Methodological aspects and results of conducting focus group interviews in the study of the opinion of children left behind by labor migration

Abstract

Focus group interviewing is a technique frequently used as a qualitative approach to gain an in-depth understanding of social issues. In this article, I propose to present the experience of conducting focus group interviews with children, carried out within the project Children left behind by labor migration: supporting Moldovan and Ukrainian transnational families in the European Union. In order to obtain better qualitative results, the research sought the free expression of the opinion of all respondents participating in the research. This aimed to highlight the various possible negative aspects related to the phenomenon of transnational families and children left without care whose parents are away working abroad. The guide for moderation of focus groups with children was structured in five modules. It included topics related to perception of migration and its impact on transnational families and children left without parental care, caring for the child after the parents leave, the changes that occur after the parents’ migration, existing social services in the community and future perspectives of children. Each module, the experience of conducting focus group interviews and the results of the opinion study of children left behind by labor force migration were presented and analyzed in depth in the article.