How to Conduct a Focus Group

Transcription

1 How to Conduct a Focus Group The following information was adapted from the references listed below and group discussion on July 31st, What is a focus group? A focus group, or focus group interview, is a qualitative research tool often used in social research. The goal of a focus group is to gain insight and understanding about a topic by hearing from people in- depth. Therefore focus groups are generally small, in order to allow all participants to have ample time to talk and to deal with topics. Focus groups require facilitators or moderators to guide the discussion and maintain the focus. Average number of people: Average timeframe: 1 to 2 hours. Average number of questions: 4-6. There are four basic steps to conducting successful focus groups. Here are some tips for each: A. Planning o Plan the research question and which target populations will answer the question. Develop focus group script & questions ensuring they align with the original research question. o What makes a good question: o common and plain language o provide any key definitions up front (e.g., food security, local) o shorter (long questions can be hard to follow) o neutral/not leading, makes no assumptions in the question (e.g., How can we make this better? Assumes something is wrong) o Use how do you feel about or in your experience/opinion B. Recruiting o Be clear about target populations for each focus group o What time of day and length of discussion works best for the target population? o 8 to 12 people: often you need to invite more as not all will be available C. Facilitating Materials: food & beverage, audio recorder, consent forms, ethics script, focus group script, pens and paper for participants (to sign consent form; may want to take notes), signs on the door and directions to room, flipchart paper or some method for posting questions, watch, name tags, room set- up with chairs and table 1

2 o Set ground rules with group: e.g., respectful of each others opinions, awareness of how much space you are taking up in the conversation (too much, too little), no right or wrong answers, o Use neutral body language: showing neither agreement nor disagreement o Be familiar with the focus group questions as well as the purpose behind the questions: What exactly are we trying to understand by asking these questions? In this way you are more able to improvise and ask relevant probing questions o Allow for silence: the group may need some time to digest each question before answering o Begin with an introduction go- round: where all participants say their name, you can draw the table on a piece of paper and write the names down as they introduce themselves. This can help you keep track of names and is helpful to look back on when trying to remember who said what during analysis o Start with a throw- away question: this tactic can help to get people talking and thinking about the topic prior to getting into the important questions o Use a script: that includes the steps to go through and all the questions so nothing is forgotten and each focus group is kept the same (i.e., taking time to go through consent form) o Post questions: hand out the questions or post them on the wall o Probing question: plan an alternative way to ask each question as well as probes to help participants speak on the subject. One good question to keep in your back pocket is: What more can you tell me about that? o Allow for time to go through the consent form: this can often take more time than you think o Recording: Audio record with a note- taker as a back- up. That means that 2 people should facilitate a focus group 1 note- taker and 1 facilitator (they can switch roles with different groups). Then audio recording is transcribed o Provide food and beverages: having them in the middle of the table can keep people at the table and engaged D. Analysis and Reporting o Directly after a focus group it is helpful to write additional notes such as the feel of the group, any particular events that took place etc. o Check that the recording worked and plan for transcription References 1. Fern, E.F. (1982). Use of focus groups for idea generation: Effects of group size, acquaintanceship and moderator on response quantity and quality. Journal of marketing Research, 19 (1), Morgan, D.L., & Spanish, M..T. (1984). Focus groups: A new tool for qualitative research. Qualitative Sociology, 7, Quick Guides: Focus Groups. Available at: _focusgroupsds.pdf 4. Focus Group Tip Sheet. Available at: 2

3 Ethics 101 Working with humans requires that we consider all sorts of ethical issues and seek approval for our work from formal ethics boards. This is a given. Ethics approvals and consent forms are a must for all research involving human participants. For instance, collecting data already available through Statistics Canada, or mapping food stores in the community will not need approval, but things like interviews, focus groups, photo-voice, and story-telling will. Informed consent means that the participants have to be given appropriate information and formally agree to participate. This is a standard practice in research because there are many examples in history of unethical research where people have been seriously harmed because they were not properly informed about the study of which they were a part. In Canada, research ethics guidelines rely on these three principles: 1) Respect for Persons; 2) Concern for Welfare; and 3) Justice. We should also try to ensure that research participants' experiences are positive and that they do not feel alienated from the research project and from research in general. Ethics approvals are done by research ethics boards normally based at research institutions such as universities. In Canada, there is a standardized policy for this and research ethics boards certify that the proposed research meets the policy requirements. Ethics approval must be obtained before research activities begin. THINGS TO REMEMBER: You also must ensure that all participants (including other community researchers and project partners) are fully informed about the project they are participating in, and that they freely give their consent to you. Participants may withdraw from the research activities at any time and must not experience any negative consequences as a result of that withdrawal They also need to be informed about how their information will be used (quotes, photos, audio and video recordings) and they are free to agree to only some parts of that and not others (e.g., they can agree to being quoted, but not photographed All information collected by researchers has to be stored in secure locations (e.g., locked cabinets, password protected computers). All of that data must be destroyed (shredded and deleted) once the project and related reports are completed. For more information, you may want to do the following tutorial: All researchers in Canada are expected to complete this tutorial. If you complete it, you can print a certificate at the end. For more information on ACT for CFS research ethics, see our Ethics 101 Prezi at 3

4 SAMPLE Ethics Script Any research method (interviews, focus groups, surveys) involving human participants must seek ethics approvals and use informed consent forms. You can send the form to your participants ahead of time so they can read it in advance, but they should sign it with you present. Please consult with your organization on appropriate consent forms or other informed consent that you need to use based on the purpose of your storysharing event. When you go over the form, you ask the participants to either read the entire thing and offer to read it to them (for any reason, e.g., if they forgot their reading glasses). You also should highlight these four key points: The form is meant to protect them by making sure they are given all the information they need to freely participate. Remind them that they can withdraw from the study at any point (at no risk) or choose not to answer some or all of the questions. Explain how the information they share with you will be used. Make sure they know who to contact if they have any concerns. You then ask them if they understood the form and if they need anything explained. If they are not clear on something you must not proceed with the interview, focus group or survey until everything is explained and clear. Make sure that you allow plenty of time for this if people feel rushed, they may say yes simply because they feel pressured. You should always have two copies of the signature page one for you and one of the participant. Ask them if they freely agree to participate, and if they do, ask them to sign both copies of the form. Ask them any other questions found on the form e.g., Do you agree to be recorded? Can we quote you? Can we use your name? Can we contact you in the future? Sign both copies yourself, keep one copy and give the other copy to the participant. You should leave the information sheet with your participant (as it contains the contact info and other details). Consent should be an ongoing thing. If during the interview, focus group or survey you have any reason to think that a participant may not be comfortable with a question or anything else (e.g., another participant s comment in a focus group), pause for a minute and ask Are you/is everyone still comfortable with this process? Remind the participant(s) that they are free not to answer questions, and that they are also free to stop and leave if they wish to end their participation. At the end of the interview, focus group or survey, you should again check that your participants are comfortable with the how the information they shared is going to be used. 4

5 Adapted from: Activating Change Together for Community Food Security (ACT for CFS). (2013). Facilitator Package, Community Learning Workshop: How to conduct surveys, interviews, and focus groups. Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax. 5