Using focus group methodology for ergonomic design

Abstract

Focus groups are a common tool used in marketing research to determine customers' attitudes about products or services. With careful attention to the basic structure and using selected quantitative enhancements, focus groups can also be used by ergonomists for developing solutions to product and workplace problems. By involving users and supplementing their verbal reactions with 'hard data', focus group results can be understandable to marketeers, engineers, and management. Thus, the methodology gives practitioners an effective means for approaching ergonomic problems and gaining acceptance of their recommendations. This paper describes considerations for selecting participants, requirements of the moderator, and suggestions for designing the focus group session. They are basic focus group elements. Also described are three alternative methods for enhancing the basic procedure—combining it with prior performance testing, using it as a basis for a subsequent decision-making analysis, and incorporating a tradeoff analysis during the session. The author's experience in applying these methods is given in three case studies.

Keywords:

• Focus group
• Methodology
• Design
• Product
• Workplace
• Ergonomics