Revised - Individuals/Households - Preparation for the Launch of the Summer Meals Study

OMB Control No: 0584-0606 Expiration Date: 03/31/2019

APPENDIX E-8. Participant Caregiver Qualitative Interview

INTERVIEWER: Review data collected from quantitative survey and keep on hand when conducting this qualitative interview. Ensure that you know if there is only one child in the household, or more than one child in the household.

DATE OF INTERVIEW: [MM/DD/YYYY]

INTERVIEW START TIME:_________ INTERVIEW END TIME: ____________

INTERVIEWER ID:_______ NOTE TAKER ID: _______

INTRODUCTION (3 MINS)

Hello, I am [NAME] from Westat, and I am calling about the Summer Meals Study. May I speak with:

Name of selected participant parent/caregiver

R available 11

R lives here – needs appointment 12

R lives at another number or address 13

Never heard of R 14

Phone company recording 15

Answering machine 16

Retry dialing 17

REFUSED 77

DON'T KNOW 99

INTERVIEWER: If you are not talking with the person who completed the quantitative survey, check that the named person above is a household member and attempt to schedule an alternative interview time with that person.

IF RESPONDENT IS AVAILABLE:

You recently completed a survey about the Summer Meals Study.

Date completed quantitative survey

Thank you for completing the survey and agreeing to take part in a telephone interview. Is now a good time to conduct this telephone interview?

I would like to ask you some questions that will help us understand how the program could benefit participants.

Your participation in this interview is voluntary. The information you provide will be kept private and will not be disclosed to anyone outside of the research team, except as otherwise required by law. You have the right to stop at any time or skip questions. Whether you decide to participate or not will not affect any government benefits or services you receive – either now or in the future.

The interview will take about 30 minutes and you will receive $20 as a thank you for participating.

Do you agree to participate?

• YES

• NO  ADDRESS ISSUES/CONCERNS ABOUT STUDY. CODE AS REFUSAL.

Thank you. Before we begin, I would like to introduce my colleague, [NAME] also from Westat. [NAME] will be taking notes while we talk. With your permission, we would also like to record this discussion. The recording will be transcribed so that we can recall exactly what was said and correctly summarize the information you provide. The recordings, transcripts, and any notes we have will be stored on Westat’s secure server and will be destroyed after the project is complete.

Do you have any questions before we begin?

INTERVIEWER: ANSWER QUESTIONS ABOUT WESTAT/STUDY/TOLL-FREE NUMBER, ETC. AS NEEDED.

Do I have your permission to record this discussion?

• YES

• NO – clarify if willing to continue without recording but OK with note taking. Otherwise end interview.

IF NO, ADDRESS ISSUES/CONCERNS ABOUT STUDY. CODE AS REFUSAL.

INTERVIEWER: Turn on recorder and begin interview.

SECTION A. CHILD VERIFICATION

Our records indicate that your child who was age [child age] at the time you completed the survey attended the summer program at <site name> this summer. We would like to talk with you in more depth about the program at <SITE NAME> and your child’s experiences.

INTERVIEWER NOTE: Child may have had a birthday between quantitative survey and qualitative interview.

A1. May I ask for the first name of your child who attended <SITE NAME> this summer? I only ask for first name to help refer to your child during our discussion today. You can use initials or nicknames if you prefer.

Name of child __________________

INTERVIEWER: If respondent wishes not to provide child’s name, refer to ‘your child’ throughout the discussion.

SECTION B. REASONS FOR ATTENDING THE SUMMER FOOD PROGRAM SITE

IF DATE PRIOR AFTER SEPTEMBER 2018  GO TO B2; OTHERWISE CONTINUE

B1. May I just check, is [CHILD] still attending the program at <SITE NAME>?

• YES

• NO  GO TO B2

B1.a. For how many more weeks will [CHILD] be attending the program at <SITE NAME>?

ENTER NUMBER. OF WEEKS _____  GO TO B3

B2. When did your child stop attending the program at <SITE NAME>?

ENTER END DATE: ___/___/2018

MM/DD

INTERVIEWER: IF MORE THAN ONE CHILD IN THE HOUSEHOLD, ASK B3. OTHERWISE GO TO B4.

B3. {Do/Did} any other children in your household attend the program at <SITE NAME> this summer?

B4. When do you usually start planning summer programs for your children and how do you go about finding out information about summer programs?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

• when school is in session, after summer begins, etc.

• possible sources of information such as school, local government or public assistance office, food bank, church or other community group, television or radio advertisement, poster or billboard advertisement, toll-free hotline, internet or social media, promotional event or gift, child(ren), Other family member, friend or neighbor.

• when they received information about the program at <SITE NAME>; how often; over what time period?

SECTION C. DECISION MAKING

Let’s talk about the decision to send [CHILD] to the program at <SITE NAME> this summer 2018.

C1. What are some “must haves” in a summer program for you to send your child there?

