Qualitative researchFocus group interview, Participant-observationand Ethnography

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Qualitative research:
Focus group 
interview, Participant-
observation
and Ethnography
What is focus group interview
a qualitative research method gather insights and opinions from a small group of individuals
bringing together a selected group share common characteristics or experiences
asking open-ended questions
 encouraging participants to express their 
thoughts and opinions provide a deeper understanding of participants' perspectives
Focus group interview vs. One-to-
one semi-structured interview
a small group of participants (typically 6-10 
people) one-to-one semi-structured interview
allow for interactions among participants focus solely on the individual participant's thoughts
broader range of opinions and insights as 
multiple participants contribute to the 
discussion. 
allow for a deeper exploration of an individual's experiences, as 
the interviewer can ask follow-up questions and probe specific 
areas of interest.
participants can be influenced by each other's 
opinions or conform to social norms within the 
group
individual participant's responses are not influenced by other 
participants independent perspective
coordinating the schedules of multiple 
participants scheduled individually, allowing for greater flexibility.
Sampling for focus group interview
Purposive (Strategic) sampling
 Illustration (Reichstadt et al. 2007)
Strategy of reaching out:
● Posting flyers at various target facilities
● Obtaining recommendations from facility 
staff and participants (=> snowball)
sample should not be too small
difficult to develop a
 convincing explanation
 hard for one to
 make meaningful comparisons
between groups
sample should not be too large
makes it hard to generaterich data for 
understandingmeanings
but , overrecruitment of participants may be
required participants’ ‘no-show’
people reached total : aged 60-99
3 and 4 focus groups respectively from
each of the 2 continuing-care retirement
communities
> 2 focus groups from 1 community
continuing education programme
Data collection from more focus group
interviews can be stopped when:
Comments and patterns of responses
begin to repeat
they can generate an
approximate explanation about the
concerned social phenomenon
Large groups (>8) are not favoured
harder to respond to viewpoints
raised by different individuals
higher tendency for one
person to dominate the discussion,
fewer opportunities of
disagreements and lower diversity
of viewpoints
whether group dynamics maydiscourage some from voicing 
dissenting views Strategic grouping
● Non-Chinese students
● Local Chinese students
● Mainland Chinese students
principles adopted
Starting points
icebreaking and rapport-building
Questions should be sensitive
broader societal context
● Emphasis on inviting participants’ sharing
of perspectives
● Room for disagreements, debates, or
sharing of new/unexpected insights
explore participants' attitudes, beliefs, 
perceptions, and experiences