When moderating, be culturally aware

Editor’s note: Martha C. Rivera is senior research associate, Hispanic research, at Doyle Research Associates, Chicago.  This article is the continuation of “Language is Only One Factor,” which appeared in the May 2006 issue.

Planning Hispanic research studies is a matter of patiently searching for secondary source data that will lead to the best possible decisions on segmentation. Conducting it, however, is a matter of sensitivity to the differences and psychological needs of respondents who are typically unfamiliar with marketing research, are still struggling with their adaptation to a new culture, and really want to do a good job at participating in the research.

While recruiting differences between general-market respondents versus Hispanics are obvious and require accommodation, only some aspects of the actual interviewing or moderating offer clear distinctions. To be consistent with my original purpose of providing a comprehensive roadmap, common aspects between both populations are also discussed below, though with less detail.

Recruiting

Finding Hispanic respondents

Large databases including names, contact information and demographics of potential general-market and second-generation Hispanic respondents are available in most research facilities. They have been built up through traditional means: collecting information about participants in qualitative/quantitative research projects, asking for referrals, registration via specific Web sites, and sample lists provided by companies that specialize in this business activity. Screening questionnaires are usually completed over the phone.

Finding first-generation Hispanic respondents is quite a different story. Some facilities are unable to recruit this population because they do not know how to reach the Hispanic community. Facilities that do offer the capability generally rely on Hispanic professional recruiters or community leaders rather than pre-existing databases.

Hispanic professional recruiters and community leaders are typically Hispanic people who have open access to Hispanic communities. These recruiters go to their friends’ houses, schools offering English classes, churches, Hispanic supermarkets, community associations and centers, beauty salons, etc., to engage in conversations with potential respondents, pre-screen them or request referrals, and subsequently invite them to complete the screening questionnaire or register with the facility. In addition to helping identify qualified participants, this practice generates confidence and encourages potential respondents to participate. Consumer research is not as common in Latin America as it is in the U.S.  , and Hispanic immigrants tend to distrust anybody asking too many questions (fears of authorities and cultural shyness are some of the factors associated with this). Thus, a natural resistance to participation in research studies is to be expected from first-generation Hispanics.

The likelihood of a potential respondent accepting an invitation to take part in a research study is greatly increased when the invitation comes from another Hispanic person. While recruiting methods may be non-traditional, this does not eliminate the need for proper supervision and quality control. Facilities still need to supervise the completed screener questionnaires, and should safeguard against the participation of professional respondents as much as they do with general-market research studies.

Another difference between Hispanic and general-market recruiting is related to timing; because planning ahead is not as strong a cultural characteristic of Hispanics as it is for some other cultures, finalizing a recruit can be a last-minute proposition. Compared with the general market, it should be expected that there will be a higher proportion of last-minute changes in the lists of participants, late arrivals and no-shows. In an attempt to control this, facilities routinely recruit a higher percentage of backups, and include additional incentives for participants who arrive early.

Communicating with the Hispanic respondent

When dealing with first-generation Hispanic respondents, all phone calls should be conducted in Spanish, preferably spoken by a first-generation person. Badly-spoken Spanish or a strong English accent will create comprehension problems for potential respondents and give the impression that the study will not be entirely Hispanic; this, in turn, could cause potential Spanish-speaking respondents to feel insecure or experience distrust, thus increasing their reluctance to participate.

Letters and invitations should also be written in perfect but plain Spanish. Misspelling, poor grammar, usage of uncommon Spanish words, etc., will cause confusion among Hispanic recipients, whose competence at reading should be expected to be quite uneven.

Believe it or not, I have seen invitation letters and screener questionnaires that were originally written in English and later translated into Spanish by using the translation function of a computer! The result of computer translations is always so poor that misinformation becomes the rule, not the exception. Moreover, the credibility of the facility will be damaged, thus impacting the willingness of potential respondents to participate in the research study. The Spanish-speaking audience is extremely sensitive to poor usage of the Spanish language; it is seen as a sign of poor regard for the Hispanic culture.

Five key screener questions

When designing a screening questionnaire for Hispanic research studies, the following five questions should always be included:

1. Is the potential respondent of Hispanic origin? The wording of this question should eliminate all possibility for subjectivity, so that neither the person who asks the question nor the respondent need to make a judgment to answer it. Choices should include all ethnic groups, and, since some respondents consider themselves “Hispanic,” while others consider themselves “Latino,” both terms should be included in the list.

2. Which language does the potential participant speak more often? Typically, it is accepted that the language that is more frequently spoken at home is the dominant language of the person. Further questions such as, “Among those members of your family who live with you, how many speak only Spanish and how many speak both languages?” or “In what language did you attend school most of the time?” may be needed if a respondent claims that he/she speaks one language as often as the other one. Avoid asking which language is preferred. A first-generation respondent who is trying to improve his/her English skills could prefer to communicate in English (for practice) while his/her English fluency could still be poor.

