group interviews

Question 1

what are group interviews

Answer 1

in depth interviews with a small amount of people
sometimes known as focus groups

Question 2

what example of group interviews are there

Answer 2

Willis’ group interviews to uncover the counter subculture of the ‘lads’

Question 3

advantages/example - comfortable

Answer 3

. pps open up as they may feel more comfortabe talking with others or their peers rather than one-to-one
. power relationship between interviewer and interviewee is reduced
. more validity
e. willis’ lads felt free to talk openly about how they view school, teachers and impending work

Question 4

advantages - richer data

Answer 4

. allows for richer and more reflective data to be collected as pps bounce ideas off each other - may remind each other about details
. higher validity

Question 5

advantages - wider picture

Answer 5

. can be good for generating initial ideas
. can follow up in more detail in later research
. higher validity

Question 6

advantages - dynamics

Answer 6

. can combine questioning with the opportunity to observe group dynamics and norms

Question 7

disadvantages - dominate

Answer 7

. some pps will dominate discussions so the researcher may only understand the viewpoint of one or few members of the group and not the group as a whole

Question 8

disadvantages- skill

Answer 8

. requires a lot of skill from the researcher to keep group focused and on topic

Question 9

disadvantage - peer pressure

Answer 9

individual pps may become subject to peer pressure - may influence what they say
. lowers validity

Question 10

disadvantage - data

Answer 10

data generated from group interactions are complex and difficult to analyse