Focus groups are sometimes called group interviews.

Focus groups were designed to obtain the participants’ perceptions of a specific topic in a permissive and nonthreatening setting.

Focus groups are conducted by a moderator or facilitator, who may or may not be the researcher.

Observation is a fundamental method of gathering data for qualitative studies, especially ethnography studies.

The aim is to gather first-hand information in a naturally occurring situation.

In studies that use observation, notes taken during or shortly after observations are called field notes.

Another useful strategy is to videotape the events, so that careful observationsand detailed notes can be taken at a later time.

In qualitative studies, text is considered a rich source of data.

Keeping track of connections between various bits of data requires meticulous record keeping and may be supported by using computer-assisted qualitative data analysis software (CAQDAS) programs.

The most commonly used textual data in qualitative studies are transcripts of recorded interviews and focus groups.

Transcription is at the heart of the qualitative research process, because a verbatim transcript captures participants’ own words, language, and expressions” and allows the researcher to “decode behavior, processes, and cultural meanings attached to people’s perspectives”.

Data analysis is a rigorous process. Because published qualitative studies may not contain the methodology in detail.

In grounded theory

In phenomenology

Coding is the process of reading the data, breaking text down into subparts, and giving a label to that part of the text.

A code is a symbol or abbreviation used to classify words or phrases in the data.

Themes emerge as codes that are combined into more abstract phrases or terms.