Focus Group Discussions

The second data source for the study was Focus Group Discussion (FGD). Focus group discussion is one of the qualitative techniques that have been used in a variety of studies.

According to Krueger and Casey, (2000:5) focus group has been defined as a “…carefully planned series of discussions designed to obtain perceptions on a defined area of interest in a permissive, non-threatening environment…”. Powell, et al (1996:499) also defined a focus group as a

“…group of individuals selected and assembled by researchers to discuss and comment on, from personal experience, the topic that is the subject of the research.” A focus group could be described as a collection of individuals with several common characteristics, brought together by a researcher, to interact and discuss a particular topic or issue in relation to their personal experiences. For example FGD has been used in developing HIV education in Zimbabwe

(Munodawafa et al, 1995); condom use before marriage in India (Santhya, et al., 2011); and in the area of forest resource conservation (Hundera, 2007; Robinson, 2008; Robinson, et al, 2009;

Christie & Giri, 2011; Nyanga, 2012) These examples illustrate that focus groups can be used in various settings and for various functions. Depending on the research design, the FGDs can be used for needs assessments, for programme development and evaluation, and for exploratory research.

The primary aim of an FGD is to describe and understand how a selected group of people construct, perceive and interpret the issues of interest to the researchers (Wilkinson, 2004;

Kitzinger, 2005; Stewart et al, 2007). Krueger (1994) described focus group discussion as a powerful research technique for gaining deeper understanding of opinions and beliefs of a particular group of people. In this study, focus group discussions were employed to understand whether people of different socio-economic categories had different perceptions, access, and attitudes towards the forest and forest resource conservation.

FGDs are suitable to record the experiences of all types of people (Waldegrave, 1999;

Wilkinson, 2004). A focus group involves a group of 6—8 people, from similar socio-cultural backgrounds or with similar experiences of a specific topic (Waldegrave, 1999; Kitzinger, 2005). A focus group discussion is an organised (but flexibly structured) meeting, involving six to ten participants, normally lasting between one and two hours. The researcher creates a permissive and nurturing environment that encourages different perceptions and points of view, without pressuring participants to reach consensus (Krueger, 1994; Patton, 2002). The focus group helps to explore and generate hypotheses. An FGD enables participants to ask questions of each other as well as to clarify, re-evaluate and re-consider their understandings of their individual experiences, values, beliefs and practices (Krueger, 1994; Kitzinger, 1994). Careful and systematic analysis of the discussions provides insights on how the issue being investigated is perceived by the group.

The purpose of such discussions is to collect information on a particular research topic.

According to Krueger (1994), focus groups are beneficial for the identification of major themes.

Unlike one-to-one interviews and questionnaires, focus groups involve group interaction, thereby allowing greater insight into people's experiences and opinions than could be achieved outside of the interactions found within a group (Krueger, 1994; Morgan, 1998; 2002). The focus group discussion is particularly effective in providing information about why people think or feel the way that they do (Morgan & Krueger, 1993; Krueger, 1994; Morgan, 1998; 2002). Participants can respond freely and spontaneously without the limitations imposed by questions that require fixed responses (Krueger, 1994; Patton, 2002; Kamberelis & Dimitriadis, 2008). Such participant interaction can rapidly produce valuable ideas – rather than the narrower individual responses obtained with questionnaires (Caplan, 1991). Focus groups can produce concentrated amounts of data on the topic of interest and, in this respect, are more efficient than individual interviews (Morgan, 1998). Focus groups are useful for gaining formative project information because they can indicate the range of a community's beliefs. In addition, they are useful tools for designing question guides for individual in-depth interviews and formulating questions for structured interviews (Wilkinson, 2004; Kitzinger, 2005; Kamberelis & Dimitriadis, 2008).

In this study, a total of twenty four FGDs were conducted, with four each in the selected communities. Volunteers for each group were solicited during administration of the questionnaires.

Participants were divided into two broad categories. The first group consisted of community leaders and elders. The second group consisted of youths and adults of both genders. A total of four 2-hour focus group discussions were carried out in each village. Each focus group contained 7 to 10 participants who were both readily available and willing to participate in the discussion. The reason for separation of the participants into gender and age grouping was to eliminate the culture of passiveness and domination that are part of most rural African societies. In addition, men and women face different challenges and understand changes differently; because they have different roles within the community. Furthermore, women tend not to express their opinions when men are present because of the prevailing cultural behaviour relating to gender roles. Eleven questions were generated to guide discussions (Appendix B). The research assistants arranged the dates and venues for the focus group discussions in consultation with participants. Figure 4.8 and Figure 4.9 show pictures of young people and women participants in the focus group discussions.

Figure 4.8: A focus group discussion with young people in one of community in South Africa

Figure 4.9: A focus group discussion with women in one of the communities