Conducting A Focus Group
What are Focus Groups?
And why we use them?
Most people love to be asked
their opinion and they're generally not shy about voicing it.
A focus group is basically a
way to reach out to your potential users for feedback and comment.
Organizations generally use focus groups in planning, marketing, or evaluation,
either to improve some specific product or service or, more globally, during
the development of strategic plans or mission statements.
In the context of CIMEL
project, focus groups help evaluate usability of the interface and
representative content. Focus groups
answer questions that the development cannot resolve and can lead to new ideas.
Specifically, the a focus
group session concentrates on:
• Gathering opinions, beliefs, and attitudes
about issues of interest to your organization
• Testing your assumptions
• Encouraging discussion about a particular
topic
• Building excitement from spontaneous
combination of participants' comments
• Providing an opportunity to learn more about
a topic or issue.
We divide the activity of
conducting a focus group into ‘three main phases’:
Before The Focus Group:
This has to be clear and specific. The more defined the objective the easier the rest of the process.
A focus group cannot be developed overnight. The planning has to start several weeks ahead of the actual session; experts say 6 to 8 weeks realistically. Make sure you have enough take time to identify the participants, develop and test the questions, locate a site, invite and follow up with participants, and gather the materials for the sessions.
3.
Identify the participants
·
Determine how many
participants you need and how many to invite.
·
Develop a list of key
attributes to seek in participants based on the purpose of the focus group.
·
Using the list of
attributes, brainstorm about possible participants.
·
Secure names and
contact information, finalize the list, and send invitations.
Focus groups should consist of six to twelve participants. Fewer than six participants tends to limit the conversation, because there is not enough diversity to spark energy and creativity. A group larger than twelve gets to be unwieldy, and voices get lost. However, you should invite more, allowing for no-shows.
4. Generate the
questions
Because a focus
group will last for little more than one or two hours, you will only have time
for four to seven questions. You may to include one or two introductory or
warm-up questions and then get to the more serious questions that get at the
heart of the purpose.
To be effective,
focus group questions should be open-ended and move from the general to the
specific. E.g., after asking the
question, “What do you like about the user interface?” you might ask, “If you
could build a new user interface from scratch, what would you put in to make a
better one?” or “What would make the user interface more appealing to your
peers?” or even more specific, “Do you have any suggestions about what the
personae (faces)—what they should look like or what they should do?”
·
Once you have a list of
questions, look at your purpose statement again.
·
Keep questions that are
really important and that qualify for your purpose. Eliminate as many questions
as possible.
· Rewrite the questions with good editing.
· Order the questions that will be comfortable for the participants, i.e. moving from general to specific.
5. Develop a script
Generating
questions is a prelude to developing a more detailed script for your focus
group.
Plan on a one - to
two -hour time frame. A minimum of one hour is recommended because the process
requires some time for opening and closing remarks as well as at least one or
two questions. Be cautious not to exceed two hours.
There are three
parts to a focus group script:
1. The opening is the time for the facilitator to
welcome the group, introduce the purpose and context of the focus group,
explain what a focus group is and how it will flow, and make the introductions.
2. The question section is where you ask the questions that you designed and tested in Step 4.
3. The closing section wraps up the focus group. This includes thanking the participants, giving them an opportunity and avenue for further input, telling them how the data will be used, and explaining when the larger process will be completed.
6. Select a facilitator
A focus group
facilitator should be able to deal tactfully with outspoken group members, keep
the discussion on track, and make sure every participant is heard.
The facilitator should
be knowledgeable about the project. He
or she can be a staff member, volunteer, or member of a committee or task
force.
Be wary of anything
about the facilitator (or facilitators) that might make participants
uncomfortable. For example, you may not want the organization's executive
director to facilitate a staff focus group about a new performance appraisal
system.
7. Choose the location
You Need a setting
which can accommodate the participants and where they would feel comfortable
expressing their opinions.
When choosing a
location, ask these questions:
• What message does
the setting send? (Is it corporate, upscale, cozy, informal, sterile,
inviting?)
• Does the setting encourage conversation?
• How will the setting affect the information
gathered? Will the setting bias the information offered?
• Can it comfortably accommodate nine to
fifteen people (six to twelve participants plus facilitators), where all can
view each other?
• Is it easily accessible? (Consider access for
people with disabilities, safety, transportation, parking, etc.)
Once decided, reserve
the location if necessary.