3. Where was the respondent born, and where were his/her parents born? These two questions are critical to discriminate between first (unacculturated) and second (acculturated) generations. It is generally accepted that Spanish-speaking, foreign-born Hispanics are unacculturated, while bilingual Hispanics born in the U.S.  with at least one first-generation immigrant parent are acculturated. However, if the respondent was foreign-born but has been educated primarily in the U.S. (which suggests that he or she was brought to the U.S. during early childhood), he/she can also be considered acculturated. Having said that, this subject is very complex and no universal rules apply.

4. How many hours a week is the respondent in contact with either Spanish- or English-language media (specifically, TV, radio or print)? This question is especially relevant for research projects involving decisions on advertising and media planning because, in addition to helping discriminate between English and Spanish dominance, it aids in segmenting groups of respondents that are exposed to similar stimuli in the media. It has long been accepted that people exposed to 15+ hours a week of Spanish media and at most five hours a week of English media accurately represent the consumption patterns of first-generation Hispanics, while second-generation Hispanics would show inverse figures.

5. How many people contribute to the household’s annual income? As discussed in the article in last month’s issue, the fact that several generations of Hispanic families live under the same roof and share common expenses more often than other ethnic groups makes this a critical question to determine the actual buying power and living standard of the potential respondent.

While it is a common practice to include an articulation question in all screening questionnaires, it is recommended that among Hispanic respondents this question focus on a general topic (such as their favorite TV character, dream vacation, etc.) rather than the subject of the study. Because with the Hispanic culture there is more concern about expressing the “right” opinion than with other populations, a question related to the study topic may encourage respondents to research the topic prior to their participation in the research study. This usually defeats the purpose of the research, which is to gather learning about the real-world experiences of average consumers.

Moderating and interviewing

Establishing rapport

As with general-market studies, a warm-up activity needs to be conducted at the beginning of Hispanic research focus groups or in-depth interviews to help set the proper psychological climate for subsequent discussion. This warm-up is even more important for Hispanic respondents because, unlike other populations, the Hispanic culture, as a whole, tends to be shy or humble. While informal chatting about the investigated topic is often used as a warm-up for general-market qualitative research studies, and is well-accepted by client companies for the additional information it can provide, I discourage this type of exercise for Hispanic respondents. The purpose of the warm-up is to help participants feel relaxed and comfortable, which is difficult to accomplish when requiring respondents to start talking even before they become comfortable. For years, I have used games specifically designed to function as ice-breakers for focus groups and in-depth interviews, both supplemented by specific non-verbal and semi-verbal cues. Some of the benefits of these activities for Hispanic research studies (that could also be applied to non-Hispanic participants in qualitative research studies) are:

  • Counteracting cultural shyness by showing respondents, without words, that enjoying their participation and open exchange - while relaxing and having fun - is in order. Laughing and having fun are pleasant sensations that displace fear, insecurity, the subconscious desire to dominate in-group situations, and some other emotions that can inhibit free expression.
  • Making Hispanic participants feel emotional proximity to each other, allowing all subconscious individual resistance to be broken and bonding as a group to take place. By experiencing fun together, the moderator and the participants or interviewee feel that they are all on the same team, and they start working together to accomplish the subsequent tasks to be performed (i.e., recalling as many details as possible of their consumption behavior, selecting the photo that best expresses their relationship with the product, or filling out a score sheet, etc.).
  • Giving equal status to all participants in the group, regardless of their individual personalities and their ability to express opinions. Using topic-related questions as a warm-up almost immediately lets the group know who is well-informed, more skilful at discussing the topic or simply has had unique experiences with the product. In this case, respondents may adopt, very early in the session, the roles of dominant, quiet or uninterested participants, while consuming much of the moderator’s energy and concentration. Preventing participants in Hispanic focus groups from adopting any of these roles is even more critical than in other groups. Due to their shyness, Hispanics are concerned about being agreeable to other people more often than other cultures. In addition, they may think that their experiences at consuming a particular product are not common but a consequence of their poor adaptation to the new culture. Thus, their ability to express their own visions and perceptions may be greatly impacted.
  • Giving moderators strong (though tacit) control of the group. Moderators also deal with timing, some not-so-smooth transitions from one topic to the next, personal styles and roles of the respondents, notes from observers in the back room, etc. Thus, gaining tacit control of the group is another goal, that, if properly achieved at the beginning of the focus group, will save moderators energy and concentration that will be needed to better perform some of the other moderating tasks. Tacit control of the Hispanic group is critical due to, again, cultural characteristics: controlling overly-talkative participants or eliciting silent respondents to speak by means of direct verbal commands is never a good idea for Hispanic qualitative research studies. For instance, an approach such as, “Sorry about interrupting you but could you please let us hear somebody else?” or “Now you, X, let us hear your opinion,” will likely make that respondent not speak again, and everybody else will be afraid of making the same mistake. Comfort, spontaneity, relaxation and commitment to work with the moderator will be gone forever. After all, Hispanic respondents are used to more amiable interactions with other Hispanics, are shy, and are never certain as to how well they are adapting to the new culture.

