Various Demographic Pretesting Activities

Round 2 Automated GQ Protocol

INTERVIEW ID: ____________________

INTERVIEW DATE: ____/____/____ START TIME: ___________ AM / PM

Hello, my name is ___________. I work for RTI/RSS a research company that has been hired by the Census Bureau to conduct research on the census forms. Thanks for agreeing to help us today. Let me start by telling you a little about what we will be doing. Every ten years the United States conducts a census, or count, of everyone who is living in the United States.

At that time a census taker will come to your [FILL GQ LOCATION]to gather the information needed for the census. Today we’re going to play the part of census takers and ask you questions like those you may be asked for the census in 2020.

Permission to Record:

Because it would be hard to keep track of everything you say today, I would like to record this session. [HAND RESPONDENT THE CONSENT FORM IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREDY.] Please read over this consent form and let me know if you have any questions. When you are ready, please sign the form. I want you to know that your responses will be kept strictly confidential and will only be seen by members of the project team and Census employees. Your participation in this study is completely voluntary and you can decline to answer any particular question. At the end of the study, we will delete any record of your responses from our machines. Your name will never be used in any reports.

Think-out-loud Instructions:

What I’ll ask you to do today is to fill the questionnaire out, just as you would if you accessed it online. But, so I can keep track of what you are doing, I’d like you to describe what you are doing and thinking as you go along. For example, I may ask you a question that seems relatively simple such as “How many cars do you have?” Instead of just providing a number, tell me what you were thinking when you answered it. For example, my response would be “Well I have an SUV that I drive every day and I also have an old truck. But the truck does not currently run. I assume that you mean working cars, so…one. I just have one car.” This kind of response will help me understand how you understood and interpreted the question so that we can see what each question means to you. I may remind you to think aloud as we go along. After some of the questions, I will ask you some additional questions about your answers to the Census. Some of these questions may sound may sound a little strange. For example, I might ask you what a certain word means to you or how you came up with your answer. Again, the reason for this is to see how people understand each question. Even though some of these questions may sound like I am giving you a test, there are no right or wrong answers. We are interested in how these questions work for you.

Do you have any questions before we begin?

IF CONSENT WAS GIVEN, START TAPE RECORDER AND DEVICE RECORDER.

Logon TO APP (PASSWORD: CSM922).

[administer scripted probes after respondent has answered all questions in the SURVEY; note usability issues as they occur. Administer debriefing probes after scripted probes.]

