, there are times to use them and times to not use them when to do a focus group to delve deeper into issues identified through a larger, quantitative study.
Focus group research, or qualitative analysis, is an underutilized method for gathering data in schools. It does this by first setting up a list of five main. Start studying focus group interviews for qualitative research. Richard kruegar and mary anne casey1 propose 8 reminders for good questions in focus groups. What you want to learn when you need to have that information how youll apply what you learn your budget. Keep in mind that my first answer for almost all of these questions is. A focus group interview is a method of research involving a small group of people who are interviewed on a subject of interest to the researcher. Depending on the research objective, the focus group can be used alone or in conjunction with other methods. Compared to individual interviews, focus groups are not as efficient in covering maximum depth on a. Focus group interviews focus groups fgi pmr research. The fact that they are group interviews is the source of most of these planning needs. It generally involves group interviewing in which a small group of usually 8 to 12 people. This means the focus groups are naturally formed and do not have any particular form of format to form.
The results of the focus group interviews helped us design parent lounges that met the unique needs of parents who often spend days, weeks or even months in the hospital with a sick child. My top ten tips below cant guarantee great groups on their own, but they will go a long way to address common pitfalls such as. The focus group allows the research sponsor to watch the group dynamics and allows him to draw his own conclusions from the participation dialogue and nonverbal clues. Additionally, in order to be able to hear from as many folks as possible, keep attendance under 10 or 15 people.
There is no minimum or maximum number of focus group sessions recommended, however, many researchers. The use of focus group in the research design the goal of a focus group is to have the participants understand the topic of interest to the researcher, irrespective of its use, alone or together with other research methods. The use of the focus group will provide a base to select the groups for more detailed interviews. The focus group interview process involves a tremendous amount of planning prior to the facetoface contact with the group participants, but actually conducting the focus interviews is the key part of the process. Warm not hot focus groups produce conversations that border on intimacy. Focus group interviews for qualitative research flashcards. Neither do they have any set rules and regulations for the formation of the groups in the company. Pdf the focus group research method has been used in a variety of settings.
Pulling together a focus group is more than just asking random people to come sit in a room for a few hours and answer questions. Focus groups are small, structured group discussions during which respondents reply to openended questions in their own words. A moderator must be identified who is familiar and comfortable with the group process and one who can keep the participants on target. Steps for conducting focus groups or individual indepth interviews 1. Designing and conducting focus group interviews, by richard a. The method of using group interviews was described as long. Knowing the advantages and disadvantages of focus group compared to other. To enhance the credibility of focus group evidence and maximize potential learning from this popular qualitative data collection method, we offer a set of questions to guide evaluators reflection and decision making about focus group design and implementation. It is led by a moderator interviewer in a loosely structured discussion of various topics of interest.
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