focus groups week 12

• Focus groups (FG)


  Analysis used in research employing focus groups
• Focus groups


  • Organised discussion
  • Collective activity
  • Social events
  • Interactions
• Focus group


  • A small group of participants (6-10)
  • The interviewer/researcher guides the discussion by asking open-ended questions, encouraging participants to share their opinions and experiences
  • Encourage the group interaction
  • Audio or video recording and transcription
  • The interviewer/researcher ensures that all participants have a chance to speak
• Group interview


  • A large group of participants (10+)
  • The interviewer/researcher asks questions to the group as a whole
  • Participants take turns to answer the interviewer/researcher question
  • Allow for the group interaction
  • Audio or video recording and transcription
  • The interviewer/researcher ensures that all participants have a chance to speak
• When to use FG:
• Approaches to FG


  • Exploratory: Generate information and knowledge
  • Clinical: Why do you do that?
  • Phenomenological: Understand another viewpoint
• Research examples that used FG


  • Investigating, in a nonclinical sample of adults, thoughts on and experiences with weight stigmatization (Cossrow, Jeffery, & McGuire, 2001)
  • Reasons that adolescent girls give for ceasing participation in sports and other physical activities and for why they do not participate as much as boys (Slater, & Tiggemann, 2010)
  • Examine Asian American men's body image concerns (Liao, 2020)
  • Explore experiences and perceptions of relationships and on teacher attitudes among boys of color (Liang, 2020)
  • Describe parents' and carers' experiences of self-harm in their child in order to identify their support needs (Byrne et al., 2008)
• Research examples that used FG & conducted TA analysis

  • Braun, V. (2008). "She'll be right"? National identity explanations for poor sexual health statistics in Aotearoa/New Zealand
  • Graham, R., & Clarke, V. (2021). Staying strong: Exploring experiences of managing emotional distress for African Caribbean women living in the UK
  • King, M., & Ussher, J. M. (2013). It's not all bad: Women's construction and lived experience of positive premenstrual change
  • Nicolson, P., Kopp, Z., Chapple, C. R., & Kelleher, C. (2008). 'It's just the worry about not being able to control it!': A qualitative study of living with overactive bladder
• Benefits of FG


  • Spontaneity of the discussion
  • Helping one another to recall information
  • The possibility of snowballing during discussion
  • More relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere
• Conducting FG


  1. Plan

  2. Recruit

  3. Run (1.5-2 hours)

  4. Analyse
• Planning the research


  • Clarify the research problem attempting to address
  • Factors leading to the study
  • Specific purpose of study
  • What information do you hope to obtain?
  • What type of information is the priority for data collection?
  • Who wants the information you will be collecting?
  • What will be done with the information?
• Choosing participants


  • Purposive sampling
  • Consider snowball sampling
  • Optimising productivity of discussion – not representative samples
  • Enough information to make decision
  • No foreknowledge of questions
• Choosing participants


  • Homogeneity of group membership
  • Often strangers
  • Consider how you would talk in front of the following: Teacher – fellow student, Parent/caregiver – sibling, child, Boss – coworkers, MP, Business owner, expert
• Choosing participants


  • Not too homogeneous
  • Avoid those who appear superior in some way e.g., knowledge
  • Minimum of 3-4 focus groups when single category design
  • Multiple-category design; Double-layered design; Broad-involvement design – a range of groups involved
• Designing questions for the study


  Characteristics of a good question: Avoid confusion, Framed in style of a conversation (open ended questions), Appropriate language for audience
• Organising and sequencing questions


  1. Welcome

  2. Overview

  3. Ground rules

  4. Opening questions

  5. Introductory questions

  6. Transition questions

  7. Key questions

  8. Ending questions
• Moderator role


  • Describe and explain purpose and objective of session
  • Ensure participants feel relaxed and see it as positive experience
  • Lead the discussion
  • Ask supplementary questions to open debate or encourage participants to focus
  • Ensure all participants are involved
  • Highlight differences in perspectives so to engage group in discussion of their nature
  • Stop conversation drifting
  • Record the discussion
  • Assistant – notes, recording, refreshments
• Moderator role


  • Avoid expressing own personal opinions
  • Avoid judgment
  • Don't get involved in discussion