Using Focus Groups to Conduct Business Communication Research

Keywords: focus groups; qualitative research; communication; culture; protocol At the heart of most qualitative research is an effort to better understand peoples' interpretations of their experiences; in effect, to address the question What is going on here? One approach for gathering this kind of qualitative data is using focus group methodology. Focus group methodology is a qualitative data gathering approach that takes advantage of structured interviewing techniques performed in a group setting (Fontana & Frey, 1994). Unlike more traditional one-on-one interviewing, the focus group approach encourages discussion among group members, and this interaction tends to stimulate ideas that would not have been available otherwise (Morgan, 1988). The dynamic interplay generated among group members can provide rich, descriptive information offered from the respondents' viewpoints. As such, focus group methodology offers an excellent way for researchers to examine the underlying logic used by and the kind of evidence brought to bear by participants on a given situation or product (Lindlof, 1995). A search of research data collections (e.g., Sociological Abstracts and Psychological Abstracts) reveals that only a few studies were published in the 1980s that report using a focus group approach. However, by the end of the following decade, more than 200 studies were published that apparently use focus groups (Morgan, 2002). Clearly, focus group methodology has emerged as an important research tool employed by many academic disciplines, including marketing, public policy, strategic planning, and communication (Luntz, 1994; R. Myers, 2002; Rook, 2003). One aspect of the focus group methodology that makes it so appealing across many disciplines is that it can lead to theory/knowledge application tested quantitatively (Geroy, Jankovich, & Wright, 1997). Common knowledge and anecdotal evidence suggest that business communication practitioners often employ focus group methodologies as a means of collecting information about a product or service. Yet surprisingly, few business communication scholars have reported the use of focus groups in their research. In fact, little focus group research has been reported in the business communication research literature. For instance, the special issue of the Journal of Business Communication (Livesey, 2002) addressing qualitative research methodologies does not include an examination of focus groups. In an effort to close this apparent knowledge gap and to encourage business communication scholars to consider the approach as an option in their research, the present commentary reviews the relevant research and practitioner literature and then offers an illustration of how focus groups can be used in business communication scholarship. FOCUS GROUP RESEARCH Goldman (1962) referred to focus groups as "group depth interviews" (p. 61). The elements of the definition illuminate the approach: A group is a number of people who interact and who have a common interest; depth refers to profound information gathered, more so than individual interviews; interview refers to the presence of a moderator; and focus implies a limit to the issues discussed. Focus groups rely heavily on member interaction to stimulate ideas rather than on the more familiar and linear question-and-answer format used in one-on-one interviews (Herndon, 2001). Indeed, Lederman (1990) and Morgan (1988) suggested that the synergistic effect generated by focus groups can be far more revealing than the sum of individual interviews. The interaction that takes place among group members that produces such dynamic synergy and rich information can look chaotic to the untrained eye. Yet the researcher/moderator provides the underlying structure that guides the interaction (Herndon, 2001). Focus groups are, in effect, a structured approach for eliciting unstructured discussion. Furthermore, the safety provided in a group often allows the participants to share information and insights that might never emerge in other settings (McCracken, 1988). …