A9 Pretest Report

Appendix A-9

Pretest Report

National Food Study Pilot Agency:
Economic Research Service
Contractor: Westat, Inc.

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May 31, 2016
To:

John Kirlin

From:

Aaron Maitland, Erika Bonilla, Ting Yan, and Janice Machado

Subject:

FoodAPS Initial Field Pretest Findings
FoodAPS Pilot Study
Contract Number: AG-32SB-C-12-0011

Westat conducted an initial field pretest to assist in the development of the web-based system to
collect data on food acquisitions. The consent forms are shown in Attachment A. The materials
provided to the household during the initial visit to the household are shown in Attachment B.
Screenshots of the web based diary system that the participants used during the week are shown in
Attachment C. The debriefing protocol used during the final interview at the end of the week is
shown in Attachment D. The detailed income questions asked during the final interview with the
primary respondent are shown in Attachment E.
Methodology
Participant Recruitment
We recruited participants for the pretest through online advertisements on Craigslist and fliers posted
at local grocery stores. Our goal was to recruit low income households who are targeted for
FoodAPS. The field test focused on individuals who had Internet and experience with smartphones
so that we could test the technical capabilities of the online diary system. The field test occurred
between April 11, 2016 and April 27, 2016. We selected four households with a total of nine persons
across all households to participate in the first pretest. Each household is described below.
Household 1 consisted of one 47 year old man who receives SNAP benefits. This participant
had both a desktop computer and an Android smartphone and a Wi-Fi internet connection.
Household 2 consisted to a 52 year old single mother, her 15 year old daughter, and her 24
year old daughter. The household was currently receiving SNAP benefits at the time of the
pretest. The household owns a laptop computer and iPhones for both the mother and 24
year old daughter. The household also had a Wi-Fi internet connection. The mother was the
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primary respondent for this household. She indicated that she does most of the food
shopping and meal preparation for the household.
Household 3 consisted of a 39 year old man who was a SNAP participant living with his
retired parents. They share the food in the household. The household has Wi-Fi internet
access. The household has a desktop computer, the son has a smartphone, and the parents
have basic cell phones. The mother is the person in the household who does most of the
shopping for food and planning or preparing meals. The son served as the primary
respondent throughout the week for this household.
Household 4 consisted of two unrelated adult men who share food and were SNAP
participants. The household had two Android smartphones and a desktop computer and a
Wi-Fi internet connection. The primary respondent was a 57 year old male. He indicated that
he does most of the food shopping and meal preparation for the household.
Procedures
One or two Westat project staff involved with the development of the ADCM made an initial visit
to each household. The purpose of the visit was to train the household on how to record their food
acquisitions over the course of the study week and provision the necessary equipment to the
household.
The initial visit began with the project staff giving an introduction to the study and reviewing the
consent form with the participants and obtaining consent. All participating household members
were present at the time of the initial interview. Project staff then introduced the participants to the
equipment that would be used in the study and reviewed how to enter food into the diary. Table 1
shows the type of equipment that was provided to each household.
Table 1. Equipment provided to households participating in the pretest.
Household
Equipment
1
Scanner
2
Scanner, Android smartphone
3
Scanner, Android smartphone, Laptop computer
4
Scanner, Android smartphone, Laptop computer
Participants were trained on how to enter food into the system by reviewing one food-at-home
example where the participant had a chance to scan a barcode, type a PLU code, and type a
description. The participants were also trained on how to enter details about the food products.
Next, the participant was trained to enter a food-away-from home event through an example of a
fast-food restaurant. The food-away-from home training demonstrated how the participant could
enter food that was part of a meal.
Once the training was complete, the participants were provided with a user ID and password to
access the system and were told to begin entering food into the system for seven days beginning the
next day. Participants were sent e-mails throughout the field period either reminding them to
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complete certain tasks or thanking them for reporting. Participants were sent e-mails at the
beginning of each day about the prior day’s tasks.

Figure 1. E-mail sent to households about participation.

