Managing Focus Group Discussions

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Managing Focus Group Discussions

• A webinar hosted by the Tobacco Control
  Evaluation Center
• Robin Kipke, Evaluation Associate
• May 28, 2009

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Agenda

• Purpose, uses of focus groups
• Study design
• Questions
• Structure of session
• Role of Moderator
• Capturing Data
• Analysis

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Definition

• A carefully planned series of discussions
  designed to obtain perceptions on a defined area
  of interest in a permissive, non-threatening
  environment.
• Richard Krueger
• Mary Anne Casey

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Purpose of Focus Groups

• Share individual views/opinions
• Uncover commonalities and differences within a
  group
• Observe synergistic effect group dynamics has on
  ideas expressed

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When to Use Focus Groups

• Explore range of ideas/feelings
• Understand differences in views
• Uncover influencing factors
• Achieve group idea formation
• Pilot test plans, materials, policies
• Inform quantitative study
• Interpret quantitative results

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Recommended Strategy for Product/Program
Development
Understand
Pilot Test
Evaluate

Focus Groups
Focus Groups
Focus Groups
Implement
Revise Best Alternative
Create Alternatives

• ______
• ______
• ______

Time
Krueger and Casey 2009
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When NOT to Use Focus Groups

• Achieve consensus
• Educate people on an issue
• Generate statistics
• Environment is polarized
• Other methods can get better info
• Topic too sensitive for group setting

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Study Design

• Comparison across focus groups to find
  trends/patterns
• Form groups of participants with traits in common
  (e.g., apartment tenants)
• Conduct 3-4 focus groups for each type of group
  OR until you reach saturation of information

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Example

• End-use strategizing to conceptualize evaluation
  activity
• Purpose understand cultural beliefs of Miwok
  Indians about tobacco use and change processes in
  order to frame smoke-free MUH campaign
  effectively
• Data users program staff/coalition

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Group Composition

• 4-10 participants per group
• Share common trait(s) related to topic, but have
  a diversity of views
• Use sampling framework for key characteristics
• Purposive sampling reflect diversity, not
  representativeness
• Include outliers within the category

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Focus Group Sampling Matrix for
Discussion of Smoke-free MUH Policies
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Recruiting Participants

• Seek those who will have most insight on the
  topic
• Ask organizations to promote the activity, but
  not select participants
• Over-recruit to ensure enough participants
• Offer incentives

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Forming Questions

• Use questions that are
• Open-ended
• Clear
• Short
• Not double-barreled
• Easy to say

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Sequencing

• General before specific
• Positive before negative
• Uncued before cued
• Estimate time for each question based on
  complexity type size of group expertise of
  participants level of discussion desired

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Types of Questions

• Introductory to get conversation flowing
  quickly
• Transition link between intro and key questions
  
• Key Questions get to depth of the issue
• Ending Questions promote reflection or summary

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Introductory Question (5 minutes)

• Is easy to answer
• Focuses on facts rather than on
  opinions/attitudes
• Should not highlight differences among
  participants
• Gives moderator clues about participant views

Example What values do you feel are important in
the Miwok community?
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Transition Questions (5-8 min. each)

• Move conversation into the core of the discussion
• Link introductory and key questions
• Often takes intro questions deeper
• Example What are some differences between the
  values of Miwok culture and those of non-Indian
  communities in the area?

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Key Questions (10-20 minutes each)

• Main focus of the study
• 2-5 key questions, plus probes
• May include activities
• Constitutes the bulk of analysis
• Example How can non-natives establish
  relationships in a Miwok community?

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Stimulus Activities

• Create and prioritize lists
• Examine and rate alternatives
• Sort and discuss images
• Visualize and draw a scene
• Create a diagram, flow chart
• React to video clips, print material
• Mind map a concept
• Imagine a scenario

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Ending Questions (5-8 min. each)

• Bring closure to discussion, critical to analysis
• Reflection ID which comments most
  important/need action clarify
• Summary question check for agreement of key
  points
• Final question was anything missed/not covered

Example What motivates Miwok people to get
involved with community action?
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Making Mid-Study Adjustments

• Change the question if
• It just isnt working (silence, ask for
  clarification)
• Saturation point has been reached (no added value
  to asking)

