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In this section of the text, you will find detailed information and directions designed to help you plan and conduct a research project using quantitative and qualitative methods. Remember that these methodologies will likely differ somewhat from mainstream social science quantitative and qualitative methods. We are, after all, modifying present methods to make them more appropriate for postmodern culture.
There are a variety of methods discussed and explained on the following pages. No one method is superior to any other method. Each has its strengths and weaknesses. A researcher should follow the research flowchart presented in Chapter 4 of this text and, at the appropriate time, determine which method is most appropriate for his/her needs.
5Focus Group Research
6Survey Research
7Historical Research
8Text Analysis
9Feminist Methodology by Kim Golombisky
10Internet and Social Media Research
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Every judgment in science stands on the edge of error, and is personal.
Jacob Bronowski
A focus group brings together a relatively small number of people for a group discussion. Quite popular among market researchers, focus groups use âgroup interaction to produce data and insights that would be less accessible without the interaction found in a groupâ (Morgan, 1988, p. 12). Some researchers call this group interviewing, but the method really involves more than interviewing. Interviewing is often done one-on-one. This is the case with a telephone survey, for example. A researcher calls an individual, asks a series of questions, and records the individualâs responses on the study questionnaire. Questions are usually closed-ended and âprovide the respondent a set of standardized answers from which to choose.â However, in a focus group, questions are usually open-ended, allowing ârespondents to answer in their own wordsâ (Moy & Murphy, 2016, p. 21). Members of a focus group participate in a moderately structured discussion led by a research moderator who is a trained research discussion facilitator.
A focus group is usually composed of 6 to 12 individuals who have agreed to participate. Its purpose is âto understand how people feel or think about an issue, product, service, or ideaâ (Krueger & Casey, 2000, p. 4). To get participants for a focus group, it is usually not necessary to use a sampling procedure; however, you may want to have a variety of individuals in the group, so it may take some effort to recruit individuals who have the qualities you need. For example, if you are studying childrenâs daily exposure to television and you wish to conduct a focus group, it would not be worth your time to recruit adults whose children are grown and gone from home. However, if you are studying television use in general, you could recruit from all age groups.
Some researchers believe you may not be able to get all the information you are seeking in one focus group session. It is usually advisable to conduct several focus groups, each with 6 to 12 different participating individuals. Multiple focus groups allow you to compare results across all sessions. Must the group have 12 members, you might ask? Can it have fewer than six? You can conduct a productive focus group session with 12 participants, but large groups are sometimes difficult to manage. Conducting one with fewer than six will probably not provide you with as much information as you may be seeking.
Nevertheless, if fewer than six people show up for a session, you almost certainly will conduct it with however many show up. Participants will have taken the time and effort to come be a part of the research activity, and you should not send them home without following through on your commitment to have them be part of the focus group. Your authorâs experience suggests that 8 to 10 participants are ideal. A group this size is easy to manage, and you can involve all participants in answering questions and offering comments about the issue under study.
Focus groups often have two uses. They are commonly used as a preliminary activity to another, more detailed, research study. For example, if you wish to conduct a telephone survey concerning Internet use among teens, you might want to hold a focus group session or two to identify some of the issues, practices, or concerns that you will need to consider as you develop a questionnaire for the survey.
A second use of focus groups is to provide information for immediate use in decision making. Although we know the opinions and ideas advanced in a focus group session do not necessarily represent the opinions and ideas of other individuals, the information you get from the focus group session may be all you really need to make a decision. Suppose, for example, that you wish to know whether the 2,000 employees of a certain company would read a monthly newsletter if one were to be developed and regularly given to each employee. You could survey all 2,000 employees, but this could be difficult and time-consuming. A reasonable course of action might be to conduct three focus group sessions with ten participants in each, drawn from all company operations. You could present them with an example of the first newsletter issue and engage them in a discussion about it. You might find that most members of the focus groups are excited about the newsletter and would eagerly read the document each month. You might then recommend to your supervisors that the newsletter is worth trying as a means of communicating with employees. On the other hand, if there were a general consensus that the newsletter would simply be another piece of company propaganda and most employees would toss it into the trash unread, you might recommend some other way be found to communicate with employees. It is true that the opinions of the focus groups might or might not represent the opinions of all the employees, but if you need some information in order to make a quick decision, focus groups may be the way to go.
A Postmodern Perspective
Focus groups will not be changed much by a postmodern approach. Sampling is usually not an issue in focus group research. Results from a focus group session are not generalized to a larger population, nor are they usually used to support or refute some communication theory. Postmodernists would be comfortable with focus group practices. In fact, focus group activityâas it is commonly practiced in communicationâcould provide answers to some of the questions postmodernists think ought to be addressed by research. For example, a focus group might well provide an answer to this question: Do the results help us see things more clearly as they are? Or this question: Do the results highlight the ârichness of differenceâ in the culture? In general, focus group research is typically used to provide quick, practical information relating to a specific issue, often business-related. Although action may be taken on the results, such action is rarely presented as applicable to any situation other than the one the focus group was specifically convened to address.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Like all other research methods, focus groups have advantages and disadvantages. One distinct advantage is that a focus group can often be conducted quickly. If you can identify and get the cooperation of the participants, you can often plan and conduct the session within a week or two. A second advantage is that a focus group is a relatively low-cost way of gathering information. However, there are often some costs involved, including paying the focus group moderator and research assistants, reimbursing travel expenses, providing refreshments, and recording and transcribing the sessions. Nevertheless, compared to the cost of some other research activities, the cost for a series of focus groups is usually somewhat less.
