The basics of focus group facilitation

How do you facilitate focus groups?

1. Create a friendly, comfortable climate.

   Some of the people who come to take part in your focus groups may be apprehensive about doing so. They may view the session as a kind of performance or test, where their answers and behaviors will be analyzed in a way that will be to their disadvantage. You want to counteract that impression in every way possible, of course, in order to promote good discussion. Plan to make people feel their decision to come to your group was a wise one. Create a warm climate for talk through the way the room is arranged and through your own behavior. To establish the proper environment for an expressive group, greet people warmly, check them in efficiently, and move them toward inviting refreshments when they arrive. Try to have the lighting and temperature at a comfortable level. Chat with each person who arrives about everyday topics; avoid the focus group topic. All these things will promote the relaxation and ease that promote free expression of opinions and ideas.

2. Maintain neutrality in your words and expressions.

   As you facilitate the session, behave in a way that shows each answer is interesting, but no answer is better or worse, or more positive or more negative, than any other. While this is a strange communication position to maintain, it is quite manageable for the short time required by the focus group situation. Use a lot of "uh-huhs" and "thank yous" as your response to comments. Avoid the use of affirming statements like, "That's a good idea." Certainly avoid revealing disagreement with a participant's opinions, either through words or body language. In the most simple sense, make sure people know their opinions are heard. Maintain neutrality on each question or issue covered in the session.

3. Seek balance among participants.

   Use subtle cues to encourage non-talkers to be more expressive, and discourage talkative types from taking up all the space. Make sure all participants feel valued and are treated respectfully. Be particularly aware of any natural divisions in the room - divisions related to social status or academic performance level, for example - and the effects of those divisions on impression management (see pages 36-38). Give both nonverbal and verbal cues to participants throughout the session to encourage every person present to participate as fully as possible within the time constraints of the session.

4. Convey a sense of purposefulness.

   Set a positive tone for the meeting and make sure the appropriate items are discussed. Guide the pace of the meeting and watch out for the time limits for each question and for the whole setting. The group will place complete trust in you to know what needs to happen and to know when to move on to new topics. Do this purposefully. Let the group know that your job is to make sure they get their work done.

   Follow the interview questions faithfully. Some questions may need to be asked verbatim more than once. Also look for rich areas of expressed values, opinions, or beliefs where follow-up questions could be productive. Remain in full control of the topic of discussion at each point in the meeting, though make sure that control is not intrusive for participants.

5. Use co-facilitators.

   Having co-facilitators is a strong approach that produces good results; it requires a certain chemistry and a certain kind of integrity between the two practitioners. Work out your roles in advance. Here are some possible ways to divide up the work:

   • The facilitators take turns asking questions.

   • One facilitator asks the questions and guides most of the discussion, while the second manages the recording and takes notes. Often, the second facilitator asks questions at the end of the session that the first facilitator may have missed. The second facilitator may also present back to the group a summary of what they said, for confirmation and adjustment.

   • The second facilitator may be on the alert for follow-up questions and may ask them throughout the session, maintaining nonverbal or other communication with the first facilitator about the allocation of time to each key question.

In summary, your key facilitator traits are warmth, neutrality, balance, and purposefulness.