Case Study on A less structured approach to focus group interviewing

In a study of HRM in Cuba, Cunha and Cunha (2004) used focus groups to explore how market-based management practices have been adopted in a country struggling to protect its communist ideology. The primary data collection technique was a series of eight focus groups conducted with 106 Cuban managers and management professors. The number of participants in each group ranged from twelve to fifteen, somewhat higher than the recommended number. Each meeting lasted approximately one and a half hours. Although a discussion script was used, the researchers sought to develop a relatively unstructured approach to asking questions that were in keeping with the broad nature of the discussion focusing on societal changes facing Cuba. Furthermore, rather than keeping the themes for discussion consistent between the groups, they deliberately fed the conclusions from previous groups in the debate in subsequent ones. This emergent approach was based on the idea that the focus groups entailed a process of collective sense-making between participants. The discussion was conducted in Spanish, and notes were taken by the researchers, who later converted the messages into a 'codebook' summarizing the main topics discussed and participants' views.

Answer the following questions:

1. Examine the type of situation in would this more open-ended approach to moderating focus group sessions be advisable.

2. Analyse the merits and cons of interview approaches in qualitative research from a critical perspective.

3. Assuming you are the investigator for the above case, please outline the strategies you will use to evaluate the interview and the reasons for your selection of these procedures.

4. Evaluate the limitations of qualitative approaches and discuss them