Survey instrument

Attachment D: Contacts to be employed in implementation of the survey

Advance letter

<DATE>

John Smith

123 Main Street

Anywhere, USA 12345

Dear <Name>,

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is conducting a study to learn more about Alaskan fishing communities, such as yours. The information we collect will improve the quality of information available about communities, and provide a more holistic profile of the way they are tied to fisheries, in an updated version of the Community Profiles for North Pacific Fisheries – Alaska. You will be able to view the profile that was done for your community at http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/REFM/Socioeconomics/Projects/CPU.php.

You have been identified from publicly available sources as someone with in-depth knowledge about [COMMUNITY NAME]. In the next few days, you will receive a questionnaire in the mail from NOAA. The questionnaire asks about [COMMUNITY NAME]’s involvement in fishing.

Your responses are important because you are one of only two people in [COMMUNITY NAME] that we are contacting to participate in this study. The information you provide may be used to help shape decisions about federal government actions on fisheries in Alaska. To make sure that the best possible information is obtained about [COMMUNITY NAME], we need to hear from you. Without your response, we will not be able to provide the information requested in [COMMUNITY NAME]’s updated profile.

If you have any questions about this study or any of the questions in the questionnaire, please contact me at (206) 526-4221 or amber.himes@noaa.gov.

Thank you in advance for your help.

Sincerely,

Amber Himes-Cornell

Project Director

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Initial mailing letter

<DATE>

John Smith

123 Main Street

Anywhere, USA 12345

Dear <Name>,

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is conducting a study to learn more about Alaskan fishing communities, such as yours. The information we collect will improve the quality of information available about communities, and provide a more holistic profile of the way they are tied to fisheries, in an updated version of the Community Profiles for North Pacific Fisheries – Alaska. You can view the profile that was done for your community at http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/REFM/Socioeconomics/Projects/CPU.php.

You have been identified from publicly available sources as someone with in-depth knowledge about [COMMUNITY NAME]. Included with this mailing is a questionnaire that asks about [COMMUNITY NAME]’s involvement in fishing. Please attempt to answer all of the questions. We understand that you personally might not have all of the answers to the questions and we fully expect you to collaborate with as many people as needed in [COMMUNITY NAME] to complete the questionnaire. The key is that the information you provide is as complete as possible so that we can write a well-informed profile of [COMMUNITY NAME].

This survey takes most people about one hour to complete. After you've completed the survey, please return it in the enclosed self-addressed and postage-paid envelope.

This is an anonymous survey. The answers provided will be connected with [COMMUNITY NAME] but not with you as an individual. Information in this survey will not be provided or presented in any way as to identify individual respondents.

Your responses are important because you are one of only two people in [COMMUNITY NAME] that we are contacting to participate in this study. The information you provide may be used to help shape decisions about federal government actions on fisheries in Alaska. To make sure that the best possible information is obtained about [COMMUNITY NAME], we need to hear from you. Without your response, we will not be able to provide the information requested in [COMMUNITY NAME]’s updated profile. Please complete the enclosed survey to the best of your ability and return it no later than [DATE].

If you have any questions about this study or any of the questions in the questionnaire, please contact me at (206) 526-4221 or amber.himes@noaa.gov. Thank you in advance for your help.

Sincerely,

Amber Himes

Project Director

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Postcard reminder

Last week a questionnaire was mailed to you seeking information about [COMMUNITY NAME]’s involvement in fishing.

If you have already completed and returned the questionnaire, please accept our sincere thanks. If you have not completed and returned the survey, we ask that you do so today.

Your responses are important because you are one of only two people in [COMMUNITY NAME] that were contacted to participate in this study. Your response will help us update [COMMUNITY NAME]’s profile which may be used to help shape decisions about federal government actions on fisheries in Alaska. Your participation is required to provide good information about [COMMUNITY NAME] for these decisions.

If you need another copy of the questionnaire, please call me directly at (206) 526-4221 and a questionnaire will be mailed to you today.

Thank you for your help.

Amber Himes-Cornell

Project Director

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Follow-up mailing letter for communities profiled in Sepez et al (2005)

<DATE>

John Smith

123 Main Street

Anywhere, USA 12345

Dear <Name>,

A couple weeks ago, a questionnaire was mailed to you seeking input about [COMMUNITY NAME]’s involvement in fishing. If you have already completed and returned the questionnaire, please accept our sincere thanks. If you have not completed and returned the survey, we ask that you do so today. We have enclosed another copy of the survey in case you have misplaced the original one we sent. We understand that you personally might not have all of the answers to the questions and fully expect you to collaborate with as many people as needed in [COMMUNITY NAME] to complete the questionnaire. The key is that the information you provide is as complete as possible so that we can write a well-informed profile of [COMMUNITY NAME].

Although your participation is voluntary, your response will help us update [COMMUNITY NAME] profile in our Community Profiles of North Pacific Fisheries publication, which may be used to help shape decisions about federal government actions on fisheries in Alaska. Your participation is needed to provide good information about [COMMUNITY NAME] for these decisions.

