The focus group needs to be appropriate for the type of participants in the group. A practical guide to focusgroup research rosanna l. Definition and objectives of focus groups a focus group discussion fgd is an informal, guided discussion about a particular research or program topic. Focus group discussions are becoming an increasingly popular methodology in primary health care research. A key issue for researchers is the complex relation of focus group talk to. The focus group discussion fgd report is based on findings from 17 fgds and one international 25 expert conference, held in 16 countries with over 200 participants. Sometimes it takes listening to the opinions of others in a small and safe group setting before they form thoughts and opinions. The method aims to obtain data from a purposely selected group of. Focus group discussion is frequently used as a qualitative approach to gain an in.
Focus groups explicitly use group interaction as part of the method kitzinger 1995. It can impact focus group discussion if the facilitator is anxious because materials are missing or purchased at the last minute. Focus group questions recruitment flyer invitee tracking form introductory remarks sample consent from data analysis format synthesized report format defining a focus group a focus group is a small group of six to ten people led through an open discussion by a skilled moderator. Focus group discussion guide for communities risk communication and community engagement for the new coronavirus purpose the purpose of this risk communication and community engagement guide is to help you run a focus group discussion fgd with community members to find out the perceptions. Parents share their views on local child care programs, and on what could be done to improve them.
This brief includes a basic overview of focus groups. The moderator should move on to the next story, once no more comments are. The facilitators greatest challenge is to be seen by participants as an objective and effective conversation leader. The focus group fg has been actually employed by marketing, and is becoming importanct also in other areas. Within each focus group there should be no more than 8 people. Focus groups typically involve a moderatorled group discussion with. A focus group discussion fgd is a good way to gather together people from. The difference between quality data and data with bias depends on how people are screened and the data is treated. General questions for focus groups in general it is suggested that no more than 10 or 12 general questions are asked during focus groups. How to conduct a successful focus group discussion atlan. Toolkit for conducting focus groups this manual has been provided to assist you in conducting focus groups. The critical appraisal of focus group research articles e vermeire, p van royen, f griffiths, s coenen, l peremans, k hendrickx background. In a brief time the moderator must create a thoughtful, permissive atmosphere, provide ground rules, and set the tone of the discussion.
Unlike interviews, which usually occur with an individual, a. Eacb group consisted of, on average, 6 researcb participants and tbe discussion lasted approximately 2 bours and was taperecorded. However, there are some tips for facilitating highquality focus groups. The group of participants is guided by a moderator or group facilitator who introduces topics for discussion and helps the group to participate in a lively and natural discussion amongst. This is because there is no designated leader in the group and the discussions are made natural. Pdf a case study based on a focus group discussion on the. You may have to lead a discussion as part of a school assignment or you may be responsible for leading a. This method serves to solicit participants attitudes and perceptions, knowledge and experiences, and. Abstract focus group discussion is frequently used as a qualitative approach to gain an in. The moderator asks broad questions to elicit responses and generate discussion among. Breen faculty of education, university of technology, sydney, australia abstract this article guides readers through the decisions and considerations involved in conducting focusgroup research investigations into students learning experiences. Evaluation briefs no centers for disease control and. However, most schools in developing countries lack even basic water and sanitation facilities. Focus group interviewing richard krueger 4 beginning the focus group discussion the first few moments in focus group discussion are critical.
In what follows 6 or 7 main themes have been identified. In focus group discussion participants are free to. The critical appraisal of focus group research articles. The focus group facilitators role is to guide a discussion around specific, predetermined subjects, in an objective, respectful manner. The focus group is the collaboration of people who come together to make an opinion, put forth their belief and perspective for the product or service initiate, in the company. A focus group discussion fgd is a qualitative research method and data collection technique in which a selected group of people discusses a given topic or. Focus group discussion is frequently used as a qualitative approach to gain an indepth understanding of social issues. For supporting focus group materials such as recruitment tips, invitation email templates, consent forms, profile sheets, and a comprehensive planning guide that outlines focus group. Focus groups are an exploratory research tool a structured. Though the focus group discussion should be recorded to ensure an accurate record of the. It is a form of qualitative research where questions are asked about their perceptions attitudes, beliefs, opinion or ideas.
