Practical Advice for Planning and Conducting Focus Groups (original) (raw)
Related papers
Focus group research in family planning and reproductive health care
Journal of Family Planning and Reproductive Health Care, 2006
Box 1: Strengths and weaknesses of the focus groups method Strengths G Nobody has to speak on every issue G Responses are prompted by group members G Exposes participants to a range of opinions G Deliberation in group discussion (i.e. the more extreme first answers may be moderated) G Cost-effective compared to one-to-one interviews G Semi-structured research environment G Opportunity for follow-up and probing by facilitator and group G Helps develop theory Weaknesses G Expensive G Getting participants together/organising meeting is time consuming G Can be dominated be group members with strong personality, opinion or just 'loud' voice G Needs a skilled facilitator G Compared to conducting interviews there is less time for each individual to express ideas G Risk of ending up with conformity: minority views might not be expressed, or not be presented as strongly, as they might be in an interview 30-32-JFPRHC Jan 12/13/05
The Use of Focus Groups in Developing Prenatal Health Education Materials
Food and Nutrition Bulletin, 1990
Focus groups were used to develop and pretest mass media prenatal-education materials in the final phase of a study of prenatal health behaviour in Tijuana. The project was designed to develop a mass-media campaign to give women sufficient information to enable them to initiate prenatal self-care and to seek professional care when needed. Following an ethnographic study of 40 pregnant, low-income women in Tijuana, 451 women from the same sampling frame were asked about beliefs, practices, and communication patterns regarding prenatal professional care and self-care. This paper reports on the use of focus groups in the process of testing and refining draft materials created on the basis of information from the ethnographic study and survey. Focus-group discussions enabled the researchers to modify the draft materials for maximum appeal, comprehensibility, credibility, and relevance. For example, men were shown in supportive roles because many of the women reported a lack of support from their partners curing pregnancy.
Maximizing results with focus groups: Moderator and analysis issues
Applied Nursing Research, 2001
Focus groups can be used to gather rich, detailed descriptions of shared individual experiences and beliefs. Group process enhances the richness of the data obtained via this method. Nurses are skilled in gathering detailed and often sensitive information and applying therapeutic communication and interviewing techniques within groups. They can take advantage of these skills by using focus groups to collect qualitative data. To maximize the collection of high-quality data, pay specific attention to the selection and training of the moderator, the development of the interview guide, and the analysis that addresses intragroup and intergroup processes.
Focus groups in health research: A methodological review
Health Sociology …, 1992
In recent years, public health and medical researchers have increasingly employed the concepts and methodologies of the social and behavioural sciences. Much public health research involves the collection of information from people concerning their health knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, behaviours and customs.
Preparing for and conducting focus groups in nursing research: part 2
British journal of nursing (Mark Allen Publishing)
Focus group interviews are widely used in health research to explore phenomena and are accepted as a legitimate qualitative methodology. They are used to draw out interaction data from discussions among participants; researchers running these groups need to be skilled in interviewing and in managing groups, group dynamics and group discussions. This article follows Doody et al's (2013) article on the theory of focus group research; it addresses the preparation for focus groups relating to the research environment, interview process, duration, participation of group members and the role of the moderator. The article aims to assist researchers to prepare and plan for focus groups and to develop an understanding of them, so information from the groups can be used for academic studies or as part of a research proposal.
Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Focus Group Research but Were Afraid to Ask
2013
As a soon-to-be researcher, I found this book incredibly easy to read. It dispenses with much of the jargon that often makes professional and research literature inaccessible to some and, instead, renders the topic – focus group research – immediately approachable to readers, without short-changing or downplaying important issues that need to be considered when doing focus group research. When choosing to do focus group research, this book is the one I will turn to help me plan and consider all of the pieces that are critical to conducting a successful focus group. There is no area of focus group research that the authors leave untouched, and the fact that they do so in a mere 102 pages is remarkable.
Obtaining sensitive information: The need for more than focus groups
Reproductive Health Matters, 1994
Q UALITATIVE research methods such as in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and participant observation are increasingly being used in reproductive health research in order to enhance information obtained from more traditional quantitative data collection methods such as the knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and practices (KABP) survey. 1 Researchers and programme planners alike are beginning to recognise that qualitative methods can be used to elicit sensitive information on determinants of behaviour such as attitudes and social norms, as well as the cultural context in which these behaviours take place. Because these methods utilise open-ended research guides, they can be used to generate hypotheses about factors not already known to the researcher. This allows for domains of interest to be explored without underlying assumptions about the degree to which the respondents' knowledge, attitudes or behaviour fit within preconceived patterns.
Perils and possibilities: achieving best evidence from focus groups in public health research
Australian and New …, 2009
Objective: Focus group research is often seen as a cost-effective way of gathering evidence from multiple research participants about the diversity of their views, experiences or beliefs. Our objective is to argue that focus group research only fulfils its potential if analysis of individual views is extended to include analysis of interaction between participants, so that we learn more why people hold these views. Approach: We outline the literature on focus group research, contrasting the 'quick-and-easy' approach with the demands of studies that are designed, conducted and analysed in a methodologically rigorous way to yield high quality public health evidence. Conclusion: Well-conducted focus groups contribute good evidence for public health decision making. The challenges of conducting high-quality studies should not be underestimated, and must involve rigorous analysis of both interaction and content.
Maintaining your focus in focus groups: Avoiding common mistakes
Research in Nursing & Health, 2005
Focus groups are used frequently in nursing research as a method for collecting qualitative data. However, due to inadequate planning or execution, the results can be of poor quality or even worthless. A well-defined purpose, carefully planned environment, and well trained personnel are discussed as the cornerstones to focus group success. This article sets the stage with a description of a well conducted focus group, then provides examples and a critique of less-than-effective groups. Focus groups can be powerful and effective when their use is appropriate to the study purpose, the environment is non-judgmental and welcoming, and the personnel are skilled. ß
Oxfam Research Guidelines, 2019
Part of Oxfam’s Research Guidelines series, this guideline gives an overview of how to organize and conduct focus group discussions for qualitative research. Focus groups help to answer the ‘who’, ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions by allowing researchers to draw out respondents’ feelings, beliefs, attitudes, experiences and reactions in a way that is often not feasible using other methods. They are particularly useful for planning further data collection or to enrich and support existing data. Preparation, conduct, techniques, tips and reporting are all covered.