Communication Arts Research CA3011 A. Parichart W. & A. Chulamani C. This course material is for non-commercial use only. Any public display, distribution and adaptation is not allowed for any purposes.

Focus Group

Content Outline Focus Group Overview of focus group Characteristics of focus group Advantages VS disadvantages of focus group Uses of focus group

Focus Group

Focus Group: Overview Focus group (group interviewing), is a research strategy for understanding people’s attitude and behavior.(how and why) Focus group involve people (participants). The number of the participants is from 6-12 people. They are interviewed simultaneously, with a moderator leading the respondents in a relatively unstructured discussion about the topic under investigation. Unlike the survey aiming at measuring the attitude and behaviour (what is the relationship)

Four Characteristics of Focus Group

1. Focus group involve people (participants).

2. The people possess certain characteristics and recruited to share a quality or characteristic of interest to the researcher. Ex. All may be beer drinkers, or Lexus owner, or females who listen to certain types of music on the radio

3. Focus groups usually provide qualitative data. Data from focus groups are used to enhance understanding and to reveal a wide range of opinions, some of which the researcher might might not expect. In most cases, they are not used to test hypotheses or to generalize to a population. This is accomplished only when several focus groups are conducted to achieve a satisfactory sample size.

4. Focus groups have a focused discussion. Most of the questions to be asked are predetermined, the sequence of questions is established, and the questions are structured to further the goal of the research. However, the moderator is free to depart from the structure if the participants present relevant information.

Uses of Focus Group

Three Uses of Focus Group (Morgan, 1997) 1) A self-contained focus group is one in which the focus group method is the only means of data collection. The results of self-contained groups can stand on their own; the data from the groups provides a sufficient answer to the research question. The focus group is mainly used to gather information.

Three Uses of Focus Group (Morgan, 1997) (contd.) 2) A supplementary focus group is one in which the group discussions form a starting point or are a source of follow- up data for quantitative study. For ex., a researcher planning a survey on why people read online news might develop questionnaire items based on the content of a number of focus groups that discuss that topic. He/she might gather more in-depth info. about the quantitative results using focus groups to determine the reasons people read the news. The focus group is used to support/refute the main data collection instrument. (supplement other techniques)

Three Uses of Focus Group (Morgan, 1997) 3) Multimethod is of a number of qualitative and/ or quantitative techniques used to collect data about a topic. The focus group results might be combined with participant observation, case studies, or surveys. The focus group stands as equal methodology.

Advantages of Focus Group

Focus groups allow researchers to collect preliminary info.about a topic or a phenomenon. They may be used in pilot studies to detect ideas that will be investigated further using another research method, such a survey or some other qualitative method. Focus groups can be conducted quickly. Most of the time is spent recruiting the respondents. The cost of focus groups also makes the approach an attractive research method. When respondents are difficult to recruit or when the topic requires a specially trained moderator, focus group may cost much more

Advantages of Focus Group Focus groups are flexible in question design and follow-up. A moderator in the focus group, however, works from a list of broad questions as well as more refined probe questions; hence, it is easy to follow up on important points raised by participants in the group.

Advantages of Focus Group Most professional focus group moderator use a procedure known as an extended focus group, in which respondents are required to complete a written questionnaire before the session begins. The pre-group questionnaire, which covers the material that will be discussed during the group session, forces respondents to ‘commit’ to a particular answer before entering the group. This is to solve the problem that some participants do not want to offer opinion.

Advantages of Focus Group Focus group responses are often more complete and less inhibited than those from individual interviews. One respondent’s remarks tend to stimulate others to pursue lines of thinking that might not have been elicited in a situation involving just one individual. A skilled moderator also can detect the opinions and attitudes of those who are less articulate by noting facial expressions and other nonverbal behavior while others are speaking.

Disadvantages of Focus Group

A self-appointed group leader who monopolizes the conversation and attempts to impose his or her opinion on other participants dominates some groups. Such a person usually draws the resentment of the other participants and may have an adverse effect on the performance of the group. The moderator needs to control such situations tactfully.

Disadvantages of Focus Group Unless enough groups are conducted, typical focus group research (4-6 groups)is inappropriate to gather quantitative data. Many people unfamiliar with focus group research incorrectly assume that the method will answer the question “how many” or “how much.” In fact, focus group research is intended to gather qualitative data to answer questions such as “why” or “how.” Focus groups do no provide such info. Unless enough groups are conducted. Require quite a no. of focus groups

Disadvantages of Focus Group Focus groups depend heavily on the skills of the moderator, who must know when to probe for further info., when to stop respondents from discussing irrelevant topics, and how to involve all respondents in the discussion. The moderator must remain completely objective. The moderator must be professional.

Disadvantages of Focus Group The small focus group samples may not represent the population form which they were drawn; and the recording equipment or other physical characteristics of the location may inhibit respondents.

Reference This course material is for non-commercial use only. Any public display, distribution and adaptation is not allowed for any purposes. Wimmer, R. & Dominick, J. (2011). Mass Media Research: An Introduction (9 th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thompson Wadsworth.

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