The use of focus groups as a qualitative research method has received criticism, particularly concerning its lack of predictive validity. However, it has also been lauded for providing rich and in-depth information. This study sought to enhance focus group research results by combining a computer-assisted technology (Continuous Attitudinal Response Technology, CART tm ) and social scientific data collection techniques (national poll) in testing subjects' responses to Proposition 103, an insurance industry regulating initiative. 1 Excerpts from television commercials, newscasts, and talk shows constituted the stimuli for focus group subjects. Results from use of the CART tm system with focus group subjects confirmed those derived from the national poll, regarding the insurance controversy. However, processes inherent in the CART tm technology allowed for more in-depth analysis and interpretation than the survey technique alone.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.