Focus Groups

From EuroVR Knowledge Base

Description

Focus group research involves organised discussion in small groups (4-8 participants with 1-2 moderators) in order to elicit information about their opinions, attitudes and experiences. The interaction between participants can lead to insights about certain issues which would not ordinarily emerge from the use of individual interviews. Participants could be the same type of end user or could be different stakeholders from an organisation. The moderator has specific goals and objectives for a focus group session and thus guides the direction of the discussion. Audio recordings are generally transcribed and coded manually, possibly with the aid of a software program. Focus groups are useful when “there is a gap between professionals and their target audiences and when investigating complex behaviours and motivations”

Primary Reference or Source

• Morgan D.L., and Kreuger, R.A. (1993). When to use focus groups and why. In Morgan D.L. (Ed.) Successful Focus Groups. London: Sage;
• Freeman, J., & Avons, S.E. (2000). Focus group exploration of presence through advanced broadcast services. Proceedings of the SPIE, 3959, 530-164.