Differences between Online and Face to Face （网络和面对面之间的区别）.pdf

Journal of Theoretical and Applied Electronic Commerce Research This paper is available online at ISSN 0718–1876 Electronic Version VOL 7 / ISSUE 2 / AUGUST 2012 / 73-86 DOI: 10.4067/S0718-18762012000200008 © 2012 Universidad de Talca - Chile Differences between Online and Face to Face Focus Groups, Viewed through Two Approaches 1 2 Eva María Murgado-Armenteros , Francisco José Torres-Ruiz and Manuela Vega- Zamora3 University of Jaen, Department of Business Management, Marketing and Sociology, Jaen, Spain, 1 2 3 emurgado@ujaen.es, ftorres@ujaen.es, mvega@ujaen.es Received 10 December 2011; received in revised form 14 May 2012; accepted 15 May 2012 Abstract The increasing prominence of online focus groups in market research and the complexity that the Internet environment adds to the conduct of research with focus groups has led to a certain interest in discovering how this method can be applied effectively and to which situations or purposes it is best suited. Based on an examination of the literature and on an empirical survey of the heads of qualitative research at 112 market research companies in Spain, a