Getting in-depth explanations of opinions and ideas is a third advantage. As noted earlier, most focus groups involve a group discussion of a series of open-ended questions. The research moderator can probe for additional information or explanations. This provides more information than you would get by having someone complete a questionnaire. Finally, a focus group allows you to be flexible. If the research moderator identifies an issue or concern not related to the questions he/she had planned to ask but knows that an exploration of that issue or concern could be of some use to the study, the issue or concern may easily become a part of the group discussion. In other words, in a focus group, you can depart from your set of predetermined discussion questions and consider new questions or new ideas. You cannot easily do this with some other types of research and most certainly not with survey research where procedures require you not to deviate from the prepared questionnaire.
There are a few disadvantages to the focus group, but many researchers believe these can be overcome. One problem is that the group may contain an individual who is so full of opinions and ideas, he/she will try to dominate the discussion. This type of person is often the first to respond to a question and will often respond at length. This sort of behavior usually leaves little time or opportunity for other members of the focus group to offer their ideas and opinions. Some may even feel intimidated by the aggressive way in which the âopinion leaderâ voices his/her opinions. On the flip side, there may be those who say little or nothing in the session. They often listen carefully to what others say but are hesitant to offer their own views. Or they might agree with what someone else has said and believe that saying the same thing does not add much to the discussion. A good research moderator can overcome these problems by guiding the discussion in such a way that one person does not dominate it and that each person contributes. It takes both skill and courtesy to verbally restrain a dominant group member, and it takes a different type of skill and courtesy to get the reluctant talkers involved.
Another disadvantage is that the group discussion will often get off track. Participants may begin to talk among themselves or relate stories that have no bearing on the issues under consideration. Again, a strong research moderator can get the discussion back on track. A third disadvantage is that some participants may object to having the session recorded. Focus group sessions are often recorded so researchers do not have to depend on writing down every comment correctly. With a recording, researchers can have access to all comments made during a session. Some participants may object to having their voices recorded, but the research moderator can usually get their cooperation by promising that their voices will not be identified in any way and by informing participants that the goal of the session is to get their exact comments and ideas on important issues, and the best way to be precise is to record the session. In rare cases, focus group sessions may be videotaped, although some participants may not wish to be videotaped, particularly if they are offering opinions on sensitive issues. Exercise caution when videotaping a focus group session.
Basics
You begin planning a focus group session in the same way you begin other sorts of research activities: Complete the basics. This means following the preliminary steps in the research flowchart. You will need to discuss the research topic, conduct the literature search, and revise the research questions. Finally, you will need to develop the series of questions you will use to stimulate the focus group discussion. These discussion questions should be linked directly to the studyâs research questions. In general, they should be open-ended questions which can be clearly understood by group participants. They should be short, interesting questions; the research moderator should use words the participants themselves might use. Questions should be put in conversational language to the degree possible (Krueger & Casey, 2000, p. 40). Remember, the goal of the questions is to stimulate the exchange of ideas and opinions about the topic of your research study.
Logistics
As with any research project, there are dozens of details that must be attended to in order for a focus group to be successful. The first and most important task, after completing the basics, is to find and train the research moderator who will lead the discussion. As noted earlier, a good research moderator will be able to overcome many of the problems that plague focus groups. There are no particular gender or age requirements for a moderator. A good moderator will be a skilled and courteous communicator who understands the focus group process and understands your project.
You may need a number of research assistants to assist with data recording and analysis. You will need to record group participant responses to the moderatorâs questions. If you are planning to audiotape the session, your research assistants may be charged with the task of acquiring old-style tape recorders, purchasing batteries and blank audiotapes, and placing the recorders in appropriate locations in the focus group room. Recorders should be monitored closely during the session to ensure they are operating properly.
However, we are in the digital age now, and many people prefer digital recordings. Fortunately, you have several options. You could download a free sound recorder app for use with your computer. Microsoft offers just such an app and provides instructions on its use (https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/14090/windows-sound-recorder-app-faq). You could purchase sound-recording software (http://nch.com/recordpad/index/html). You could purchase an omnidirectional condenser microphone for use with your computer (www.bestbuy.com/sony-omnidirectional-condenser-microphone-silver/4820722p?skuld=4820722). Other options are available. Search the keywords âaudio recording devicesâ or âaudio recording software.â If you have the budget, you could spend some money and acquire a âvoice activated pen ...
