The Method of Qualitative Research

(2)

WANG Huaping

Philosophy Department, Shandong University

Contents

Ethnography2

Focus Groups31

Action Research33

Focus Groups: Definitions

‘The hallmark of focus groups is the explicit

use of the group interaction to produce data

and insights that would be less accessible

without the interaction’ (Morgan 1988: 12).

Kitzinger (1994: 159) ‘group discussions

organized to explore a specific set of issues’.

History

Originally called focussed interviews. Origins in the Office of Radio Research at Columbia

University in 1941 when Paul Lazarsfeld invited Robert Merton to assist him in the evaluation of audience response to radio programs.

Method increasingly used in social sciences and marketing (Catterall and Maclaran 1997; Green 1999).

Morgan (1988) says most common form of marketing research.

Common uses of focus groups

Obtaining general background information about a topic of interest

Generating research hypotheses that can be submitted to further research and testing using more quantitative approaches (Stimulating new ideas and creative concepts)

Diagnosing the potential for problems with a new program, service or product

Generating impressions of products, programs, services, institutions or other objects of interest.

Learning how respondents talk about the phenomenon of interest. This, in turn, may facilitate the design of questionnaires, survey instruments or other research tools that might be employed in a research project.

Interpreting previously obtained research results.

Advantages of Focus Groups

time and cost efficient direct interaction between researcher and researched, respondents

can qualify responses, researcher can observe non-verbals large amounts of rich data in the respondents’ own words. The

researcher can obtain deeper levels of meaning etc. synergistic flexible especially useful for groups with limited literacy, results are readily understood. synergism snowballing stimulation security Spontaneity

Disadvantages of focus groups

Small number of respondents and convenience recruiting limit generalizability.

Responses may be subject to group-think, especially if there are dominated or opinionated members. More reserved members may be overlooked (see MacDougall and Baum 1997).

The open-ended nature of responses may make summarization and interpretation difficult.

Potential for moderator bias Cost (moderator fee, facility rental, recording and transcribing,

data analysis, participant incentives)

Designing and Conducting Focus Groups

“The experience of using the focus group as a qualitative research method can be compared with that of the tightrope walker: when things go well there is a feeling of exhilaration, when they go badly….it’s a long drop!”

Pugsley 1996:126

Interviews and Focus GroupsFocus groups are not appropriate when:

1. Detailed probing of an individual’s behaviour, attitudes or needs is required2. The subject matter under discussion is likely to be of a highly confidential nature3. The subject matter is of an emotionally charged or embarrassing nature4. Certain strong, socially acceptable norms exist and the need to conform in a group discussion may influence response5. A highly detailed (step-by-step) understanding of complicated behaviour or decision-making patterns is required6. The interviews are with professional people or with people on the subject of their jobs.(Hawkins et al, 1994; 554-444).

Steps in Design and Use of Focus Groups

Problem definition/formulation of research question Identification of sampling frame Identification of moderator Generation and pre-testing of interview guide Recruiting the sample Conducting the group Analysis and interpretation of data Writing report

Designing Focus Groups: How do you recruit participants?

Time-consuming Krueger (1988: 94) refers to ‘recruiting on location’ Morgan (1995) says recruitment is the single most

common source of failure he has encountered in focus group research.

How to avoid problems: repeated contacts, offering incentives, over-recruiting. (Morgan 1988 suggests over-recruiting by 20%).

May be recruited by existing social networks, word of mouth or advertizing.

Designing Focus Groups: How many people in a group?

Literature differs but researchers highlight that size should be related to research topic/purpose

Group sizes of 4 to 12 are recommended with an ideal group the size of 8 (Morrison & Peoples, 1999; Diloria 1994 et al.)

6 to 9 (Garrison et al. 1999) Generally 8-12 individuals (Stewart and Shamdasani 1990) 6 to 10 (MacIntosh 1993) Up to 15 (Goss and Leinbach 1996) Smaller groups may be dominated by one or two members Larger groups may be difficult to manage, obtain the

perspectives of all members

Designing Focus Groups: How many groups?

Depends on approach; research questions; time and budget constraints

Some use only one meeting with each of several focus groups (e.g. Burgess 1996)

Others use follow-up meetings (e.g. Pini 2002) Multiple groups of similar participants are usually necessary

for data to be valid Most questions can be answered by 6 to 8 groups, although 4

groups are adequate for some studies and 50 are needed for more extensive studies (Krueger 1994)

One important determinant is the number of different population sub-groups required (Morgan 1988)

Designing Focus Groups: How long should they last?

One and a half to two and a half hours (Stewart and Shamdasani 1990)

Consider moderator as well as participant fatigue. Keim

et al (1999) study used one hour groups for children and found this was too long.

Designing Focus Groups: Developing a focus group guide

In general, keep the number of broad concepts examined in a focus group moderate so that each can be examined in detail.

Tend to be general in nature and open-ended. Moderator will be improvising comments and

questions within the framework. Opening question is one that everyone answers at the

beginning of the focus group.

Designing Focus Groups: What is the role of the moderator?

Smith (1995) recommends two moderators for better control of group cohesion and more thorough observation of group dynamics.

Morgan (1988: 49) favours approach he calls ‘highly nondirective focus groups’ or what he says are ‘self-managed groups’.

Moderator needs to have both strong interviewing and observational skills (McDonald 1993).

