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message thread, and additionally archives the discussion for later downloading.
The thing to consider in terms of later analysis is whether the focus group will
include previous messages in their replies; this is not necessary because all the
messages will be in the archive in the right order, but it is hard to prevent users
fromdoingitbecauseitisusuallythedefaultmailclientbehavior.Anotherbehav-
iorthatneedstobesetiswhetherrepliesfromalistserveraresentbydefaultback
tothelistserveraddress,ortothesenderofthemessage.Somelistserversdoone
by default and some do the other. If the listserver is set up to reply to the sender
rather than the listserver, and if that behavior cannot be changed, then partici-
pantshavetoremembertoselect'replytoall',ratherthan'replytosender.'
Online focus groups enable a researcher to access easily a large and, poten-
tially,diversepopulation,andcanberelativelyinexpensivetorun.Themethod
enables a researcher to access a wide variety of data (in) a very brief period of
time (Gaiser, 2008: 669). They are easy to coordinate, have limited technical
requirements, the data are easily captured, and there is little to no technical
training and skill required for participants to contribute.
It's important to keep in mind, however, that online focus groups also pre-
sentavarietyofchallenges.Theycanbedifficulttomanageforamoderator,or
focusgroupfacilitator.Participantsmaynotfeelthesamekindofobligationto
the moderator that they may in a face-to-face environment, leading them to
feelfreetodoastheypleasewithinthegroup.Thisconcernisheightenedinan
asynchronous group where participants may be contributing to the discussion
when the moderator isn't “present.” In this environment, there is a potential
loss of the impulse response. “Freudian slips” often reveal a great deal of data
foraresearcher.Giventimetothinkthroughapostingbeforesubmittingitcan
haveamediatingeffectonimpulseresponses(Gaiser,2008:687).Thedepthof
responses, however, should provide a suitable trade-off.
Roles are another odd aspect when conducting focus groups as well as online
interviews.Asnotedelsewhereinthebook,interactionsmediatedthroughtech-
nologies continue to challenge contemporary notions of personal roles. Online,
the relationship and roles of participant and moderator continue to evolve. In
addition,onlineparticipant/observerresearchinwhichtheresearcherseesheror
himselfasaparticipantshiftsthenotionofroles.Whileroleshiftingcanhaveits
ownrewardsforparticulartypesofresearchendeavors,theresearcherisencour-
agedtothinkthroughrelinquishingtheroleoffacilitatorormoderatorverycare-
fully.Whileagroupmaybecomeself-functioningandprovidetremendouslyrich
data, you run the risk of losing participants who feel uncomfortable with no one
beingcharge.Thisislikelytovarywithanynumberofdemographicssuchasage,
educationandonlineexperience,buttheendresultmaybethefailureofafocus
group if some perceive the researcher as stepping away, becoming a participant,
orsimplynotexertingsomeformofcontroloverthediscussion.
Whenstartingafocusgroup,it'sagoodideatouseanintroductoryexercise.It
provides the opportunity to engage everyone equally, can set the tone for the
group,beginstoestablishtrust,canhavethebenefitofsettingparticipantsatease
and,mostimportantly,cangettheparticipantstobeginfunctioningasagroup.
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