This survey takes most people about one hour to complete. After you've completed the survey, please return it in the enclosed self-addressed and postage-paid envelope.

Your responses are important because you are one of only two people in [COMMUNITY NAME] that we are contacting to participate in this study. To make sure that the best possible information is obtained about [COMMUNITY NAME], we need to hear from you. Without your response, we will not be able to provide the information requested in [COMMUNITY NAME]’s updated profile. Please complete the enclosed survey to the best of your ability and return it no later than [DATE].

If you have any questions about this study or any of the questions in the questionnaire, please contact me at (206) 526-4221 or amber.himes@noaa.gov.

Thank you for your help.

Sincerely,

Amber Himes

Project Director

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Attachment F: Telephone Script

Telephone Recruitment

[Ask to speak with city manager, mayor, village council president or someone in their offices]

Hello, my name is ________________ and I am calling from the Alaska Fisheries Science Center in Seattle, WA, on behalf of the National Marine Fisheries Service. I am trying to reach [name on address].

[IF NOT AVAILABLE] Thank you, I will call back later. When would be a good time to reach [name on address]?

[IF QUALIFIED RESPONDENT IS ON THE PHONE]

We are conducting a study to learn more about Alaskan fishing communities, such as yours. The information we collect will improve the quality of information available about communities, and provide more complete information on how they are tied to fisheries.

We are contacting you as someone with in-depth knowledge about [COMMUNITY NAME]. We sent you a questionnaire in the mail that you should receive in the next few days. It contains questions about the involvement of people from [COMMUNITY NAME] in fishing and how [COMMUNITY NAME]’s economy is tied to fishing. The information you provide will allow us to update the profile of [COMMUNITY NAME] in an updated version of our community profiles document, which is called: Community Profiles for North Pacific Fisheries – Alaska.

Your responses are important because you are one of only two people in [COMMUNITY NAME] that we are contacting to participate in this study. As I said before, the information you provide will be used to update the profile for [COMMUNITY NAME]. The community profiles may be used to help shape decisions about federal government actions on fisheries in Alaska, so we need your help to provide the best possible information about [COMMUNITY NAME].

Hopefully you will be willing to help us collect this information. After you receive the questionnaire in the mail, please take a look at it and let us know if you have any questions at all about this study. You can call Amber Himes, the project lead, at (206) 526-4221.

Please look for the survey in the mail in the next couple of days. Thank you in advance for your help with this project.

Have a great day.

[TERMINATE]

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS AND ANSWERS

[If concerned about purpose of the call] This is not a marketing or sales call. This study aims to collect information from Alaskan fishing communities to help us understand each community’s dependence on fishing better. This study will allow for the expansion of information included in the updated publication of the Community Profiles for North Pacific Fisheries – Alaska (originally published in 2005). We plan on using this information collected from this study in order to provide a more holistic description of each community profiled in this document. Your time spent on this survey will also help to improve the quality of information provided in the community profile for [COMMUNITY NAME]. The public input provided will be available to government, industry, and citizen groups to consider when evaluating ways to manage fisheries in Alaska and community dependence on fishing. I want to assure you that your answers will be kept anonymous and your name will not be revealed to anyone.

[If asking about the study sponsor] This survey is sponsored by NMFS, also known as the National Marine Fisheries Service, a U.S. government agency charged with understanding the effects of federal management actions and policies affecting the nation’s marine fisheries.

[If concerned about how the information will be used] The information collected in this study will be used to better understand the dependence of Alaskan communities on fishing and to update the Community Profiles for North Pacific Fisheries – Alaska. It will also be used to compose a more holistic profile of fisheries involvement in each community. This information will be publicly available. It will also serve to meet regulatory requirements, including, for example, requirements concerning information about fishing communities in the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation Act National Standard 8. I want to assure you that your answers will be kept anonymous and your name will not be revealed to anyone.

[If asking about who the study includes] WHO DOES THIS STUDY INCLUDE? This study includes city and tribal governments of Alaskan fishing communities.

[If asking about how their name was obtained] You were identified from publicly available sources as someone with in-depth knowledge about [COMMUNITY NAME].

Follow-up Telephone Contact

[Ask to speak with city manager, mayor, village council president or someone in their offices]

Hello, my name is ________________ and I am calling from the Alaska Fisheries Science Center in Seattle, WA, on behalf of the National Marine Fisheries Service. I am trying to reach [name on address].

[IF NOT AVAILABLE] Thank you, I will call back later. When would be a good time to reach [name on address]?

[IF QUALIFIED RESPONDENT IS ON THE PHONE]

QA Recently, we mailed you a questionnaire asking you for information about [COMMUNITY NAME]’s ties to fishing. The cover of the questionnaire says Alaska Community Survey and has a picture of a harbor on the cover. Do you remember receiving that questionnaire?

1 YES [SKIP TO QA1]

2 NO [SKIP TO QA2]

QA1 As of today, we have not received your completed questionnaire. You are one of a small group of people we are asking for information about Alaskan fishing communities, so your response is very important. We need your input to be able to update the community profile for [COMMUNITY NAME] with important information about [COMMUNITY NAME]’s ties to fishing. Even if you have not fished in [COMMUNITY NAME], your input is still needed because you are in a position to access to information about [COMMUNITY NAME]’s ties to fishing. If we send you another survey, could you find the time to complete the survey and return it to us within a week of receiving it?

