Focus Group
A Focus Group is a moderated group interview in which a small, fairly similar set of people discuss a topic along a prepared set of open questions, so that their attitudes, concerns and reasoning become visible to the researcher. The approach goes back to the 1940s, when sociologist Robert K. Merton used group interviews at the Bureau of Applied Social Research to study how audiences reacted to radio broadcasts. Today it is used to learn what matters to a community or user group, to test options and to scope issues before further research; the Design Kit by IDEO.org describes a lighter field version as the Group Interview.
Facilitation script
- 1
Welcome participants, explain the purpose and how the material will be used, confirm consent, agree ground rules and start the recording.
10 min - 2
Opening round: one easy question about participants' own experience with the topic, answered briefly by everyone in turn.
10 min - 3
General questions: two broad open questions on the topic. Let participants respond to each other and probe for examples.
25 min - 4
Specific questions: move to the issue, option or proposal you need to understand. Ask for reasons behind reactions and invite differing views.
30 min - 5
Summarise the main points you heard, ask whether the summary is fair and whether anything important has not been said.
10 min - 6
Thank participants, explain next steps and close. Debrief with the note-taker immediately afterwards while impressions are fresh.
5 min
Tips
Hold the first, easy question as a round in which everyone speaks once; people who have spoken early contribute more later.
Listen for what participants say to each other, since the exchange between them is what a focus group offers over single interviews.
One group is one data point, so plan at least two or three groups per type of participant before reading a pattern into the results.
Common pitfalls
One or two dominant participants setting the tone, after which the rest agree out loud and the transcript records conformity as consensus
Leading or closed questions that signal the answer the moderator hopes for, which produces polite confirmation
Mixing people of very different status or with a stake in each other's answers, so the less powerful stay silent
Reporting one group's discussion as what 'users' or 'the community' think, although a single group cannot carry that claim
Recording or quoting people without clear consent and anonymisation, which breaks trust and in many settings data protection rules
Variations
Group Interview (IDEO.org Design Kit): seven to ten members of a community in a familiar, neutral place, used for a quick read on community life and needs and to spot people for later co-creation sessions; decide deliberately whether a mixed or single-gender group will let people speak openly. Online: a video call with five or six participants, a co-moderator watching the chat, and a shorter guide. Mini group: four to six participants for sensitive or specialist topics where each person needs more speaking time.
Where it fits
When to use it
You need to understand how a particular group thinks and talks about a topic before you design a survey, service or policy
You have two or three options and want to hear reactions and the reasons behind them before choosing
A project is entering an unfamiliar community and needs a broad first picture quickly
Survey results show what people answered but not why, and you need the reasoning
You want to find out which issues exist at all before deciding what to measure
When not to use it
You need to know how many people hold a view; a focus group gives no reliable numbers, so run a survey
The topic is private, stigmatised or involves disclosure that could harm someone in front of peers; use one-to-one User Interviews
You want to see what people do, not what they say they do; observe them or run a usability test
Managers and their staff, or other people in a dependency relationship, would sit in the same group; split them into separate groups or interview them individually
The goal is for participants to decide or plan together; a focus group collects views for the researcher, so use a workshop format such as World Café
Related methods
Frequently asked questions
What is Focus Group?▾
A Focus Group is a moderated group interview with a small, fairly similar set of people who discuss a topic along a set of prepared open questions. It is a qualitative research method used to understand attitudes, concerns and reasoning, to test options, and to identify issues before further research or consultation.
How many people should be in a focus group?▾
Eight to twelve is the usual recommendation, and the Design Kit's Group Interview works with seven to ten. Smaller groups of four to six suit sensitive or specialist topics. Above twelve, people have too little speaking time and side conversations start.
How long does a focus group last?▾
One and a half to two hours. That is enough for about six open questions with real discussion, and about as long as participants stay attentive.
How many focus groups do I need?▾
More than one. A single group can be shaped by its particular mix of people, so researchers commonly run several groups per participant type and stop when new groups add no new themes. Treat this as practical guidance, not a fixed rule.
What is the difference between a focus group and an interview?▾
An interview follows one person's experience in depth. A focus group shows a range of views at once and how people react to each other's statements, at the cost of individual depth and with the risk of group pressure. Many projects use focus groups for breadth first and interviews for depth afterwards.
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Try it freeMethod descriptions on Workshop Weaver are original content written by our team, based on established facilitation practices. This method was inspired by work from Social research practice (Robert K. Merton, 1940s); described by BetterEvaluation and the IDEO.org Design Kit.