Reminder e-mail
Hi [PARTICIPANT],
This is just a reminder to visit the Food Study website or use the Food Study app to
record the food that you got yesterday.
You need to log into the website and report any food that you got for Day 1 (Sunday,
April 17) and then click “Day Complete” in order to receive the $3 incentive for
yesterday. All members of the household need to complete the day.
If you did not get any food or drink for yesterday, you still need to click “Day
Complete” in order to receive the $3 incentive.
You also need to report any meals and snacks that you ate yesterday.
You can refer to the document in your binder titled “At the end of each day” to
review the steps you need to take at the end of each day.
[WESTAT PROJECT STAFF]

Thank you e-mail
Hi [PARTICIPANT],
Thank you for reporting the food that your household obtained on Sunday, April 17.
[WESTAT PROJECT STAFF]
In addition to e-mail, the participating households were also provided a cell phone number to
contact project staff about any questions they might have about the study.
Project staff visited the household at the end of the week to debrief the household, collect any
equipment, and pay the incentive money. Each household receive a base incentive of $75, $5 for
completing the income worksheet online, $3 for every day that they either reported food that they
got or indicated that they did not get any food on a given day, and a $50 bonus for completing all
tasks.
Findings
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Table 2 gives a summary of the number of events reported by each person within the participating
households. The household’s reported a variety of different types of events including grocery store
visits, food pantry visits, restaurant visits, and food from parties at friend’s places. The participants
also reported food that was both free and purchased.
Table 2. Summary of events reported by participating households.
Household/Person
Number of FAH
Number of FAFH
events
events
Household 1
Primary respondent
7
2
Household 2
Primary respondent
7
0
Person 2
0
7
Person 3
0
3
Household 3
Primary respondent
1
4
Person 2
2
6
Person 3
2
6
Household 4
Primary respondent
1
0
Person 2
2
0

Income completed?
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes

A detailed analysis and description of the individual items from the field test is not possible since the
back-end systems required to extract data files are still under development. The remainder of this
memo will describe the findings from the debriefing at the end of the data collection week.
Three out of the four households reported that they entered information about meals and snacks
that were eaten every day. One household reported that they only did this once before the end of
the week. This household traveled out of state for the first two days of the field period and fell
behind on the diary recording efforts. The primary respondent completed the meals and snacks
form for everyone in the household for one of the three person households. This primary
respondent indicated that reporting for others was very easy. In another three person household, the
primary respondent (mother) completed the meals and snacks for the 15 year old daughter, but the
24 year old daughter completed the form on her own. The meals and snack form were completed by
each individual in the two person household that participated in the study. This demonstrates that a
variety of strategies are used to complete the diary depending on the specific roles and availability of
the household members. Ideally we would like to have individual household members complete the
meals and snacks form, but this may not always be feasible.
Three out of the four participating households reported the food that they acquired every day. One
household reported that they reported more than once, but not every day. The households reported