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Preparation

• Research the background of participant types
• Find out
• The preferred language
• Cultural communication norms
• Expectations about meetings
• Views about arrival time
• Refreshment preferences

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Planning the Logistics

• Select a comfortable location
• Privacy, quiet, facilities
• No setting is neutral
• Translation/language needs
• Child care
• Transportation
• Time/date
• Name tags

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Session Structure

• 2 hour timeframe
• Arrival/small talk (10-15 minutes)
• Welcome/ground rules (5-10 min.)
• Opening/warm up question (5 min.)
• Introductory question (5 minutes)
• Transition questions (5-15 minutes)
• Key questions (60-70 minutes)
• Ending questions (10-15 minutes)

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Make Them Feel at Home

• Greet everyone at the door
• Interact with participants while waiting for all
  to arrive
• Have them take brief demographic survey that IDs
  various traits of the group
• Know whos in the room

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Learning to Listen

• When we train interviewers, perhaps too much
  emphasis is placed on asking questions, when the
  real skill may be listening.
• Poland Pederson 1998

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Role of a Moderator

• Be there to learn from the group
• Create a non-judgmental environment
• Facilitate rather than control the discussion
• Be open, not defensive
• Gaining legitimacy

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Creating a Safe Environment

• Make introductions
• Describe purpose of focus group
• Tell them what they have in common
• Discuss anonymity
• Get agreement on confidentiality
• Inform them about recording of info
• Lay out ground rules
• Encourage use of names

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Shifting Gears

• Get out of a leader role
• Sit rather than stand
• Tell group to jump into conversation whenever
  they want
• Give more control to the group
• Encourage participants to address each other
  rather than you

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Facilitating Discussion

• Listen attentively avoid revealing own opinions
• Cover key questions thoroughly
• Dont fear disagreement
• Dont seek consensus
• Enable all voices to be heard
• Leave time for silence

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Picking Up on Cues

• Adopt vocabulary used by group
• Observe non-verbal cues
• Be aware of cultural practices
• Know when to probe or to move on
• Manage group dynamics

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Prompting Greater Depth

• Can you give us an example?
• Please describe what you mean.
• Tell us a little more about that.
• Im not sure I understand.
• Does anyone want to add to that?
• What experiences have you had that make you feel
  that way?

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Redirecting the Conversation

• Get back on track
• We are more interested in X and less concerned
  about Y
• Id like to return to a point made by Z for a
  minute
• Remind of value of differing views
• Does anyone see it differently?
• Who has a different perspective?

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Capturing What Is Said

• Recording
• Sound quality
• Sensitivity of participants to being recorded
• Address people by name to identify voices
• No guarantees
• Value/costs of transcribing

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Capturing What Is Said

• Taking notes key role
• ALWAYS take notes
• Record identifying info of session
• Use a matrix to record data
• Moderator notes
• Capture words AND context
• Value of two notetakers
• Avoid flipcharts except during exercises
• ID speaker with 1st few words

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Making Sense of the Data

• Use a coding framework
• Coding strategies strips, colors
• Look for patterns across groups
• Pay attention to context/dynamics
• Frequency is not necessarily an indicator of
  importance
• Watch for theorizing, summations
• Note where codes overlap

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Using a Grid to Track Patterns in Data across
Focus Groups Themes Raised in Focus Groups on
Smoke-free Policies in Apt. Complexes
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Deriving Meaning in Analysis

• Pay attention to participant interaction can
  lead to solutions!
• Note the context what prompted comments
• Look at traits of participants in order to
  explore differences within and across groups
• Be open to multiple explanations for patterns

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Interpretation Traps

• Dont extrapolate to general population
• Focus groups can overemphasize consensus

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References

• Rosaline Barbour. 2007. Doing Focus Groups.
  Thousand Oaks, CA SAGE Publications.
• Richard Krueger and Mary Anne Casey. 2009.
  Focus Groups a Practical Guide for Applied
  Research, 4th ed. Thousand Oaks, CA SAGE
  Publications.

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Contact Us

Robin Kipke ? rakipke_at_ucdavis.edu Main office ?
tobaccoeval_at_ucdavis.edu