Paper Type
Research-in-Progress Paper
Abstract
In order to create successful software or systems, user involvement is one of the essential activities in the software development process. When user involvement is solicited, participant attitudes and their knowledge level about the software are substantially related to the quality of participant feedback. Particularly, in a focus group test, which is one of the most widely used methods for attaining user feedback, if a participant is extremely passive or has no experience to share, he or she cannot provide productive feedback and, more importantly, may tend to conform to the viewpoints of others. This tendency can be problematic in focus groups because it decreases the likelihood that participants’ feedback stands for their true belief and further amplifies the strength of dominant voice in the group. In this research, conformity and its relationship with the knowledge level and assertiveness of participants in the focus group will be investigated in the context of a focus group test.
Recommended Citation
Choi, Hoon Seok and Clark, Jan, "Minimizing Conformity in Focus Group for Software Development" (2013). AMCIS 2013 Proceedings. 3.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2013/SystemsAnalysis/RoundTablePresentations/3
Minimizing Conformity in Focus Group for Software Development
In order to create successful software or systems, user involvement is one of the essential activities in the software development process. When user involvement is solicited, participant attitudes and their knowledge level about the software are substantially related to the quality of participant feedback. Particularly, in a focus group test, which is one of the most widely used methods for attaining user feedback, if a participant is extremely passive or has no experience to share, he or she cannot provide productive feedback and, more importantly, may tend to conform to the viewpoints of others. This tendency can be problematic in focus groups because it decreases the likelihood that participants’ feedback stands for their true belief and further amplifies the strength of dominant voice in the group. In this research, conformity and its relationship with the knowledge level and assertiveness of participants in the focus group will be investigated in the context of a focus group test.