Question

A researcher is developing a body of knowledge for the development of a formal questionnaire. Part of the process involves conducting four focus groups. Outline an appropriate sampling strategy for generating the focus-group respondents. Discuss.

Answer 1

Researchers approach a focus group interview with many traditions, wisdom and procedures intended for quantitative and experimental studies. However, some of these concepts get transferred easily but others do not.

Some researchers are always inclined towards the importance of randomization as it had served them well on a previous occasion. Hence they assume randomization is considered to appropriate for qualitative studies including the practice of focus-group interviews. However, basically randomization just removes the bias present in selection, and gives an equal chance to all participants to be involved in the study. It is more appropriate in cases where inferences are to be made for a larger population since the normal distribution of the opinions, attitudes or any factor comes into play. Thereby it can be confidently said that a random sample of sufficiently large size can be considered an adequate substitute for the survey of an entire population.

It should always be kept in mind that, focus groups are conducted to understand and not to infer, it is not done to generalize but to appropriately determine the range, and to provide insights about the perception of the population instead of statements. Randomization is not a primary factor in selection, but a tool to eliminate the selection bias often inherent in some forms. One should be concerned about the degree to which a particular strategy can lead to some distortions in the data. A proper rationale behind the selection criteria should always be ready.