Introduction: This paper draws on practice-oriented participatory social work research on moral stress and moral agency in Swedish eldercare. We discuss lessons learned from conducting online focus group interviews with representatives for three vocational categories: care workers, needs assessors and first line managers.  

Method: We discuss experiences of, and lessons learned from conducting digital focus groups.

Empirical findings: The results highlight the need of rigorous preparations, the importance of creating trust and a feeling of togetherness and making room for discussion and reflection.

Reflections and discussion: Digital focus groups’ technical aspects that at a first sight appear as obstacles in data collection, can also serve as ‘power equalizers’ between informants and researchers. For instance, when the informants’ technical knowledge exceeds that of the researchers, the informants can help the researchers navigating on the communication platform. Another more evident advantage of digital focus groups is related to aspects of time and space. Participants can join from different locations, even different parts of the world to share knowledge and experiences. The digital focus group is also resource effective and in line with sustainability goals, as participants do not need to travel to be physically present at the same location.