GQ Questions (1-5)
1. What is your full name? [Name Field] Are you male or female? Male Female What is your date of birth? [Date Field: mm-dd-yyyy] If date of birth is unknown –What is your age on October 1, 2012? Go to Q2	Q1 USABILITY: NOTE WHETHER R SKIPS ANY PART OF THIS QUESTION BEFORE HITTING NEXT. WRITE DOWN R’S NAME SO THAT YOU CAN PROBE ON IT LATER. NOTE IF FULL NAME IS PROVIDED AND IF IT IS ENTERED CORRECTLY.
2. Please look at the screen and choose your response. Are you of Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin? Yes, Mexican, Mexican American, or Chicano; Yes, Puerto Rican; Yes, Cuban; Yes, of another Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin; for example, Argentinean, Colombian, Dominican, Nicaraguan, Salvadoran, Spaniard, and so on? No, not of Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin	Q2 USABILITY:
3. Please look at the screen and choose one or more races. For this census, Hispanic origin is not a race. Are you: White Black, African American, or Negro American Indian or Alaska Native Asian Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander Some other race	Q3 USABILITY:
3a. You may list one or more tribes. What is your enrolled or principal tribe? [DATA FIELD] -Go back to Q3	Q3a USABILITY:
3b. You may choose one or more Asian groups. Please select- Asian Indian Chinese Filipino Japanese Korean Vietnamese Other Asian (for example, Hmong, Laotian, Thai, Pakistani, Cambodian, and so on.), please specify -Go back to 3	Q3b USABILITY:
3c. You may choose one or more Pacific Islander groups from the list. Native Hawaiian Samoan Guamanian or Chamorro Other Pacific Islander (For example, Fijian, Tongan, and so on.), please specify [DATA FIELD] -Go back to 3	Q3c USABILITY:
3d. What is your other race group? [DATA FIELD] -Go back to 3	Q3d USABILITY:
4. Besides this facility, is there any other address where you sometimes live or stay? Yes- Go to 4F No- Go to Q5	Q4 USABILITY: What does “live or stay” mean to you as it was used in this question? What time period were you thinking about when you answered this question? IF YES: Can you tell me more about that? [Who did you stay with? When were you there last? How frequently do you stay there?]
4F. What is the full address of the place where you sometimes live or stay? [ADDRESS] Go to Q5 Please provide as much address information as you know (such as city, state, cross streets, neighborhood, or facility name.) [DATA FIELD]		Q4F USABILITY: NOTE HOW MANY NEW ADDRESSES WERE PROVIDED AND COMPLETENESS OF THE ADDRESSES BY TYPE OF PLACE.
5. Where do you live or stay most of the time? Here at this house or residence – Go to 5a [ADDRESS: Fill all addresses as choices]- Go to 5a In above places about equally- Go to 5a Some other place -Go to 5f		Q5 USABILITY: What time period were you thinking of? What does the phrase “most of the time” mean to you as it’s used in this question? What does the phrase “live or stay” mean to you as it's used in this question? How does that compare to “live and sleep?” IF ADD’L ADDRESSES PROVIDED: How did you determine where you live and sleep most of the time? If I had only asked “where do you live most of the time” or “where do you stay most of the time,” would that have changed your answer? How so?
5a. On October 1, 2012, where were you staying? Here at this house or residence – End Survey [ADDRESS: Fill all addresses as choices]- End Survey In above places about equally- End Survey Some other place- Go to 5f		Q5a USABILITY: What does “staying” mean to youas it is used in this question? IF ANSWER IS DIFFERENT THAN WHAT YOU WOULD EXPECT: How did you come up with your answer to this question?
5F. Please enter the other address where you stayed. [ADDRESS] –Go to Q5 Please provide as much address information as you know (such as city, state, cross streets, neighborhood, or facility name.) [DATA FIELD]		Q5F USABILITY: NOTE HOW MANY ADDRESSES WERE PROVIDED AND COMPLETENESS OF THE ADDRESSES.

Final Debriefing

Thanks, we’re almost finished. I have a few more questions for you.

67. I see that you [HHD: typed/NRFU: provided] ________________ as your name. Is that your full name or a nickname? NOTE DIFFERENCES WITHOUT USING PII.

68. Would you ever use a different version of your name on a form like this?

    1. IF YES: How else might you list your name? NOTE DIFFERENCES WITHOUT USING PII.

    2. IF YES: How do you decide which way to write it on different forms?

69. IF MIDDLE NAME BLANK OR JUST INITIAL: Did you see that you were supposed to provide your middle name? Do you have a middle name? How did you decide to leave it blank?

71. Do you have any other opinions about the format of the name question on this form? SHOW SCREENSHOTS IF NEEDED.

72. Was there anything in these questions that you found sensitive or uncomfortable to answer?

73. Was there any information that you would be hesitant to provide on the census form?

75. Aside from the things we’ve talked about, were there any questions or instructions that you find confusing or difficult to answer?

76. Did you find parts of the interview repetitive? If so, what parts?

77. If you were going to answer your census questionnaire on your own, without an interviewer, how would you prefer to do it: On a smartphone? On a tablet? On a laptop or desktop? On a paper form? If smartphone or tablet, what kind? Why?

78. If you don’t answer the census on your own, an interviewer might be sent to your home to get your census information. How would you feel about the interviewer using a smartphone to do the interview? A Tablet, like an iPad? How about a laptop computer? How about a paper form? Which do you prefer and why?

79. Do you own or have access to…

____ A smartphone? (What kind:____________________________________________)

____ A tablet? (What kind:____________________________________________)

____ A laptop or desktop?

End Time:________

THANK YOU

GQ Protocol 4