There are no right or wrong answers to these questions. Advantages and disadvantages of focus groups in research. The discussions in the focus groups can be kept under control. Following are the main advantages of focus group discussion in research. Focus group discussion a focus group discussion fgd is a good way to gather together people from similar backgrounds or experiences to discuss a specific topic of interest. A focus group discussion is a qualitative data collection method that engages 6 to 12 peoplewith shared characteristics pertinent to the specific discussion topicand is led by a trained facilitator. The goal of todays meeting is to understand if the internal communications and news you currently receive is effective, relevant and valuable to. The writer, suba lakshminarasimhan, helps you to find out what visual tools you can use to entice management into making quick decisions. Pdf the focus group research method has been used in a variety of settings over the years. Focus groups aim to discover the key issues of concern for selected groups. The anonymity of participants in the focus groups is.
There will likely be times in your life when you will be working in a group, possibly many times. Pengambilan data kualitatif melalui fgd dikenal luas karena kelebihannya dalam memberikan. In a brief time the moderator must create a thoughtful, permissive atmosphere, provide ground rules. The first few moments in focus group discussion are critical. The moderator should begin by explaining the purpose of the group and what is expected of the group.
It is an inexpensive and fast method of acquiring valuable data. This paper uses the definition of focus group as a controlled group discussion, on the basis that the group interaction generated through discussion is of prior importance to this methodology. Using and analysing focus groups iq5 natural discussion or artificial performance. Key findings the main findings from data generated by the focus group discussions are summarized below.
Sound conversational use words participants would use are easy to understand are clear are short. Consider this manual a toolkit that will facilitate your training and enhance your facilitation skills. We therefore encourage you to brush up on your skills for organizing and conducting focus group discussions if necessary. Learn how to report focus group findings using ms word and. They are used to find out the perceptions and attitudes of a defined group of people. A focus group discussion fgd is a qualitative research method and data collection technique in which a selected group of people discusses a given topic or issue indepth, facilitated by a professional, external moderator. Guidelines for conducting a focus group surveys assume that people know how they feel. Within each theme we have tried to address what are the possible subquestions depending on groups answers. Heong the focus group discussion fgd is a rapid assessment, semi.
Focus group discussion fgd technique is often used by decision makers or researchers in qualitative research to explore data about the perceptions, opinions, beliefs, and attitudes towards a product. The pros and cons of focus groups show that there can be a lot of valuable information gathered from this type of survey method. What is the purpose and advantages of focus group interviews. What follows is a sample focus group discussion guide that can be used to collect information from entering students. The focus groups are the groups of intellectuals, professionals who come together to form an opinion for the new product in the company. Informedconsent procedures were explained at the beginning of each focus group and after distributing the consent forms see appendix b. See annexes 1 and 2 for a list of resources on these topics. Focus group discussion report for the civil society. Focus group on health care experiences moderators guidelines. Pemahaman tentang fgd istilah kelompok diskusi terarah atau dikenal sebagai focus group discussion fgd saat ini sangat populer dan banyak digunakan sebagai metode pengumpulan data dalam penelitian sosial. The questions and the manner in which the focus group is facilitated will vary based on the type of participants. Aug 16, 2011 the results of the focus group interviews helped us design parent lounges that met the unique needs of parents who often spend days, weeks or even months in the hospital with a sick child. The ideas and the opinions flow freely without any rules and the regulations to follow.
This document is available from the following website address. A focus group of parents of preschoolers meets to discuss child care needs. For the three civil servants focus groups, participants were taken from those who had completed a survey that was undertaken as part of the study earlier in the. In this chapter, i will focus on the importance of the focus group method, its history, and its benefits and pitfalls. A focus group is a gathering of deliberately selected people who participate in a facilitated discussion intended to elicit consumer perceptions about a particular topic or area of interest.
