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Guidelines for Conducting Focus Groups

Method · September 2018

DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.33817.47201

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Jay Klagge
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 Guidelines for Conducting Focus Groups
The guidelines below are based on the combined recommendations of Beyea, McNamara,
Meyer, Nicoll and Sharken-Simon cited on the Reference page.

PRE-FOCUS GROUP ACTIVITIES:

Before conducting a focus group, the following steps should be completed.

 Develop a clear and concise purpose statement of what needs to be known and
why. (Be sure to include the requester in this discussion).
 Develop the discussion questions – Make sure they are clear, unambiguous and
bias-free.
 Develop the script to frame the purpose of the focus group. This script should be
used when making invitations and when opening the session. A closing script
should also be developed thanking the participants and reiterating how the
information they provided will be used.
 Schedule the time, the place, the necessary equipment, and set the ground rules
and agenda for the focus group.
 Invite potential participants and get commitments to attend from them – remind
them a day or two before the focus group.

FACILITATING THE SESSION:

The following are the general steps that will comprise each focus group session.

 Opening the session by the facilitator using the written script.

 Reading of the ground rules.
 Setting of the agenda.
 Reading of the questions.
 Asking for clarifications when needed.
 Making sure that everyone has the opportunity to participate on each question.
 Closing the session by the facilitator using the written script.

THE ROLE OF THE FACILITATOR:

The following guidelines are provided for the role of the facilitator. Focus group
facilitation is an art not a science, so care should be taken to follow the spirit and intent of
the following guidelines and not to make them iron-clad rules.

 Set a friendly and informal tone.

 Make all of the participants feel welcomed and relaxed.
 Get full answers by gently probing.
 Make sure everyone has the chance to participate. Ask those who have been
quiet, if they have anything to add.
  Head-off any arguments or disagreements that might close down communication.
 Be neutral, open and non-judgmental in all verbal and nonverbal responses.
 Keep the conversation flowing and on track.
 Monitor the time and stay on schedule with the agenda.

POST FOCUS GROUP ACTIVITIES:

The steps below will be followed after the focus group has been held.

 Analysis of Focus Group sessions will consist of multiple reviewers based on the
recommendations of Bader & Rossi (1999). In most cases, three others and the
focus group moderator should review the tapes (video or audio) of the sessions.
These four (4) reviewers should note the major themes that stand out from the
tapes.
 The focus group moderator should subsequently develop the draft report based on
(a) the review conducted by three others and (b) the moderator’s review.
 The final report should be prepared and submitted to the requester or researcher
and incorporated into the research document.

Standards for Validating Focus Group Findings

The following standards for validating focus group findings are based on the combined
recommendations of Bader, Casey, Krueger and Rossi.

PARTICIPATION STANDARDS:

The requirements for the optimal number of Focus Group participants needed to
adequately address a given research question should be met. These requirements, based
on the recommendations of Krueger & Casey (2000), are indicated below.

 The Preferred Number of Confirmed Participants scheduled for a single Focus

Group Session is 10-15.
 The Minimum Number of Confirmed Participants needed to schedule a single
Focus Group Session will be 8.
 The Preferred Number of Actual Participants needed to conduct a single Focus
Group Session is 6-10.
 The Minimum Number of Actual Participants needed to conduct a single Focus
Group Session will be 5.

Level of analysis will be based on the number of Actual Participants in all Focus Groups
conducted on the same topic.

1. Fewer than 30 Actual Participants in all Focus Groups conducted on the same
topic should be considered preliminary and subsequent research (survey, more
 focus groups, or individual interviews) will be necessary for validation and report
release. If the results are released, the validity may be disclaimed.

2. Thirty or more total Actual Participants in all Focus Groups conducted on the
same topic - results should be considered final within the constraints of the project
(geographic region, participant demographics, and scope of the research
question).

REPORTING STANDARDS:

While the process of analyzing the data is shown in the Post Focus Group Activities
section above, the standards for reporting findings are presented below. Two issues are
covered below; these are: how to handle recommendations in the final report and how to
handle extraneous information that may arise from focus group sessions.

HANDLING OF RECOMMENDATIONS:

Actionable recommendations will be proposed based upon the Focus Group research
findings. The items that follow indicate the process that should be followed in
developing and publishing recommendations.

1. Recommendations arising from the Focus Group findings should be “reality

checked” by “content experts.” The “content experts” should be individuals
closely associated with the nature of the recommendation. For example, if
financial aid issues arise as common themes from a focus group project,
individuals with extensive knowledge of the financial aid process will review
recommendations related to these FA issues

2. “Reality Checking” serves at least two purposes: (a) The “content expert” can
assist with shaping the recommendation to be of the most value to decision
makers and (b) can gain reputational capital by showing a “good faith” interest in
understanding the nature of the issues/processes and recommendations.

HANDLING OF EXTRANEOUS INFORMATION:

Several types of extraneous issues can arise from Focus Group discussions that have the
potential of being problematic. Some of these types of issues are: (a) those that are useful
and interesting but not germane to the research question, (b) those that involve a
legal/compliance/regulatory issue, and (c) those that are fueled by an individual’s
underlying hostility and would, at best, represent a minority opinion. How each of these
types of issues will be handled is noted below.

1. Issues that are useful and interesting but not germane to the research question
shall be directed to the appropriate parties. These issues should not be included in
the final Focus Group research report.
 2. Legal/compliance/regulatory issues that are brought up by focus group
participants shall be directed to the appropriate parties to be addressed. These
issues should not be reported in the research findings unless they are (a)
predominant, or (b) specifically germane to the research question.

3. While there should be no attempt in any Focus Group Session to reach consensus
or define a majority opinion (Krueger & Casey, 2000), hostile, minority opinions
that are germane to the research question should be included in the final Focus
Group research report. Nevertheless, in the final report, these issues should be
noted as “minority opinions.”

REFERENCES:

Bader, G. E., & Rossi, C. A. (1999). Focus groups: A step-by-step guide. San Diego, CA:
The Bader Group.

Beyea, S. C., & Nicoll, L. H. (2000). Methods to conduct focus groups and the
moderator’s role. AORN Journal, 71(5).

Krueger, R. A., & Casey, M. A. (2000). Focus groups: A practical guide for applied
research (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

McNamara, C. (1999). Basics of conducting focus groups. Retrieved 01/22/03 from

http://www.mapnp.org/library/evaluatn/focusgrrp.htm.

Meyer, J. (2001). Guidelines for conducting a focus group. Retrieved 01/22/03 from
http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/CUTS/focus.htm.

Sharken-Simon, J. (1999). How to conduct a focus group. Retrieved 01/22/03 from

http://www.tgci.com/publications/99fall/conductfocusgp.html.

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