Analysis Of Focus Group Discussions Research Articles

Being ‘a competent language user’ in a world of Others – Adult migrants’ perceptions and constructions of communicative competence

This article investigates the lived experience of language (Busch, 2017) in relation to perceptions of what it means to be ‘a competent language user’. How to define language competence is an ongoing discussion in applied linguistics. However, relatively little attention has been given to the lived experiences of adult migrants with respect to their perceptions of competence. Drawing on an analysis of focus group discussions with adult migrants enrolled in a language program in basic Swedish, this article builds on understandings of communicative competence as a relational construct shaped by intersubjective processes. Corroborating the relational view of competence is the importance given to emotional perspectives on competence and the role played by assessments, both those made by others and internalized self-assessments. Meanwhile, discourses on the language competence of adult migrants often frame successful language learning as an individual responsibility and achievement, obscuring the relational process underlying the perceptions and constructions of communicative competence.

TEACHERS’ KNOWLEDGE ABOUT HIGHER-ORDER THINKING SKILLS AND ITS LEARNING STRATEGY

Higher order thinking skill (HOTS) is one of the students’ abilities that should be developed through teaching and learning. Teachers’ knowledge about HOTS and its teaching and learning tactics is a key to successful education. The purpose of this research is to describe teachers’ knowledge about higher order thinking skills (HOTS). The research involves qualitative study with the phenomenological approach. The research participants are 27 mathematics teachers from state and private junior high schools across 7 provinces in Indonesia. The researcher collected data with a test followed by focus group discussion (FGD) and interviews. The analysis of data involved Bogdan & Biklen model and descriptive statistics for data from the test. The analysis of FGD, and test data intends to get information on 6 sub-themes; teachers’ knowledge about HOTS, importance of HOTS, teaching about HOTS to students, improving students’ HOTS, measuring and assessing HOTS, and teachers’ ability for solving HOTS-based problems. The results indicate that teachers’ knowledge about HOTS, their ability to improve students’ HOTS, solve HOTS-based problems, and measure students' HOTS is still low. There are facts, however, that teachers already understand the importance of HOTS and teaching it by using various innovative learning models. Keywords: HOTS, measurement and assessment, teachers’ knowledge, teaching and learning

Political and health messages are differently palatable: A critical discourse analysis of women’s engagement with Health At Every Size and fat acceptance messages

ABSTRACTSize acceptance movements challenge dominant weight-based health ideology by highlighting the oppressiveness of weight stigma, and the growing body of evidence supporting the complex nature of the weight-health relationship. The authors examined responses to these movements via a critical discourse analysis of focus group discussions with 21 female participants. Although generally sympathetic to the impact of weight stigma, participants frequently fell back on assumptions of weight as personally controllable and health as a moral obligation. These findings are discussed in terms of the authority and pervasiveness of public health messages and the barriers they present to size acceptance movements.

Practice environment as perceived by nurses in acute care hospitals in Sharjah and North Emirates.

To explore nurses' perceptions of their practice environment in acute care hospitals in Sharjah and North Emirates in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The health of the environment in which registered nurses' work is critical to nursing outcomes. The interest to examine the practice environment extended to the Gulf area which has a complex healthcare system including the UAE. The study used an exploratory descriptive design with a qualitative part using two focus group interviews. The sample size was 450 nurses selected through a random sampling method. A self-administered questionnaire including the Practice Environment Scale of Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI) was used. In addition, semi-structured interviews for two focus groups were done. The results showed that UAE practicing nurses reported favorable perceptions of most aspects of their practice environment. Unfavorable perceptions were only reported for Staffing and Resource Adequacy. The analysis of focus group discussions resulted in different emerged themes such as Lack of Recognition and Career Promotion, and Nurses' Workload due to Paper and Administrative Work. The findings of this study suggest that strategic interventions are needed to secure adequate staff and resources and implement an effective system for evaluation of performance.

Focus Groups as Social Arenas for the Negotiation of Normativity

Aim: This article aims to demonstrate how focus group discussions act as a social arena for the negotiation of social norms and normativity and to discuss the implications for the analysis of focus group discussions. Participants and methods: We have used sequences of group interactions from a focus group study on everyday life and chronic illness to demonstrate how methodological tools from conversation analysis and discursive psychology can be used to facilitate a systematic analysis of the negotiation and legitimization of social norms and normativity in focus groups. The empirical data consisted of six focus groups with a total of 32 participants. Results: The analysis demonstrated negotiations on normativity concerning four central aspects related to living with chronic illness: negotiating normativity about adjustment to the disease, negotiating normativity about being a dutiful employee, negotiating normativity about responsibility for the illness, and negotiating normativity about carrying on. Conclusion: Although the role of interaction in focus group data analysis and its impact on the content of the data should always be viewed in relation to the specific study and study focus, based on the analyses, we argue that adding different epistemological and analytical lenses to a data set may produce different, additional, and more complex insights into the research field.