This is an exploratory research done through a real time focus group discussion carried on with the purpose of analysing the expert opinions of the focus group. Conducting a focus group is simply a matter of asking the questions and recording the responses to those questions. Depending on the research objective, the focus group can be used alone or in conjunction with other methods. Jan 11, 2018 focus group discussion can be utilised within a suite of techniques in a multi. The group of participants is guided by a moderator or group facilitator who introduces topics for discussion and helps the group to. Research suggests that group discussion can cause participant attitudes to become more extreme, which could in turn result in greater unification of group opinions or polarize participants. Tbe bulk of tbese sessions were conducted by tbe autbor, otbers were mn by colleagues on tbe project. This publication, introduction to conducting focus groups, is the fifth in a series of guides developed to bring information to this audience about the use of social science tools in their field of work. If the facilitator is anxious, this may make the participants uncomfortable and limit discussion. General questions for focus groups food and agriculture. A focus group discussion fgd is a good way to gather together people from similar backgrounds or experiences to discuss a specific topic of interest.
The method aims to obtain data from a purposely selected group of individuals rather than from a statistically representative sample of a broader population. A great deal of the skepticism about the value of focus groups probably arises from the. A focus group discussion or fgd is a qualitative research method in the social sciences, with a particular emphasis and application in the developmental program evaluation sphere. Analyzing focus group data the analysis and interpretation of focus group data require a great deal of judgment and care, just as any other scientific approach, and regardless of whether the analysis relies on quantitative or qualitative procedures. The materials that you will need for focus groups are. These discussions should be held in an environment that is nonthreatening and receptive. Relocation of congolese refugees in lunda norte, angola unhcr 19, july, 2017 3 breakdown by sex and age group of focus group discussion participants. A topic related to gender equity, for example, may provoke intense discussion among. Some focus group discussions were taperecorded with the permission of the participants. Conducting focus groups is a brilliant idea when you want to make big decisions in your organization. The results of the focus group interviews helped us design parent lounges that met the unique needs of parents who often spend days, weeks or even months in the hospital with a sick child. A focus group discussion involves gathering people from similar backgrounds or experiences together to discuss a specific topic of interest. A focus group is a conversation that focuses on specific questions in a safe and confidential environment. Th ese techniques are commonly used in policy research and are applicable to many research questions.
Some of the focus groups advantages are as follows. I will guide the conversation by asking questions that each of you can respond to. For supporting focus group materials such as recruitment tips, invitation email templates, consent forms, profile sheets, and a comprehensive planning guide that outlines focus group staff roles and. Coworkers and friends are more comfortable in voicing views in each others company than on their own with the researcher. Read through this article to learn how to report focus group findings. Report on seven focus groups conducted for the achieving. Depending on the research objective, the focus group can. According to 18, focus group discussion is a qualitative method of collecting systematic data and information and facilitated by a professional on a specific problem that is very specific. A focus group lasting more than 90 minutes probably includes too many questions or topics for discussion. Fgds are a predetermined semistructured interview led by a skilled moderator. Breen faculty of education, university of technology, sydney, australia abstract this article guides readers through the decisions and considerations involved in conducting focus group research. It is used to learn about opinions on a designated topic, and to guide future action.
As long as the disadvantages are equally weighed with the advantages that focus groups provide, the. Focus group discussions are facilitated discussions, held with a small group of people who have specialist knowledge or interest in a particular topic. A focus group is a small group discussion guided by a trained leader. Wash in schools monitoring package safe and childfriendly water, sanitation and hygiene wash in schools improves health, boosts education achievement, promotes gender equity and has a positive impact on communities. Focus group discussions can be applied at any stage of the project or programme. Focus group a, august 2001 1 focus group on health care experiences moderators guidelines. Participants within a focus group may respond very differently to a topic. Focus group research is used to develop or improve products or services. How to conduct focus groups interaction design foundation. Please look for signs once you arrive directing you to the room where the focus group will be held. Discovering these issues can help determine which of a number of options is the preferred way forward, or to determine what are the concerns that would prevent a proposal going ahead. Focus groups offer a way of systematically acquiring qualitative data on specific topics.
Th e course does not aim to cover all the aspects of interviewing and focus groups, but rather it is designed to provide an overview of these methods, as well as some practical tools. Focus group interviews nurture different perceptions and points of view and are used to gather. Focus group discussion overseas development institute. Notepads and pencils flip charts or easel paper focus group script. Focus groups require selfdisclosure of information by participants, but. Once the focus group discussions have been transcribed, analysis can begin. The anonymity of participants in the focus groups is protected in this report. Focus group a, august 2001 3 now, please would the rest of the group like to discuss their reaction to xs story.
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