1. INFO 272. Qualitative Research Methods 11 March 2008
Group interviews

2. focus groups Very popular in marketing research
8-10 people – strangers
A trained facilitator
Opinions about a new (or existing) product or service
Two-way mirror so ‘management ‘can observe

3. focus groups
“an especially nice situation for revealing variations in perspectives and attitude and a ready means, through subtle pitting of one against the other, for distinguishing between shared and variable perspectives.” [schatzman and strauss 1973]

4. focus groups Can be ego-centric (would I buy this?)
Can be object-oriented (how are factory processes organized and carried out?)
Can be collaborative, consensus-driven (what financial services are most needed within this community?)

5. the standard criticism
Tendency to conform around particular views (social pressure)
Although social pressure is also a reality of everyday life
Often one member is very vocal and domineering
Professional respondents
Artificiality – of setting and of social environment

7. Solomon Asch on conformity (1952)

8. addressing conformity problems
Some Techniques
Nominal Group Technique – write down ideas about a topic and then read and discuss
Delphi Method – write down response, collected by the facilitator, posted for public reading, then discussed.

9. addressing conformity problems
Who not to put in a group
Boss and subordinate
Who else??
On sensitive topics
Create more homogenous groups (all HIV+ people, all men, etc.)
Combine focus groups with individual interviews

10. addressing artificiality problems
Using existing groups (rather than strangers)
Families
Social organizations

11. …Also…

12. analysing interviews transcribing – tedious but necessary
how tedious? 1:3 ratio (interview:transcription time)
memory jog – making links between interviews
code as you go, but make transcript itself visually distinct from your codes

13. Exercise
More good and bad interviews