Focus Groups

Focus Groups : Focus groups are moderated group discussions involving six to 12 participants. The late Republican political consultant Lee Atwater said that focus groups “give you a sense of what makes people tick and a sense of what’s going on with people’s minds and lives that you simply can’t get with survey data” (as cited by Davis, Gavagan, & DeLuccia, 2001, p. 2). They reveal the range of opinion that exists surrounding a particular subject. The public relations practitioner might use focus groups when looking: for a range of ideas and feelings; to understand differences and perspectives; to uncover factors that influence opinions, behaviors or motivations; for ideas to emerge from the group; or to pilot test ideas, materials, plans or policies. Focus groups can also be used to develop questions for surveys and other quantitative research, and to shed light on quantitative research data already collected (Krueger & Casey, 2000).