that there was not a particular time of day that was most convenient. Instead it depended on their
availability and schedule. The primary respondent reported all food for all members of the
household by gathering receipts at the end of the day and logging in to other members’ accounts to
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report their food. This primary respondent reported that there was one instance where a receipt was
not available, but the household member wrote down the food that was purchased at a restaurant
and the primary respondent reported the event that way. Overall, this primary respondent found it
very easy to report for other member of the household. The other three person household reported
that everyone was responsible for reporting their own food. This seemed to work okay, for the
mother and 24 year old daughter; however, meals from school were not reported for the 15 year old
daughter. This means that it will be important to emphasize school meals reporting in training. We
spent minimal time on this during the training for the pretest. We may also want to build in system
checks for school aged students to ensure that school meals are reported regularly. The two person
household reported that each individual household member reported the food that they acquired.
They said that they often reported this together at some point during the day to help each other with
reporting.
Three out of the four households reported that it was very easy to keep track of the foods that they
acquired. One of these households said that it was somewhat easy at the beginning of field period
and then it got easier as they household learned how to use the system. Another household reported
that it was somewhat easy to use the system, but it would have been very easy if the household would
have reported on a daily basis. This household traveled out of state and fell behind on reporting.
This meant that they often did not have the products available to scan and had to type in
descriptions from receipts, which made their task more difficult. This household was provided an
Android phone, but did not want to take it with them out of fear that they would lose the phone.
They would have been more likely to keep track of their food more regularly if they could have used
their own iPhones to keep track of the food. Unfortunately, Apple launched an update just prior to
the pretest resulting in the iPhone app not being t ready in time for this test, but the app will be ready
for the pilot to assist households in this situation.
There were indications that one household misunderstood how to report in the system. The person
from household 1 reported purchased food at home items as they were consumed. For example, this
person reported cereal purchased during the week on every day that he actually ate the cereal.
Hence, he divided the purchase price by the number of days that he actually ate the cereal to spread
the cost across the week. He did the same for the amount information. Part of the confusion may
have come from the meals and snacks form asking about the meals that the respondent ate. This
seemed to make consumption more salient for the respondent. We may need to add some help text
near the meals and snacks form to highlight that we only want them to report whether they ate the
meal, but we do not need to know what was consumed for every meal. There were no issues with
the food-away-from home events for this respondent.
One other issue with another household relates to how each person in the household reports a
food-away-from-home meal. One primary respondent from a three person household reported the
specific food that each person ate at restaurants individually. Table 3, shows a fictional example of
how the primary respondent would report for this household within each individual account of the
household members. Person 1 paid for the food and the table shows that this person ate pancakes,