Development of youth professional interests in accordance with labour market requirements

This article analyses the European Commission, OECD and Eurostat data, and the Latvian labour market data on youth unemployment rates during 2008–2014. It also examines the results of the empirical study on the Latvian youth’s development of creativity in the formation of intents about profession and its conformity with demands of the present labour market. For determination of the professional interest, methods of analysis and synthesis, time series analysis and mathematical statistics were applied. For the interpretation of models and facts, survey method, expert interview method, focus group discussion analysis, SWOT and PEST methods were applied. A questionnaire was used to examine the professional intents of youth from Latvian secondary schools, and a focus group discussion with parents and teachers of students was organised to determine concepts about the issues of vocational choice in the context of supply and demand in the labour market.
 
 Keywords: Vocational choice, career, employment, labour market.

AN EXPLORATION OF STUDENT ATTITUDES AND SATISFACTION IN A GAISE-INFLUENCED INTRODUCTORY STATISTICS COURSE

We used the Survey of Attitudes Toward Statistics to (1) evaluate using pre-semester data the Students’ Attitudes Toward Statistics Model (SATS-M), and (2) test the effect on attitudes of an introductory statistics course redesigned according to the Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE) by examining the change in attitudes over the semester and, using supplementary data from an annual Student Feedback Survey, testing for a change in overall satisfaction following implementation of the redesigned course. We took an exploratory rather than confirmatory approach in both parts of this study using Bayesian networks and structural equation modelling. These results were triangulated with analysis of focus group discussions and the annual Student Feedback Survey. First published November 2017 at Statistics Education Research Journal Archives

Giving Attention: Reflections on Severe Weather Warnings and Alerts on Mobile Devices

Smartphones are an increasingly important channel through which to issue weather alerts and warnings. Yet it is important to consider the nature of these devices and the implications for alerts and warnings. Alerts have traditionally been designed to get the attention of recipients while warnings provide the information needed to decide if it is necessary to take protective action. Smartphones are distinct from traditional channels in that they do both. They can be incredibly effective at delivering alerts and are also able to deliver multiple streams of warning information simultaneously to a single person. Our work suggests that this reality can result in information flow fatigue if these message systems are not properly designed. In a process which we describe as setting up jigs, smartphone users report the importance of restricting or prioritizing information using their phone settings or even turning off notifications or shutting down their phones at specific times and places. Our analysis of focus group discussions concludes that storm alerts and warnings delivered through smartphones must prioritize personalized settings and messages that help recipients filter the information they want to give their attention to rather than designing them to forcibly get people's attention.

Gendered childcare norms — evidence from rural Swaziland to inform innovative structural HIV prevention approaches for young women

Addressing discriminatory gender norms is a prerequisite for preventing HIV in women, including young women. However, the gendered expectation that women will perform unpaid childcare-related labour is rarely conceptualised as influencing their HIV risk. Our aim was to learn from members of a rural Swazi community about how gendered childcare norms. We performed sequential, interpretive analysis of focus group discussion and demographic survey data, generated through participatory action research. The results showed that gendered childcare norms were firmly entrenched and intertwined with discriminatory norms regarding sexual behaviour. Participants perceived that caring for children constrained young women’s educational opportunities and providing for children’s material needs increased their economic requirements. Some young women were perceived to engage in “transactional sex” and depend financially on men, including “sugar daddies”, to provide basic necessities like food for the children they cared for. Our results suggested that men were no longer fulfilling their traditional role of caring for children’s material needs, despite women’s traditional role of caring for their physical and emotional needs remaining firmly entrenched. The results indicate that innovative approaches to prevent HIV in young women should incorporate structural approaches that aim to transform gendered norms, economically empower women and implement policies guaranteeing women equal rights.

Comparing safety climate for nurses working in operating theatres, critical care and ward areas in the UK: a mixed methods study

ObjectivesThe main aim of the study was to explore the potential sources of variation and understand the meaning of safety climate for nursing practice in acute hospital settings in the...