1 YES – SEND NEW SURVEY [SKIP TO VERIFY]

2 YES – DO NOT NEED ANOTHER SURVEY [THANK AND TERMINATE]

3 SURVEY HAS ALREADY BEEN RETURNED [THANK AND TERMINATE]

4 NO [SKIP TO QB]

QA2 We are collecting information about communities in Alaska that are dependent on fishing to help us update our Community Profiles for the North Pacific Fisheries. This document is frequently used to write social and economic impact assessments that are used by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council to make decisions about fisheries management in Alaska. You are one of a small group of people we are asking for information about Alaskan fishing communities, so your response is very important. We need your input to be able to write the community profile for [COMMUNITY NAME] with important information about [COMMUNITY NAME]’s ties to fishing. If we send you another survey, could you complete and return the survey to us within a week after you receive it?

1 YES – SEND NEW SURVEY [SKIP TO VERIFY]

2 YES – DO NOT NEED ANOTHER SURVEY [THANK AND TERMINATE]

3 NO [SKIP TO QB]

QB Would you recommend another person in [COMMUNITY NAME] that we should contact instead to find out about [COMMUNITY NAME]’s ties to fishing?

1 YES – RECORD NAME _______________________________________________

PHONE NUMBER _____________________________________

[THANK AND TERMINATE]

2 NO [SKIP TO QC]

QC It is very important for our analysis that we understand how those who haven’t returned the survey compare to those who did. This way we will not misinterpret the results. Would you mind telling us why you would prefer to not return the survey? I’d like to remind you that anything you say will be confidential and your name will not be revealed to anyone.

1 YES [RECORD WHY THE SURVEY WILL NOT BE FILLED OUT]

2 NO [ASK FOR A MORE CONVENIENT TIME, OTHERWISE, THANK AND TERMINATE]

VERIFY (If new survey needs to be sent)

I would like to verify some information that I have. I have your name as…

NAME____________________________________________________

STREET ADDRESS_________________________________________

CITY__________________________STATE _______ ZIP__________

PHONE___________________________________________________

EMAIL ___________________________________________________

Thank you, I will send another questionnaire out today.

TERMINATE

[IF RETURNING SURVEY] → Thank you. Receiving your completed questionnaire will greatly help improve our understanding of your community’s ties to fishing and help us to update the community profile for [COMMUNITY NAME].

[IF NOT RETURNING QUESTIONNAIRE] → That’s all the questions I have for you. Do you have any comments that you would like to add? Thank you for your time. We really appreciate your participation in this brief survey. Thanks again, and have a good day.

[TO BE COMPLETED BY INTERVIEWER]

Respondent gender: MALE

FEMALE

LANG Language or other barrier:

1 YES, POSSIBLE LANGUAGE BARRIER

2 YES, DEFINITE LANGUAGE BARRIER

3 NO LANGUAGE, BUT OTHER TYPE OF BARRIER [SPECIFY]

4 NO BARRIERS

DID THE RESPONDENT INDICATE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING?

A I don’t care about fishing in my community. NO YES

B I don’t know about fishing in my community. NO YES

OTHER RESPONDENT COMMENTS

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS AND ANSWERS

[If concerned about purpose of the call] This is not a marketing or sales call. This study aims to collect information from Alaskan fishing communities to help us understand each community’s dependence on fishing better. This study will allow for the expansion of information included in the updated publication of the Community Profiles for North Pacific Fisheries – Alaska (originally published in 2005). We plan on using this information collected from this study in order to provide a more holistic description of each community profiled in this document. Your time spent on this survey will also help to improve the quality of information provided in the community profile for [COMMUNITY NAME]. The public input provided will be available to government, industry, and citizen groups to consider when evaluating ways to manage fisheries in Alaska and community dependence on fishing. I want to assure you that your answers will be kept anonymous and your name will not be revealed to anyone.

[If asking about the study sponsor] This survey is sponsored by NMFS, also known as the National Marine Fisheries Service, a U.S. government agency charged with understanding the effects of federal management actions and policies affecting the nation’s marine fisheries.

[If concerned about how the information will be used] The information collected in this study will be used to better understand the dependence of Alaskan communities on fishing and to update the Community Profiles for North Pacific Fisheries – Alaska. It will also be used to compose a more holistic profile of fisheries involvement in each community. This information will be publicly available. It will also serve to meet regulatory requirements, including, for example, requirements concerning information about fishing communities in the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation Act National Standard 8. I want to assure you that your answers will be kept anonymous and your name will not be revealed to anyone.

[If asking about who the study includes] WHO DOES THIS STUDY INCLUDE? This study includes city and tribal governments of Alaskan fishing communities.

[If asking about how their name was obtained] You were identified from publicly available sources as someone with in-depth knowledge about [COMMUNITY NAME].

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