What is the role of the moderator? Consider advantages of high moderator involvement:

Can cut off unproductive discussion Ability to ensure all topics covered Can adjust discussion

Consider disadvantages of high moderator involvement A biased moderator will produce data that reproduces these

biases Does not allow new / unanticipated issues to emerge

Consider advantages of low moderator involvement Can assess participants’ own interests Participants can bring up controversial topics/topics not

considered by moderator Consider disadvantages of low moderator involvement

Relatively disorganized in content and so more difficult to analyse

Some topics may never come up

Analysing Focus Group Data

A typical two hour session yields an average of 40 to 50 transcript pages.

Morgan (1988: 64): The group is the fundamental unit of analysis and the analysis should begin in a group-by-group progression.

Hyden and Bulow (2003) stress the need to examine not only pure content, but who is saying what

Krueger (1993) says read transcripts/summaries and: Consider the words Consider the context Consider the internal consistency Consider the specificity of responses Find the big ideas Consider the purpose of the research

Quality control in focus group research

Ten quality factors in focus group research: Clarity of purpose Appropriate environment Sufficient resources Appropriate participants Skilful moderator Effective questions Systematic and verifiable analysis Appropriate presentation

The future?

Emerging literature on virtual focus groups.

Who and what are being researched in online focus groups?

Are online groups going to replace traditional focus groups?

Are respondents who they say they are? Do respondents in online groups really interact with

each other?

(See Sweet, 2001; Murray 1997; Walston and Lissitz 2000. )

Action Research

Definition: “Disciplined enquiry (research) which seeks focused

efforts to improve the quality of people’s organizational, community and family lives” (Calhoun 1993).

“Action research is simply a form of self-reflective enquiry undertaken by participants in social situations in order to improve the rationality and justice of their own practices, their understanding of these practices and the situations in which the practices are carried out.”

(Carr & Kemmis, 1986, p. 162)

Action Research

Definition: “Disciplined enquiry (research) which seeks focused efforts to

improve the quality of people’s organizational, community and family lives” (Calhoun 1993).

Key tenets: Processes are rigorously empirical and reflective (research is self-

conscious) Research engages people who have traditionally been called

“subjects” as active participants in the research process Research results in some practical outcome related to the lives or

work of the participants Democratic, equitable, liberating, life enhancing Operates at intellectual, as well as social, cultural, political and

emotional levels

AR involves a self-reflective, systematic and critical approach to enquiry by participants who are at the same time members of the research community. The aim is to identify problematic situations or issues considered by participants to be worthy of investigation in order to bring about critically informed changes in practice. Action research is underpinned by democratic principles in that the ownership of change is invested in those who conduct the research.

(Burns, cited in Cornwell, 1999)

Action Research

Aims Action Research

PAR… has a double objective. One aim is to produce knowledge and action directly useful to a group of people - through research, adult education and sociopolitical action. The second aim is to empower people at a second and deeper level through the process of constructing and using their own knowledge… (Reason, 1998, p. 271)

Characteristics of action research

focus on a particular social situation collaboration/dialogue with others to identify the

issues and to collect and analyze data deliberate intervention into the operation of the status processes of research lead to the construction of

knowledge and theory (and political action)

Characteristics of action research

testing of knowledge and theory by feeding them back into changes in practice

evaluation of changes through further cycles of action and reflection

opening of theories and knowledge to wider scrutiny through publication, information dissemination, and application by others in their own situations

Processes of Action Research

Plan - develop a plan of critically informed action to improve what is already happening

Act - act to implement the plan Observe - observe the effects of the critically

informed action in the context in which it occurs Reflect - reflect on these effects as the basis for

further planning, subsequent critically informed action, [etc.] through a succession of stages.

(Kemmis & McTaggart, 1988, p. 10)

Processes of Action Research

Exploring Identifying Planning Collecting data Analyzing/reflecting Hypothesizing/speculating Intervening Observing Reporting Writing Presenting(Burns, 1999, p. 35)

AR - what kind of research is it?

Research paradigms determine whether research assists in the maintenance of the status quo in society or helps to transform the dominant social paradigm. As a result it is important to examine the [practices and] politics of the different research paradigms… the positivist, the interpretivist and critical [and

poststructuralist] paradigms… (Fien & Hillcoat, 1996, p. 26)

Paradigms of research

positivist/post-positivist - “to describe, control and predict”

interpretive/hermeneutic - “to empathize and understand”

critical - “to change” poststructuralist - “to deconstruct” (Lather,

1992)

Action research and critical theory

Central concepts are: the empowerment of participants in the social situation confrontation of inequities/ in the system transformation of the social situation movement towards “a better world” self-conscious criticism through awareness of ideological and

epistemological assumptions that shape the social situation enhanced awareness of participants’ own subjective,

intersubjective and normative frames of reference

Undertaking action research

Key issues Who will you involve? What issues/questions will you focus on? What steps in the process will you put in place next? How will you collect data/information? How will you track/analyze it/identify emerging issues? What resources do you need? What skills/knowledge do you need?

Ethnography Genesis in cultural anthropology Argued to be not one particular method but a style of

research that is distinguished by its objectives To understand social meanings and activities of people in a given

setting Some overlap with participant observation as this is the

predominant technique used. However, interviews and documentary methods also often utilised.

Definition: “a description and interpretation of a cultural or social group or

system” (Cresswell 1998) Mostly used in anthropology and sociology, but also health

sciences, education, rarely in business

Ethnography (cont.)

Has a number of features distinct from other methods:

Sees the world through the eyes of those being researched, allowing them to speak for themselves

Researchers immerse themselves in the setting and become part of the group in which they are interested

Aims to provide understanding of the meaning and importance that members of the group impart to their own behaviour and that of others

Ethnography (cont.)

Key terms Fieldwork – collecting data in a particular

setting Gatekeepers Key informants Reciprocity Reactivity or reflexivity