Online Focus Group Discussions to Engage Stigmatized Populations in Qualitative Health Research: Lessons Learned

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Creator
  • Marley, Gifty
  • Kay Jin Tan, Rayner
    • Affiliation: School of Medicine, UNC Project-China
  • Wang, Tong
    • Affiliation: School of Medicine, UNC Project-China
  • Li, Chunyan
    • Affiliation: School of Medicine, Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases
  • Byrne, Margaret E.
    • Affiliation: School of Medicine, Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases
  • Wu, Dan
    • Other Affiliation: Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
  • Wang, Cheng
    • Other Affiliation: Dermatology Hospital of the Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
  • Tang, Weiming
    • Affiliation: School of Medicine, Department of Medicine
  • Ramaswamy, Rohit
    • Other Affiliation: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
  • Luo, Danyang
    • Affiliation: School of Medicine, UNC Project-China
  • Sylvia, Sean S.
    • Affiliation: School of Medicine, Department of Medicine
  • Tucker, Joseph D.
    • Other Affiliation: Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
Abstract
  • Community participation in research involving stigmatized populations has been sub-optimal, and digital tools could potentially increase participation in qualitative research. This study aims to describe the implementation of an online chat-based FGD (Focus Group Discussion) with men who have sex with men (MSM) in China as part of formative research for the PIONEER project, determine the advantages and limitations associated with the approach, and assess the feasibility of deepening community participation in STI research. Participants were involved in four days of asynchronous FGDs on sexually transmitted diseases and answered questions about the online FGD method. Online FGDs allowed us to deepen participant engagement through bidirectional communication channels. Data from online FGDs directly informed recruitment strategies and community participation for a clinical trial. Overall, 63% (29/46) of men who had never participated in offline LGBTQ + activities joined online FGDs. Many participants (89%, 41/46) noted that online FGDs were more convenient, less socially awkward, and more anonymous than in-person qualitative research. We highlighted potential risks as well as mitigation strategies when using online FGDs. Online FGDs were feasible among this group of sexual minorities and may be particularly useful in many cities where stigma limits in-person research participation.
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  • Article
Rights statement
  • In Copyright
Rights holder
  • International Institute for Qualitative Methodology at the University of Alberta, Canada
License
  • Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International
Journal title
  • International Journal of Qualitative Methods
Journal volume
  • 22
Funder
  • National Institutes of Health
ISSN
  • 1609-4069
Copyright date
  • 2023
Publisher
  • SAGE Publications

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