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eggs, and coffee paying a total of $32.58. Person 2 ate a ham and cheese omelet, hash browns, and
orange juice and did not pay for the food so their meal is shown as free. The same procedures are
followed for person 3. This captures most of the information needed for food-away-from-home
accurately; however, it overstates the cost of the first meal and understates the cost of the other
meals. Ideally, we would want this to be reported under the one person who paid for the meal within
the household such that the total cost and all of the meal items are listed under the person who paid
for the meal. Then the person can indicate who else was present at the meal. This type of reporting
can be better explained in the training to ensure accurate reporting of food-away-from-home. We
may be able to catch this type of anomaly in the system by checking for free restaurant visits and
checking that the visits are entered accurately.
Table 3. Sample household report of FAFH event.
Person 1
Food purchased
1
pancakes, eggs, coffee
2
Ham and cheese omelet, hash browns, orange juice
3
pancakes, coffee

Amount paid
$32.58
Free
Free

Three out of the four households reported that they used both the smartphone and a computer to
report the food that they acquired. The three households who used the smartphone app reported
that it was very easy to use. These households only used the smartphone to type in descriptions of
products. They did not use the scanning technology on the phone.
Three out of four households did report using the phone to upload photos of receipts. One
household, who used their own Android smartphone to upload picture of receipts experienced the
system crashing when attempting to upload receipts. This was apparently a compatibility issue with
the specific Android phone that was being used. This problem illustrates that importance of testing
and approving phones for the study since there are many different versions of phones with many
different specific versions of operating systems. We will have to limit the versions of phones and
operating system in the pilot. The other two households who had Android phones provided by
Westat did not have any problems uploading receipts and reported that this was very easy. One
household did not take any picture of receipts and provided them in hard copy. None of the
households used the smartphone to take pictures of food at away from home. This will need to be
emphasized in training as a recall aid. We think this behavior was also influenced by respondents not
having their own phones since some of the households feared losing the phone if they took it
outside of their apartment. We can stress in training that it is okay to take the phone outside of the
household, but this might be a feature of the study that is more likely to be used by people who are
able to use their own phone.
The scanner was used by three out of the four households to scan barcodes and they reported that
this was very easy. No issues were reported with the technical use of the scanner. One household
did not scan any barcodes because they reported everything at the end of the week and the products
were not available to scan. Two households reported that some common brand names were not
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found when scanned. This highlights the potential importance of using multiple data sources to
identify barcodes, which will ensure that data entry is as simple as possible.
All four households said that the computer was very easy to use to enter food items into the webbased systems. Three out of the four households did not report any problems with using the
computer to report food items. One household mentioned that they wanted a little more guidance
about how much detail to enter in the item descriptions about brands. One household reported that
the type ahead list could be improved but the others thought that they were able to find their
products easily.
We asked the households if they scanned products immediately when they got home or if they
waited until later. Only one household reported that they did this right away when they got home.
As mentioned earlier, one household entered almost everything at the end of the week from receipts
and did not scan at all. The other households who did not scan immediately mentioned that they
were busy or did not have time to scan right away. We will need to emphasize the importance of
scanning in training and that scanning actually makes the data entry process easier since the
household will have to enter fewer details about the products. However, it is reassuring that typing
in text descriptions from receipts works fine for most people.
We also asked the households if they entered the details about the food that was either entered right
away or later. Three out of the four households said that it was easier to enter the details right away
and one household said that they entered details later due to time constraints.
We asked respondents how burdensome it was to report food or drinks that they acquired during the
study. Two households reported that it was not burdensome at all and two households reported that
it was a little burdensome. One of the households that reported that it was a little burdensome said
that this improved over the course of the study once the procedures were learned. The other
household that reported a little burdensome was traveling during the first two days of data collection
and fell behind. They reported most of the food that they acquired at the end of the week. Hence,
this household did not take advantage of scanning and entered all food items with descriptions. This
also meant that the household had to enter a lot of details about the food products that were
purchased.
We also asked how much effort it took to record food and drinks. One household said almost no
effort, two households said a little effort, and one household said some effort. The household that
reported that it took some effort wanted some more guidance about what to type in the text
description of food items.
All households remembered receiving the e-mail messages during the week. All of them felt the
reminders were helpful. They also reported that the thank you messages were helpful for positive
reinforcement and made them feel that they were being remembered. Three out of the four
households felt that e-mail was the best form of communication compared to text. One primary
respondent mentioned that he prefers e-mail because his phone is older and he does not use the
