> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://ailyze.gitbook.io/ailyze-docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://ailyze.gitbook.io/ailyze-docs/common-research-workflows/analyze-focus-groups.md).
# Analyze Focus Groups
This page shows you how to analyze focus-group discussions, where several participants speak in each session. Focus groups use the same workflow as interview transcripts. The difference is that Evidano recognizes **focus-group discussions (FGDs)** — transcripts with several speakers — and handles them appropriately. This guide covers only what is different.
{% hint style="info" %}
**What you need:** A Free or Pro plan, and one or more focus-group transcripts saved as DOCX, PDF, or TXT files (one group per file works best).
**What you will have at the end:** Themes and quotes that account for the group discussion, with optional comparison across groups.
{% endhint %}
## Step 1: Prepare your transcripts
* One **focus group per file** (DOCX, PDF, or TXT) works best.
* Keep **speaker labels** (for example, *Moderator:*, *Participant 1:*) — they help Evidano attribute quotes and understand turn-taking.
## Step 2: Let Evidano detect focus groups
In **Optional Settings**, the **"Focus group discussions in documents?"** control has three choices:
* **Auto-detect using AI (recommended)**
* **Documents include focus group discussions**
* **Documents do not include focus group discussions**
If auto-detect (or your selection) finds FGDs, the wizard inserts a **"Focus Group Discussion Analysis"** step, and you'll briefly see a *"Checking N documents for focus group discussions…"* dialog. You can skip the check with **"These documents are not focus groups. Skip Check"**.
## Step 3: Choose single or multiple focus groups
**Single focus group:** Upload the one transcript and analyze as usual. You'll get themes, codes, and quotes for that session.
**Multiple focus groups:** Upload all sessions and turn on **Compare segments** to compare themes **across groups** (for example, by location, cohort, or round). Because a single file with no FGD cannot be compared, Evidano warns: *"Compare across Segments requires multiple files or a Focus Group Discussion."*
{% hint style="info" %}
**Tip:** To compare groups, tag each file with the [segment](/ailyze-docs/reference/glossary.md#segment) it belongs to during the comparison step. See [Compare groups](/ailyze-docs/analyze-data/compare-groups-segments.md).
{% endhint %}
## Step 4: Read your focus-group results
The results page is the same as for interviews (Insights → Codebook → themes), with these things to watch for:
* **Quotes** are drawn from across participants within a group. Use the **Codes & key quotes** section under each theme to see who said what.
* **Comparison across segments** (if enabled) shows how a theme differs between groups — for example, whether *price sensitivity* dominated one cohort but not another.
* The [**co-occurrence network**](/ailyze-docs/reference/glossary.md#co-occurrence-network) is especially useful for focus groups: it shows which themes tend to surface together in discussion.
See [How to read your results](/ailyze-docs/analyze-data/how-to-read-your-results.md) for the full tour, and [Analyze interview transcripts](/ailyze-docs/common-research-workflows/analyze-interview-transcripts.md) for configuration and export details.
## A realistic example
> **Scenario:** You ran **6 focus groups** across three cities about a public health campaign. Upload all six transcripts, leave FGD detection on **Auto-detect**, generate themes, and add **Compare segments** by *city*. The result lets you see which messages resonated where, with representative quotes per city and a co-occurrence map of how concerns cluster.
## Next steps
* [Analyze interview transcripts](/ailyze-docs/common-research-workflows/analyze-interview-transcripts.md) — the full configuration and export guide.
* [Compare groups](/ailyze-docs/analyze-data/compare-groups-segments.md) — set up comparisons across focus groups.
* [How to read your results](/ailyze-docs/analyze-data/how-to-read-your-results.md) — a full tour of every section and chart.
* [Qualitative research best practices](/ailyze-docs/methods-and-best-practices/qualitative-research-best-practices.md) — tips for stronger findings.
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