Lecture 22- Focus Groups

Question 1

How should you end an interview- a light question or heavy question?

Answer 1

Light question: want to end on a good note and the participant not feel psychologically exposed

Question 2

What is the basic idea of focus group?

Answer 2

-Applying interview techniques to groups (n=3+)
-“A focus group is an informal discussion among selected individuals about
specific topics”

Question 3

What’s the maximum number of individuals for a focus group and the maximum duration of the discussion?

Answer 3

• Max= 8 people

- Wouldn’t want to be discussing for more than an hour

Question 4

What is the advantage of using focus groups?

Answer 4

-There are advantages to have interactions between participants. Discuss their
experiences with one another and can sometimes relate to each other and reveal more
-If the research topic is about communication styles then a focus group can
facilitate that directly: natural-ish group interaction
-If you (the researcher) aren’t part of the group you’re researching it can help (i.e. you don’t have expertise)
-With more participants they are more likely to become facilitators of new
topics

Question 5

What are some disadvantages of using focus groups?

Answer 5

• Could have dominant participants so some of the other more quieter ones could get overwhelmed and not contribute as much (role of good experimenter is to ensure this doesn’t happen)
• Could get off task if they leading the conversation: need to bring it back
• If friends could influence how they behave (want to act cool/ keeping up appearances). Equally if making new friends could alter how they act.

Question 6

Are discourses likely in focus groups?

Answer 6

Yes, highly likely will naturally come when you bring lots of different individuals together with lots of different opinions

Question 7

What is the type of analysis used for discourses that often comes up with focus groups?

Answer 7

• Discourse analysis: looks at how meanings are reproduced in talk
• Guide towards linking the concepts you want
• Transcribed, read, analyzed

Question 8

What is the experimenter often influenced by in how they view discourses? What is the term called?

Answer 8

Influenced by our own experiences as to how you think about the topic and what you think about the participants: reflexivity.

Question 9

Are discourses fixed? Is this change fast or slow?

Answer 9

• No can be resisted and changed (e.g. activism, protests)

- Slow or false depending

Question 10

How are discourses and identities linked?

Answer 10

Produce identities through talk about themselves + their relationships.
Not passive: active debate

Question 11

What is Interpretative repertoire? What is subject position?

Answer 11

• Common sense ways in which we make sense of social world

- Subject position= ways of understanding the particular position in a interpretative repertoire