Attitudes and perceptions from nursing and medical students towards the other profession in relation to wound care

ABSTRACTLack of nurse‒physician collaboration in wound care may result in prolonged healing times for patients. In order to facilitate future professional collaboration, undergraduate learning activities in interprofessional education (IPE) have been proposed. The aim of this study was to investigate nursing and medical students’ attitudes and perceptions towards each other’s future professions and interprofessional collaboration in wound care. Nursing and medical students took part in an interprofessional learning activity about wound care. Data were collected using the Jefferson Scale of Attitudes towards Physician‒Nurse Collaboration questionnaire to student groups before and after an IPE activity (pooled n = 221). Focus groups were conducted to deepen the knowledge about students’ attitudes and perceptions. The results showed high scores on the attitude scale (mean 53.2, possible maximum = 60) both before and after IPE, indicating positive attitudes towards nurse‒physician collaboration. Nursing students scored higher than medical students both pre-IPE (p < 0.001) and post-IPE (p = 0.006). However, no difference on scale scores could be identified between pre- and post-IPE. The following themes emerged in the analysis of focus group discussions: “Approaching patient care from different perspectives,” “Need for collaboration and clear professional roles in practice,” “Structures hindering future collaboration,” and “IPE as a tool for professional practice and roles.” The shared learning activity provided insights into the other profession’s competence. This kind of learning activity may increase future interprofessional collaboration, and thus, improve wound care.

”They are all over the place”. An explorative investigation of the relationship between perceived positions of social classes and political parties

The impact of social class in modern societies is still contested. Research in voter behavior has demonstrated a declining importance of class on voting, but sociological studies demonstrate that class is still important for lifestyle. One potential reason for this ambiguous role of social class is that people’s understanding of classes and class relations does not fit well with their understanding of modern party competition. Based on analyses of focus group discussions, this article explores how people relate their understanding of social classes in Danish society and their understanding of political parties. The analysis confirms that people still consider the Danish society as being divided into classes, but that they can only reluctantly and with difficulty place the political parties within a landscape of social classes.

Barriers Encountered by Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) in Arthritis Rehabilitation: A Qualitative Study.

Healthy behaviour through education of individuals with arthritis is the mainstay of long term management. Time and access constraints restrict medical professionals from active involvement in arthritis education in the community. Reaching the community through the Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) is the plan of action operational in India. Hence, the factors encountered by ASHAs while delivering arthritis education programs need to be studied. The aim of the study was to explore the experiences of ASHAs while delivering arthritis education program. Qualitative exploratory design employing semi-structured interviews was adapted for the study. The interviews were conducted using focus groups of ASHAs from two geographically similar villages. Inductive analysis of focus group discussions was undertaken to determine themes, categories and codes. Three broad themes were identified from the interviews which influenced the performance of ASHAs. Categories identified show the influence of training, characteristics of ASHAs, geographical features, family characteristics and community attitude. Few problems reported were means of transport, time constraints, multiple tasks, type of incentive and frequency of on-field demonstrations. Providing motivation for altruistic services has always been a challenge to governing bodies. The issues identified in this study can be addressed prior to integrating ASHAs for rehabilitation services.

Mother Blame and the Just World Theory in Child Sexual Abuse Cases.

Mothers are blamed for a variety of negative experiences and outcomes of their children, including child sexual abuse (CSA). According to just world hypothesis (JWH), people have a need to view the world as one where there is no such thing as an innocent victim; that is, the world is fair and just. These beliefs predict victim blaming in situations such as sexual abuse, physical abuse, and robbery. However, JWH has not been applied to the examination of mother blame, a situation in which the blame target did not directly experience the traumatic event. We examined this application in two studies: (a) a thematic analysis of focus group discussions and (b) a correlational study. Across both studies, participants identified personal characteristics of the mother that either increased or decreased blame, consistent with JWH. However, when directly asked, most participants denied holding just world beliefs, particularly as related to child sexual abuse. Our results indicate that methodological choices might affect results, and that socially constructed views of "ideal mothers" influence mother blame. We discuss implications for validity of just world theory (JWT), methodological choices, and reduction of mother blame.

Minority Education in Georgia: Is It Delivering What Is Expected?

ABSTRACTThis article explores the issue of minority education in the nation of Georgia, and this research aims to identify the reasons for minority educational problems. The results of school exit exams, literacy research studies, and the 2009 Program for International Student Assessment were used to highlight the differences in educational achievements of minority and majority students. Content analysis and empirical analysis of focus group discussions form the methodological basis for this study. The research identifies two important factors that influence the quality of general education in minority schools: (a) national curriculum and school textbooks and (b) teacher certification and professional development. Based on these results, the article provides suggestions for the improvement of teacher qualification, school curriculum, and textbooks for non-Georgian schools in Georgia. The author will argue that without fundamental, long-term, and sophisticated national curriculum and textbooks, as well as professional development reforms for teachers, integration of society will remain a problem in Georgia.

