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How to Interview and Conduct Focus Groups
Book

How to Interview and Conduct Focus Groups

Jen Katz-Buonincontro
2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0000299-000

Abstract

Conducting research can be analogous to cooking a meal for several people. It involves planning, proper execution, having adequate resources, and presenting one's project in a meaningful manner. Conducting research without properly paying attention to details can lead to erroneous results. This volume focuses on learning how to effectively conduct interviews and focus groups as well as interpreting the findings in a meaningful and valid manner. Such activities can be classified under the umbrella of qualitative research methods, a growing area in psychology. The book first introduces us to this field as background. Of greatest aid are the specific steps the author delineates concerning the how-to of conducting quality interviews and focus groups. In addition, she provides useful examples of how to combine these activities within a single study as well as how to combine these qualitative strategies with more traditional quantitative methodologies (referred to as mixed-methods approaches). The book not only provides detail on how to conduct interviews and focus groups, but also teaches researchers how to analyze the results of these activities, as well as how to write up their findings. It strikes a balance between describing the how-to steps and situating them within the core qualitative traditions and theories. Three aims guide this book: to answer questions we have about when and how to use the methods described, to dispel our doubts about how to combine data to meet standards of validity and reliability, and to help us break through problems we might encounter along the way.

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