Responding to Participants' Questions
In focus groups, participants sometimes ask questions of the moderator. This should be expected; it is natural, and it can actually be beneficial to the discussion. Questions occur before the focus group, just after the introduction to the focus group, during the focus group, or at the conclusion of the discussion. The strategy of answering differs for each time period.
Questions Before the Focus Group Begins
These questions can occur during the invitation process or just prior to the discussion. These questions are asked individually, and the strategy of answering should be to provide sufficient information to put the participant at ease. Often the questions are about the purpose of the focus group, who's using the results, or about the timing or location. The principle of answering is to give answers but not to give information that might be leading.
Questions After the Introduction
Don't invite these questions. The moderator's introduction usually takes only a few minutes, and you should move directly into the round-robin opening question. Inviting questions at this point is dangerous because there are a number of questions that you may not want to answer until the end of the group. This can make the moderator appear defensive, evasive, and apologetic. The rule of thumb is not to invite questions, but if someone does ask a question, decide if it should be answered or postponed until later.
Questions During the Focus Group
These questions can relate to a variety of topics or concerns. The moderator will need to consider each of these individually. Some should be answered, some should be deflected back to the participant or the group, and some should be postponed.
Questions at the Conclusion of the Group
These questions are welcomed and encouraged. If a question was postponed, be sure to bring it up at the end of the focus group. Here you can tell more about the study-who else you are talking to, what
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How to Answer Participant Questions
When participants ask questions in the focus group, two things go through our minds. Is this really a question? And do 1 need to give an answer?
Some people use questions to make statements. It sounds like a question, but it isn't. They don't really want an answer. If you sense that the person really wants to make a point, you might respond by saying, " Tell me more about that" or "That's a good question, how would you answer it?" or simply "Why do you ask?"
If the question is indeed a question, then you have several strategies. One strategy is to invite someone else to answer the question. "Would someone like to answer that question?" This is often a desirable strategy if the question is about opinions, rather than facts.
It is important that the moderator doesn't appear evasive. If the question is specifically directed to the moderator, then it is more difficult to give it away.
Another strategy is to postpone the answer. If the topic is going to be discussed in more detail later in the focus group, you might use, "We're going to be talking about that in a few minutes." If the topic is not on the questioning route, you might use, "We'll be talking about things like that at the end. Remind me to talk about that then. But right now our topic is ..."
Or another strategy is to just answer the question. This is especially true if the question is about a factual matter or something that is an important foundation to later discussion.
Other groups have said, and how they can get copies of the report. Questions asked at the end of the focus group can give clues about additional information that you might include in the introduction of future focus groups.