Smith, K.A. orcid.org/0000-0001-5366-1994, Huebner, C. orcid.org/0000-0003-0321-2546, Loughran, T. orcid.org/0000-0001-7306-2227 et al. (2 more authors) (2024) Young people’s engagement in online research: challenges and lessons from conducting focus groups with young people online. Journal of Youth Studies. ISSN 1367-6261
Abstract
Online qualitative focus groups are a method which has been increasingly used, especially since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, including in research with young people. Studies have reflected upon the challenges of conducting online qualitative research with young people, often drawing on experiences from the pandemic’s earlier stages [e.g. Smithson et al. 2021; Woodrow et al. 2021]. This article reflects upon the challenges faced, and choices made, when conducting online focus groups with 80 young people aged 14–18 to study their democratic engagement during the later 2021 wave of the pandemic. It highlights specific issues around the method’s effectiveness in engaging young people who face different kinds of marginalisation from democratic processes. While online modes of delivery were positive for engaging some, including groups of geographically dispersed young people, they exacerbated existing inequalities for others: young people from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds, from remote or rural areas and those with certain disabilities. Such inequalities in research participation can lead to variation in data quality, and therefore in the types of knowledge produced. Using these insights we outline a range of methodological and research design considerations for researchers when choosing whether to conduct online focus group research with young people.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
---|---|
Authors/Creators: |
|
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent. |
Keywords: | Youth; online methods; focus groups; participation; inequalities |
Dates: |
|
Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Sheffield Methods Institute |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 22 Feb 2024 14:49 |
Last Modified: | 22 Feb 2024 14:49 |
Status: | Published online |
Publisher: | Informa UK Limited |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/13676261.2023.2288833 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:209485 |