An Analysis of Interaction Patterns in the Focus Group Interview

Abstract

This paper is based on the analysis of a focus group interview of a moderator and a group of undergraduate students on the topic of self-regulation of learning. The purpose of the investigation was to identify interaction patterns that appeared in the talk of participants and the moderator. In the stream of communication two rudimentary interaction patterns were recognized. The first pattern was named the Catalogue. It consists of a sequence of turns of participants who respond to a request of the moderator and who provide their answers, one by one, without reacting on the content of the previous partner(s) talk. The other interaction pattern was called the Domino. In this pattern participants respond to each other. The Catalogue pattern prevailed in the interview. Alongside with identification of patterns of interaction the study demonstrated the functions of the common ground and its accomplishment in the talk of the moderator and participants.

How to Get a Grip on Processes of Communalization and Distinction in Group Interactions—An Analytical Framework

“…For example, Gibson (2003) introduced the concept of participation shift , which encompasses the turn-by-turn transformation of the participation framework in multi-party interactions. Gavora (2015) identified two interaction patterns— Catalogue and Domino 4 —in moderated focus groups, and Gatica-Perez et al (2012) studied dynamic processes in small groups from a multimodal perspective, taking into consideration contextual features like conversational attention, turn taking and conversational floor as well as practices for addressing or interrupting other participants. Further research for describing these complex relationships has been conducted by Onwuegbuzie et al (2009) who suggested the so-called “micro-interlocutor analysis” (p. 7) as a qualitative framework, using Conversation Analysis as a key method.…”

“…In addition, participants might form and change alliances to achieve communicative actions. There are some suggestions for applying Conversation Analysis as a useful tool for studying group discussions on the micro-level of interaction, e.g., in order to analyze how group members organize turn taking activities (e.g., Gavora, 2015 ). Furthermore, Positioning Theory and its roots in discourse analysis is also used as a method to analyze multiparty interaction (e.g., Hirvonen, 2016 ).…”