Cancer screening barriers and facilitators for under and never screened populations: A mixed methods study

BackgroundCancer screening is below targets in Ontario, Canada. Our objective was to identify and quantify the barriers and facilitators for breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screening for under and never screened (UNS) residents living in Ontario between 2011 and 2013. MethodsWe used a multi-phased mixed methods study design. Results from thematic analysis of focus group discussions with health care providers and UNS community members were used to develop an on-line, province-wide, cross-sectional survey to estimate the prevalence of barriers and facilitators for the provincial population. Adjusted prevalence odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were estimated for UNS compared to regularly screened participants using logistic regression. ResultsFour focus groups were held with health service providers and sixteen with UNS community members. Top barriers and facilitators themed around provider-patient communication, fear and embarrassment, history of physical or sexual abuse, social determinants of health (including low literacy, lack of awareness, and health insurance), symptoms appearing, and family and friends. 3075 participants completed the online survey. Compared to regularly screened participants, UNS had significantly higher odds of reporting: no regular health care provider; not feeling comfortable talking about screening; or the Doctor or Nurse Practitioner not suggesting screening. UNS also had significantly higher odds of reporting the facilitators: the test being less scary/painful or uncomfortable; friend/family insisting on getting screened; starting to have symptoms; or an easier test that could be done at home. ConclusionsInterventions addressing fear through individual, interpersonal and structural facilitators may increase cancer screening.

Prioritizing the mHealth Design Space: A Mixed-Methods Analysis of Smokers' Perspectives.

BackgroundSmoking remains the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States. Therefore, researchers are constantly exploring new ways to promote smoking cessation. Mobile health (mHealth) technologies could be effective cessation tools. Despite the availability of commercial quit-smoking apps, little research to date has examined smokers’ preferred treatment intervention components (ie, design features). Honoring these preferences is important for designing programs that are appealing to smokers and may be more likely to be adopted and used.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to understand smokers’ preferred design features of mHealth quit-smoking tools.MethodsWe used a mixed-methods approach consisting of focus groups and written surveys to understand the design preferences of adult smokers who were interested in quitting smoking (N=40). Focus groups were stratified by age to allow differing perspectives to emerge between older (>40 years) and younger (<40 years) participants. Focus group discussion included a “blue-sky” brainstorming exercise followed by participant reactions to contrasting design options for communicating with smokers, providing social support, and incentivizing program use. Participants rated the importance of preselected design features on an exit survey. Qualitative analyses examined emergent discussion themes and quantitative analyses compared feature ratings to determine which were perceived as most important.ResultsParticipants preferred a highly personalized and adaptive mHealth experience. Their ideal mHealth quit-smoking tool would allow personalized tracking of their progress, adaptively tailored feedback, and real-time peer support to help manage smoking cravings. Based on qualitative analysis of focus group discussion, participants preferred pull messages (ie, delivered upon request) over push messages (ie, sent automatically) and preferred interaction with other smokers through closed social networks. Preferences for entertaining games or other rewarding incentives to encourage program use differed by age group. Based on quantitative analysis of surveys, participants rated the importance of select design features significantly differently (P<.001). Design features rated as most important included personalized content, the ability to track one’s progress, and features designed to help manage nicotine withdrawal and medication side effects. Design features rated least important were quit-smoking videos and posting on social media. Communicating with stop-smoking experts was rated more important than communicating with family and friends about quitting (P=.03). Perceived importance of various design features varied by age, experience with technology, and frequency of smoking.ConclusionsFuture mHealth cessation aids should be designed with an understanding of smokers’ needs and preferences for these tools. Doing so does not guarantee treatment effectiveness, but balancing user preferences with best-practice treatment considerations could enhance program adoption and improve treatment outcomes. Grounded in the perspectives of smokers, we identify several design considerations, which should be prioritized when designing future mHealth cessation tools and which warrant additional empirical validation.