texting feature very often. One primary respondent said that he does not have a preference for text
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or e-mail. It is unclear to what extent the preference for e-mails was driven by the fact that we only
sent e-mail reminders to households during the pretest. Text reminders require some extra system
development and cost so this capability was not ready for the pretest. We believe that text reminders
may actually be more visible and effective; however, it is noteworthy that the e-mail reminders
seemed to work well in the pretest.
We also asked about the households’ opinions on the progress report included on the website. One
household thought it was very helpful to track progress. Another thought it was a little helpful to
remind him and others in the household about what they had already done. The other two
households did not pay much attention to the progress report. One did not look at it at all and the
other did not have an opinion about it. The progress report may need to be mentioned more
explicitly in training or in reminders to ensure it is used by the households as a motivating tool.
We asked if the households’ behaviors changed due to participating in the study. For example, we
asked if the household ate out more/less often, did more/less food shopping, bought/avoided items
to scan, or made any other changes. No one reported changes to their behavior. One household
reported that the study did make them more conscious of the type of food that they bought, but this
did not necessarily change their behavior.
All four primary respondents thought they felt very prepared to participate in the study after the
training. One additional respondent within the two person household indicated that the training was
ok, but he still had a lot of questions. Two households thought that the training could include more
information about the progress report on the website. One household thought that more
information about how much detail to enter for the descriptions of products was needed. One
household also thought that the manual needs to include more information about the study.
One final observation from the pretest is the need for adequate help desk resources. Westat project
staff members who were part of the design team fielded calls from households participating in the
pretest. These calls included conceptual issues about the study (e.g. what to report), technical issues
(e.g. user name and password issues, connectivity issues). In general, the issues from the calls were
not very complicated to address; however, it will be helpful to have dedicated staff to address these
issues in the pilot study.
Households were asked to report income during the last month in the income worksheet online.
Then during the final interview we asked them the proposed detailed income questions. Household
1 reported $600 in income received from his father in the past month. We discovered with the
detailed income questions that this was the amount after taxes. The respondent did not know the
pre-tax amount. The detailed income questions also picked up $2,400 in income from work and
approximately $800 in income from unemployment compensation from the last year, but not in the
month. Household 2 reported $600 from earnings from work for the primary respondent and $900
from earnings from work for the 24 year old daughter in the last month in the online income
worksheet. The detailed income questions also picked up $600 in rental income in the last month.
The primary respondent had a job working as a translator that was intermittent throughout the year
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so it was hard for her to report how much additional income she had earned from that. Hence, this
household’s estimate of annual income may not be completely accurate. Household 3 reported no
income from the primary respondent, $4,000 from a pension from one member of the household,
and $1,200 in social security from another member of the household. These values were confirmed
with the detailed income questions. No other income was discovered for the rest of the year for the
household. Household 4 reported $200 in welfare income for the primary respondent and $1,200 in
social security income for the other household member in the online income worksheet. These
values were confirmed with the detailed income questions. Overall, the income worksheet and
detailed income questions worked well. With the exception of one household, the income worksheet
accurately captured income from the last month. The detailed income questions in the interview
captured additional income from the last month and also captured income from the last year for a
more accurate estimate of annual income.
Summary of issues identified
It will be important to emphasize school meals reporting in training for households with
school age children. We may also want to build in system checks for school aged students to
ensure that school meals are reported regularly.
There may be some households that are reluctant to take borrowed phones away from their
home out of fear that they would lose the phone. This is important because use of the phone
will help households keep better track of their food when they are away from their home.
This should be less of a problem in the pilot since the iPhone app will be available and we
are testing the Android app on a few different versions of Android phones. In addition,
none of the household used the smartphone to take pictures of food at away from home.
This will need to be emphasized in training as a recall aid. We think this behavior was also
influenced by respondents not having their own phones since some of the households feared
losing the phone if they took it outside of their apartment. We can stress in training that it is
okay to take the phone outside of the household, but this might be a feature of the study
that is more likely to be used by people who are able to use their own phone.
One household, who used their own Android smartphone to upload picture of receipts
experienced compatibility issues with the photo uploading function of the app. This problem
illustrates that importance of testing and approving phones for the study since there are
many different versions of phones with many different specific versions of operating
systems. We will have to limit the versions of phones and operating systems in the pilot.
Two households reported that some common brand names were not found when scanned.
This highlights the potential importance of using multiple data sources to identify barcodes,
which will ensure that data entry is as simple as possible.

