Focus group discussion Sometimes it is preferable to collect information from groups of people rather than from a
series of individuals. Focus groups can be useful to obtain certain types of information or
when circumstances would make it difficult to collect information using other methods to data
collection.
I. Characteristics and uses of focus group discussions A focus group discussion (FGD) is a group discussion of 6-12 persons guided by a facilitator,
during which group members talk freely and spontaneously about a certain topic.
The purpose of an FGD is to obtain in-depth information on concepts, perceptions, and ideas
of the group. It aims to be more than a question-answer interaction.
FGD techniques can be used to: a) Develop relevant research hypotheses by exploring in greater depth the problem
to be investigated and its possible causes.
b) Formulate appropriate questions for more structured, larger scale surveys.
c) Supplement information on community knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, and
behaviour already available but incomplete or unclear.
d) FGDs are not used to test hypotheses or to produce research findings that can be
generalized.
II. Conducting a focus group discussion Recruitment of participants: Participants should be roughly of the same socioeconomic
group or have a similar background in relation to the issue under consideration. The age and
sex composition of the group should facilitate free discussion.
If we need to obtain information on a topic from several different categories of informants who
are likely to discuss the issue from different perspectives, we should organize a focus group
for each category. For example, a group for men and a group for women.
