Q. I’ve been told I need a female moderator if we’re doing a Focus Group of only women, a male for men, an African-American for African-Americans and so forth. What do you think about that?

A. I think there is something to it in a few instances (intimate products, for example), but that the real key is to use an experienced moderator who is comfortable with the audience and the subject under discussion.

For many years, the rule was to choose a moderator who “looked like the group” on the assumption that the participants would feel comfortable with someone they “recognized” and thus would be more forthcoming with information.

This sounds good and works up to a point — but in this scenario, group participants may assume that the moderator, who is “like them,” already knows what they know and feels the way they feel. If this isn’t controlled by an experienced moderator, the result can be shallow or spotty information from your group.

On the other hand, when the moderator is clearly NOT like the participants, they often feel that they must explain more completely, dig deeper, be more verbal in order to make the moderator understand “what it is like” for them. A skilled moderator can help them come to realize that it is okay and in fact necessary for them to explain their feelings.

Some of the most in-depth and interesting discussions I have conducted have been with male construction workers, all African-American groups, teen-agers and gay males. They felt that they needed to and could make me understand how they related to a product or service, and how that was different from the way others (including me) would.

Do you have a comment or research-related question? Send it to me for future FAQs!