Asking questions

  • Spanish wording: Proper wording in Spanish is critically important when researching the Hispanic market. Because of the profound differences in the colloquial language of each particular Latin American country, and the strong variations in educational achievements of Hispanics in the U.S.  , I always prepare a detailed translation of the English guides. It allows us to be certain that the proper words are said so that respondents of all national origins and educational levels can understand them while the colloquial tone of the discussion is preserved. Nonetheless, some variations among the words commonly used in each particular Latin American country are so strong that a variety of nouns have to be used to ask the same questions in order to assure their proper comprehension. For example, a stapler is called grapadora in Mexico, presilladora in Cuba, and cosedora in Colombia, while nationals of each of these countries do not know the meaning of any of the names used in countries other than their own.
  • Projective techniques: Projective techniques are used in Hispanic research studies just as they are with general-market studies. However, the selection of the specific projective exercise and materials should respect cultural differences. For instance, requesting Hispanic housewives to select the picture that best reflects their relationship with their children, from a collage of photos showing American-style people, houses and landscapes, may lead respondents to select photos that express their subconscious idea of how relationships with children should be in this country, rather than reflecting their own relationship with their children. Differences in cultural patterns related to family composition are one of the aspects that most profoundly impact immigrants coming from Latin America.
  • Behavioral questions: Those questions requiring the respondent to describe a specific behavior in detail can reveal unpredictable cues that are regularly useful for new product development. Answers to these questions can be even more productive and useful if the question is broken down into small segments and is complemented with inquiries about details that apparently are not important. For instance, if the question is “Tell me about how you purchase Product X,” answers will often sound like “I always walk all the aisles and grab my favorite brand-name as soon as I see it.” However, if specific examples of occasions on which the product was purchased are requested, and inquiries about details apparently unrelated are included, (such as “Do you remember who was with you the last time that you purchased Product X?,” and “Why did that particular person accompany you that time?”), more precise pictures of the entire purchasing behavior can be obtained, since the respondent will likely tell the whole story. Once the Hispanic respondent pictures himself/herself in the real-life situation and recalls more aspects associated with it, additional self-confidence in speaking about it is gained. For the Hispanic respondent, narration of something that actually occurred in his/her life is an assignment easier to perform than concise answers to questions when he/she is not sure of what the moderator wants.

Enhancing participation

As discussed, Hispanics are culturally more prone to demonstrate shyness while participating in research studies. Being concerned about the extent to which their answers are proper or improper is another idiosyncratic characteristic to be expected. However, Hispanics will strongly commit their energy to the purpose of helping the moderator/interviewer if the right emotional connection is built and maintained. Once initial rapport has been established, keeping high levels of energy will aid the researcher to obtain the best participation from their respondents, while creating a stimulating, enjoyable experience for them. The following observable cues will help to raise and maintain high energy while interacting with the Hispanic respondent:

  • Be enthusiastic about each new research project. Regardless of how experienced or knowledgeable you are about a specific research subject, do not assume that your project is something that you could do successfully even if you were half asleep. Since willingness to help is another specific characteristic of the Hispanic culture, your genuine curiosity will enhance the willingness of your participants to team up with you, thus richer insights will be produced. In addition, do not miss any chance to show each respondent your respect and consideration. As discussed, Hispanic respondents will need each piece of human interest that you can show them to be able to overcome cultural barriers to open discussion of their consumption experiences.
  • Recall, and incorporate in your moderation style, the warmth and cheerfulness that are characteristics of the Hispanic culture. While interacting with your Hispanic respondents, feel yourself as relaxed and happy as if you were chatting with your Hispanic friends or relatives. By adopting authoritative or distant attitudes, additional barriers can be created. The more your respondents feel emotionally connected to you, the greater their desire to cooperate with you.
  • Move. Do not keep seated “in your corner” all the time, because it sets up a subconscious psychological barrier with your respondents. Moving around helps respondents see you less as an authority and more as a facilitator.
  • Be well-prepared on your discussion guide, memorizing it if possible. Each time you lower your eyes to read your discussion guide or make a check mark on it, you lose visual contact and emotional connection with your respondents, which can impact the free flow of exchanges; the less frequently this happens during the research session, the less energy will be needed to restore the psychological climate.
  • Rely on your body language, eye contact and tone of voice to control the dynamics of the participation. As discussed, the willingness of Hispanic participants to help and be agreeable leads them to be concerned about their successful participation. Most Hispanic respondents will try to “do a good job” at answering your questions, and will feel like a failure if you use straight-out commands such as, “You have already talked enough.” Looking at the silent participant’s eyes while asking the question in order to encourage him/her to answer, standing right behind the overly-talkative participant so that you capture everybody’s looks and take them with you as you move to a different point of the room, and placing visual stimuli right in the center of the table to force all participants to feel related to them, are some examples of how non-verbal communication will help you to succeed at moderating Hispanic focus groups.

A matter of sensitivity

Succeeding in Hispanic qualitative research endeavors is a matter of planning, just as it is for general-market targets. It is also a matter of skillfulness, and again, careful preparation of all aspects related to its execution, from the wording used in questioning to how the moderator stands in the room. Perhaps most importantly, however, it is a matter of sensitivity to the specific characteristics of the target audience, and of professional commitment to offer the best you can offer every single time you communicate with a Hispanic respondent.