Use of focus groups in evaluating nutrition education materials

Focus groups were used to study public reaction to the nutrition education material, Dietary Guidelines for Americans, US Department of Agriculture bulletin HG232. Respondents were asked to comment specifically on the content and format of bulletin HG232 and to compare it with several other commonly used nutrition education print materials. The focus group discussions were recorded on videotape and the information was analyzed by two independent reviews of the tapes. The focus groups produced good information on perceived usability of a variety of nutrition education print materials and made specific suggestions for improving HG232. Although there are limitations to using focus groups as a data collection technique (data are not quantitative, making data analysis difficult; responses are influenced by group dynamics; and some suggestions made by the group are not appropriate), the richness and innovativeness of the data collected make focus groups a worthwhile evaluation method for nutritionists.