C2. Why did you select the program at <SITE NAME> for your child to attend this summer?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

• Did you compare this program to other programs? If so, what did you like about this program that made you send your child here?

• (objective 1.2a) And what role did your child play in making the decision to attend the program at <SITE NAME>? Was your child glad to be attending the program? Why?

• number of weeks the site is open, number of days each week the site is open, hours of operation, site location (safety and distance), staff, transportation, site activities, meal service.

C2.a What was the single most important reason when deciding to send [CHILD] to <SITE NAME>?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Why was that?

C3. Did the program information materials provide you with all the information that was important to you? If not, in the future, what information would be useful to include?

SECTION D. LIKES AND DISLIKES

D1. Did your child talk about what s/he did on days they went to the program? And what did s/he say about the program?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Did the child talk about

• Meals (quality/amount/ nutritional value of food, anything else about the food)

• Activities provided

• Types of activities offered

D2. What foods or meals {does/did} [CHILD] like to eat at the program at <SITE NAME>?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

• Why those particular foods/meals?

• Did your child prefer to eat at the program instead of home? Why?

• Did you want your child to eat at the program instead of home? Why?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

What {do/did} you think of the food?

• Quality, variety of foods, food choices, nutritional value of food

D3. Are there any foods or meals that [CHILD] does not like to eat at the program at <SITE NAME>?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Why those particular foods/meals?

D4. What, if anything, would you suggest changing about the food or meals at this summer meals site?

D5. IF NOT DISCUSSED: How important was it for you to send your child to a program that offered free meals and snacks?

D6. Do you know of other programs that offer free meals to children 18 years of age and under?

If yes, can you tell me which ones? (TO GET TO AWARENESS OF NEAREST PROGRAM)?

READ THE SHORT LIST OF PROGRAMS IN THEIR AREA AND ASK IF THEY KNEW THESE PROGRAMS OFFERED FREE MEALS TO CHILDREN 18 AND UNDER.

INTERVIEWER: This may have been the only site available in the area.

D7. Do children in your household eat school lunch and/or breakfast? How would you compare the food expenses for your household during the summer with those in the school year?

IF MORE:

D7a. How do you adjust your shopping during the summer months to stay in budget?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

borrow money, change types of foods purchases (less produce, more canned, etc.).

D8. What role do the meals provided by <SITE NAME> play in helping you with your food expenses in the summer?

D9. Do your children eat more healthy foods in the school year than during the summer? How so and why?

D10. Do you consider the nutritional value of meals served in the summer program at <SITE NAME> to be comparable to those served in the school? Why/why not?

D11. ASK IF ‘YES’ TO SURVEY QUESTION ‘MORE’: You indicated in the survey you completed that you would have liked [CHILD] to attend the program at <SITE NAME> more often than they usually {do/did}. Can you tell me more about your reasons for wanting [CHILD] to attend more than they usually {do/did}?

D11a. What {prevents/prevented} [CHILD] from attending more often? Possible barriers might include site opening times, site location.

D11b. How {does/did} that impact [CHILD]’s attendance?

INTERVIEWER: Elicit personal stories where appropriate.

D12. What could the program at <SITE NAME> {do/have done} or change{d} to encourage [CHILD] to {go/have gone} more often?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Transportation issues; free transportation provided by site. More site staff, improve site security, provide more activities, provide different activities etc.

And finally I would like to talk about your satisfaction with the program at <SITE NAME>.

D13. You indicated in the survey you completed that you were [very satisfied /satisfied /neither /dissatisfied/ very dissatisfied] with the program at <SITE NAME> this summer. Can you tell me more about why that {is/was}?

D14. You indicated in the survey you completed that you would be [______ likely] to recommend the program at <SITE NAME> to other families with children. Again, can you tell me more about why you answered in that way?

D15. You also indicated in the survey that next summer, you plan/don’t plan to send you child to a summer program that offered free meals to children under 18 years of age. What are the main reasons you {will/will not} send your child next summer?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Did this site meet/not meet your expectations?

D16. May I just check, {does/did} [CHILD] or any other children in your household participate in other summer programs that offer free meals to children under 18 years of age, this summer 2018? Which ones?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

At a school – is this the school that the child attends during the school year or another school? At a daycare – is this the daycare that the child attends during the school year?

SECTION E. WRAP-UP (3 MINS)

Those are all the questions I have for you.

INTERVIEWER: IF TIME ALLOWS: We have a little bit of time left so I’d like to give you the opportunity to share with me any other thoughts you have about the program at <SITE NAME> that we haven’t already talked about.

We covered a lot today and I want to thank you so much for your time and thoughtful responses. Just to reiterate that everything you have told me will remain private.

[Provide information about method of payment].

Do you have any other questions for me?

[Provide contact information for Westat if required]

Thank you for participating in the Summer Meals Study.

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 40 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Services, Office of Policy Support, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302 ATTN: PRA (0584-xxxx*). Do not return the completed form to this address.