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Focus Groups

Focus groups is a confidential group discussion with a trained and skilled moderator using open ended questions that promote interaction and explore participants perspectives and experiences in a structured by relaxed atmosphere designed to generate qualitative data.

Focus Groups:

  • Are a qualitative research tool, which yields in-depth descriptions from a small homogeneous sample
  • Cover the maximum range of topics
  • Provide specific data about participants' perspectives and experiences as a basis of their attitudes and opinions
  • Explore participants' experiences in depth
  • Explore the personal context within which the participants offer their attitudes and opinions

Why Focus Groups Are Used:

  • To gather data about how participants make meaning about a topic of interest (sole source)
  • To gather data needed to construct a survey (exploratory)
  • To gather data that can be used to help explain the results of a survey (follow-up)

More information on Focus Groups:
Presentation on Focus Groups