Basic and Advanced Focus Groups

David L. Morgan received his PhD in sociology from the University of Michigan, and is currently an emeritus professor in the Department of Sociology at Portland State University. He is an inter-disciplinary research methodologist, working in both qualitative research and mixed methods research. In addition to artificial intelligence, his research interests include focus groups and mixed methods research. He is the author of more than fifty peer-reviewed articles and author or editor of nine books on research methods; he is currently the series editor for the Qualitative Research Methods Series from Sage (the “little blue books”).

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• PrefaceAbout the AuthorPART I. BASIC ISSUESChapter 1. Introducing Focus GroupsBasic IssuesAdvanced TopicsChapter 2. Uses for Focus GroupsBasic IssuesAdvanced TopicsChapter 3. The Importance of InteractionBasic IssuesAdvanced TopicsPART II. DESIGNING FOCUS GROUPSChapter 4. Research Design for Focus GroupsBasic IssuesAdvanced TopicsChapter 5. Group Composition, Group Size, and Number of GroupsBasic IssuesAdvanced TopicsChapter 6. Asking Questions in Focus GroupsBasic IssuesAdvanced TopicsChapter 7. Moderating the DiscussionBasic IssuesAdvanced TopicsChapter 8. Analyzing Focus GroupsBasic IssuesAdvanced TopicsPART III. ADVANCED TOPICS AND CONCLUSIONSChapter 9. Working Cross-CulturallyBasic IssuesChapter 10. Specialized Age GroupsBasic IssuesChapter 11. Online Focus GroupsBasic IssuesChapter 12. Conclusions: Future Directions for Focus GroupsBasic IssuesAPPENDICESAppendix 1Statement of Informed ConsentAppendix 2Generic Focus Group IntroductionAppendix 3Three Examples of Interview GuidesAppendix 4Experiences as Graduate StudentsGlossaryReferencesIndex