The Youth-Mental Health Engagement Network: An Exploratory Pilot Study of a Smartphone and Computer-Based Personal Health Record for Youth Experiencing Depressive Symptoms

:The Youth-Mental Health Engagement Network study explored the use of mobile technology to support youth in managing their mental health. The Lawson SMART record (LSR) is a web-based application that allows individuals to create and manage an electronic personal health record (ePHR). Through this record, individuals can store their personal health information (e.g., list of medications, family history, immunization records, allergies, care provider contact information, care plans, and crisis plans) and use interactive tools to manage their health care (e.g., mood monitor, reminder prompts, alerts, and mental health assessments). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usability and acceptability of using an ePHR in providing mental health care to youth with mental illnesses who were experiencing depressive symptoms, from the perspectives of both the patients and their care providers. This 6-month study employed an exploratory descriptive design. Mixed methods research methodology was used to determine the uptake of the LSR as part of their mental health treatment by youth experiencing depressive symptoms. Participants included 41 patients, aged 16 to 21, receiving outpatient services from one of 9 care providers employed within a hospital-based youth mental health care program. Focus groups were held with participating care providers and patients throughout the study to explore youth and care provider perceptions of using the LSR for mental health care management. In addition, both patients and care providers completed surveys to elaborate on their use of and comfort with the technology. This study found that the majority of patients used a phone (90.6%) and computer (70.7%) daily and felt extremely comfortable using cell phones (71.9%) and computers (58.5%). Of the 41 patients, 9 (22%) had their smartphone lost, stolen, broken, or given away. Qualitative analysis of focus group discussions with patients and care providers revealed 6 themes: 1) extent of LSR use was related to the severity of illness and treatment intensity; 2) symptom tracking was the most common use of the LSR; 3) patients reported increased self-awareness and autonomy with LSR use; 4) use of the LSR changed and had the potential to enhance the therapeutic relationship; 5) use of the LSR was a good fit with Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy treatment requirements; and 6) the LSR should be personalized and simplified. In a population of youth with mental illnesses who were experiencing depressive symptoms, the LSR was found to be useful and to fit well with standard treatment practices. However, youth would prefer a simpler tool. Future research should evaluate the clinical- and cost-effectiveness of using an ePHR in a larger sample of youth with mixed clinical presentations and over a longer period of time. This additional research would be valuable in understanding the usability and acceptability of smart technologies as an integral part of usual mental health care for youth.

Using others’ experiences. Cancer patients’ expectations and navigation of a website providing narratives on prostate, breast and colorectal cancer

ObjectiveTo understand what cancer patients expect and may learn from other patients’ experiences, as analyzed and sorted for presentation on a website called krankheitserfahrungen.de (meaning “illness experiences”). MethodsMixed methods approach including log file analyses, survey data analyses and thematic analysis of focus group discussions. ResultsUsers highly valued the wide range of patient experiences presented. The academic leadership of krankheitserfahrungen.de made them trust the information quality. Reading, watching and listening to other cancer patients’ experiences gave users a feeling of hope and confidence. Searching for persons with similar experiences was a major way of navigating the website. ConclusionPatient narratives as presented on krankheitserfahrungen.de provide a helpful resource, supporting cancer patients’ engagement with their disease. Having access to such research-informed accounts of everyday cancer experiences was seen as a great contribution to existing available patient information. Practice implicationsWhen health information websites include experiences, they should adhere to quality standards of qualitative research and encompass a wide range, so that users are able to find patients similar to themselves. Filter options are a helpful tool. A mix of written text and videos is beneficial, as users have different preferences. The inclusion of patient photographs and video interviews facilitates authenticity and closeness.

Experiences of a Community-Based Lymphedema Management Program for Lymphatic Filariasis in Odisha State, India: An Analysis of Focus Group Discussions with Patients, Families, Community Members and Program Volunteers.

BackgroundGlobally 68 million people are infected with lymphatic filariasis (LF), 17 million of whom have lymphedema. This study explores the effects of a lymphedema management program in Odisha State, India on morbidity and psychosocial effects associated with lymphedema.Methodology/Principal FindingsFocus groups were held with patients (eight groups, separated by gender), their family members (eight groups), community members (four groups) and program volunteers (four groups) who had participated in a lymphedema management program for the past three years. Significant social, physical, and economic difficulties were described by patients and family members, including marriageability, social stigma, and lost workdays. However, the positive impact of the lymphedema management program was also emphasized, and many family and community members indicated that community members were accepting of patients and had some improved understanding of the etiology of the disease. Program volunteers and community members stressed the role that the program had played in educating people, though interestingly, local explanations and treatments appear to coexist with knowledge of biomedical treatments and the mosquito vector.Conclusions/SignificanceLocal and biomedical understandings of disease can co-exist and do not preclude individuals from participating in biomedical interventions, specifically lymphedema management for those with lymphatic filariasis. There is a continued need for gender-specific psychosocial support groups to address issues particular to men and women as well as a continued need for improved economic opportunities for LF-affected patients. There is an urgent need to scale up LF-related morbidity management programs to reduce the suffering of people affected by LF.