Entry
Entries A-Z
Focus Group (Communication)
A method of research in which an interviewer or team of interviewers seeks information or opinions from a small gathering of individuals, typically 7 to 10 people. To facilitate open discussion among members, focus group organizers are more likely to select people with shared rather than diverse characteristics. Focus groups are used in the marketing and advertising fields to determine product development or the likelihood of success of a product and in the education, political science, and public policy fields to determine traits and trends among populations. Responses gleaned from focus groups can be valuable for developing survey questions.