Example: Put a link or part of the CIMEL
focus group script conducted in Spring 02.
Conduct The Focus Group:
It’s time to
actually conduct the session!
The materials you might need for the session are:
Notepads and
pencils
Computer with presentation
Flip chart or easel paper
Focus group script
List of participants
Markers
Masking tape
Name tags
Refreshments
Watch or clock
·
The facilitator should
arrive before the participants, set out the refreshments, and arrange the room
so all participants can view one another -- U-shaped seating or all at one
table is best.
·
As participants arrive,
the facilitator should set the tone for a comfortable, enjoyable discussion by
welcoming them just as would any gracious host.
·
Introduce yourself and
the co-facilitator, if used.
·
Explain the means to
record the session. Make sure you
record the session!
·
Carry out the focus
group as per the plan and script.
·
The facilitator should
have some room for spontaneity, i.e., asking spontaneous questions that arise
from the discussion, probing deeper into a topic.
Attention to the
following items will help ensure success:
1. Set the tone;
participants should have fun and feel good about the session.
2. Make sure every participant is heard; draw
out quieter group members.
3. Get full answers (not just "we need
more money" but "we need more money to hire a receptionist to answer
phones").
4. Monitor time closely; don’t exceed time
limits.
5. Keep the discussion on track; try to answer
all or most of the questions.
6. Head off exchanges of opinion about
individual items.
After the Focus Group:
Make any notes on your written notes, e.g., to clarify any scratching, ensure pages are
numbered, fill out any notes that don't make senses, etc.
Interpret and Report the Results:
There are three steps to creating a
report on your focus group:
1. Summarize each meeting. The
facilitator should review the session with another person to capture fresh
impressions.
Finally, transcribe notes that were taken
soon after the session is over and write a summary of the focus group.
The quick turnaround time on the
transcription helps avoid memory lapses. It's easiest for the facilitator or recorder to remember what was meant
by a particular acronym or shorthand immediately following the session than it
is a month later.
2. Analyze the summaries.
Start by reading all the focus group summaries in one sitting. Look for
trends (comments that seem to appear repeatedly in the data) and surprises
(unexpected comments that are worth noting). Keep in mind that context
and tone are just as important as the reiteration of particular words. If
a comment (or a number of comments) seemed to be phrased negatively, elicited
emotional responses, or triggered many other comments, that would be worth
noting in the analysis.
3. Write the report. The
final report can take many different shapes, but it should include all
information about the background and purpose of the focus group, details of the
sessions, results, and conclusions. One
focus group report developed for the CIMEL project is at http://www.cse.lehigh.edu/~cimel/eval/Alpha/FocusGroupReports.doc.
You may also want to use web-based
surveys as a way to gather information from users; this has the advantage
of providing information that is more quantifiable, but has the disadvantage of
generating less discussion. An example
of a survey is available at http://www.cse.lehigh.edu/~cimel/eval/beta/EvalBeta.htm
and the results are dynamically generated at http://www.cse.lehigh.edu/~cimel/eval/beta/ResultsByQuestion.htm. CIMEL researchers can generate comparable
surveys and results easily. The results
of surveys can be combined with a focus group report, or described separately.
Now this report now ready for ‘translation
into action’. Note that the researchers might be different from the people who
organized the focus group, but they need to be aware of the focus group report
in order for implementation of major issues that have been brought to attention
by the group.
Example: Put a sample report link or part
of it here.
Here are some suggestions for translating
the results into action:
• Schedule a meeting to review the summaries
and discuss their implications.
• Put the focus group information in context. Refer to your purpose statement
and analyze the answers or insights the focus groups gave you. Compare,
contrast, and combine the focus group information with information gathered
from other sources such as surveys, interviews, or secondary research sources.
• Highlight the main themes, issues, problems, or questions that arose in the
focus groups. Discuss and record how you will address these.
• If there is a lot of information, prioritize it. Then decide what actions
need to be taken with regard to the priority items.
Sources:
Judith Sharken Simon, How To Conduct A Focus Group http://www.tgci.com/publications/99fall/conductfocusgp.html (primary)
Carter McNamara, Basics of Conducting Focus Groups
http://www.mapnp.org/library/evaluatn/focusgrp.htm#anchor911239
The Small Schools Project, Conducting Focus Groups
http://www.smallschoolsproject.org/tools/files/focusgroups.PDF