10

One household mentioned that they wanted a little more guidance about how much detail to
enter in the item descriptions about brands. We can provide this information in materials
and training.
We will need to emphasize the importance of scanning in training and how scanning makes
the data entry process easier since the household will have to enter fewer details about the
products.
The progress report may need to be mentioned more explicitly in training or in reminders to
ensure it is used by the households as a motivating tool.
More standardized and thorough training and documentation will need to be created for the
pilot. At least two households demonstrated some conceptual issues related to how to report
both food-at-home and food-away-from-events. We are in the process of developing online
training modules that will make the training and documentation process more standard and
ensure that the most important aspects of the study are covered adequately for all
households.
We will need to clarify the purpose of the meals and snacks form on the website and in
training so households do not get confused which foods to report.

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Attachment A: Consent Forms

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OMB Control Number: 0536-0073
Expiration Date: 01/31/2019
You are being asked to participate in the National Food Study. Please read the following
information carefully before you decide whether or not you consent to participate.
Sponsor of Study: The study is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) under
the authority of United States Code Title 7 Section 2026 (a) (1). The study is conducted by Westat,
an independent research firm.
Purpose of the study: This study will collect information to help USDA improve its programs and
help to assure that all residents of the US have access to a healthy diet at affordable prices.
Procedures to follow: If you agree to participate, we will ask you and members of your household
to keep track of the foods you get for 7 days. We will also ask you to complete an interview. The
study procedures include:
1. Receive a 45-minute training to learn how to keep track of foods for the survey.
2. Save receipts from all of your household food purchases for the next 7 days.
3. Keep track of food and drinks purchased or obtained for free during the next 7 days.
This includes scanning food items that you bring into your home and reporting food items
obtained and consumed outside your home. You will use your own smartphone, a
smartphone that we provide to you, or a scanner that can be connected to a computer to
scan food items during the week. This may take about 25 minutes per day during the week.
4. Complete an individual income worksheet. This may take 15 minutes for each person.
5. Keep track of meals and snacks that you get away from home. This may take about 3
minutes per day during the week for each person age 11 and over who obtains food away
from home.
6. Complete a 60 minute debriefing interview: The interview will be done at the end of the
week with all available members of your household. We will ask you questions about your
experience reporting food that your household got during the previous 7 days.
7. Household Income Worksheet. It includes questions about household income that only
one person needs to complete for the household. We will provide you with access to an
Income Worksheet via the internet to help you prepare for this interview.
It may take three to four hours for all members of household to participate, depending on your
household size.
Incentives for participation: This study provides three types of incentives:
Your household , will receive $75 at the end of the week after returning any equipment and
completing the 70-minute interview.

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Your household will also receive $5 if all household members complete the income worksheet
online.
Each household member (including the primary respondent) will receive $3 for every day that they
either report food that they got or indicate that they did not get any food on a given day. Each
household member can earn a maximum of $21 for recording food items.
Your household will receive a $50 bonus if all household members complete the required interviews,
income worksheet, and record food items (or indicate that they did not get food) on all 7
seven days.
Voluntary participation: Taking part in the study is voluntary. If you choose to participate, you
can skip any question you do not want to answer or that makes you feel uncomfortable. Deciding to
take part in the study or not, or withdrawing from the study, will not affect your eligibility for
benefits or services received by anyone in your household—now or in the future. Each household
member may decide to participate. Your household may participate even if some but not all
members agree to participate.
Discomforts or risks: The risks are no greater than those ordinarily encountered in daily life. If you
receive SNAP benefits (or food stamps), the study incentives will not affect your eligibility or benefit
amount.
Termination of participation: You may choose to withdraw from the study at any time. If you
withdraw before you track foods for 7 days, you will not receive the study incentives. The study may
use some of the data you provide to us up to the time of your withdrawal.
Statement of confidentiality: We are required by law (read box below) to use your information for
statistical research only and to keep it confidential. The law prohibits us from giving anyone any
information that may identify you or your family without your consent.
Assurance of Confidentiality: All information which would permit identification of an
individual, a practice, or an establishment will be held confidential, will be used for statistical
purposes only, will be used only by USDA staff, contractors, and agents authorized by USDA to
perform statistical activities only when required and with necessary controls, and will not be
disclosed or released to other persons without the consent of the individual or establishment in
accordance with the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act (PL-107347). By law, every employee as well as every agent has taken an oath and is subject to a jail term
of up to five years, a fine of up to $250,000, or both if he or she willfully discloses ANY
identifiable information about you.
If you have questions about this research, please contact Janice Machado, the Project Director at
(301-294-2801; janicemachado@westat.com)
If you have questions about your rights and welfare as a research participant, please call the Westat
Human Subjects Protections office at 1-888-920-7631. Please leave a message with your full name,
mention that you are calling about the National Food Study, and leave a phone number beginning
with the area code. Someone will return your call as soon as possible.

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I read the information provided on this form. By printing my name and signing below, I show that I
am at least 18 years of age and I agree to take part in this study.

Print Your Name

Your Signature

15

/
Today’s Date

/ 2016

OMB Control Number: 0536-0073
Expiration Date: 01/31/2019
You are being asked to allow your child to participate in the National Food Study. Please read the
following information carefully before you decide whether or not you consent to allow your child to
participate.
Sponsor of Study: The study is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) under
the authority of United States Code Title 7 Section 2026 (a) (1). The study is conducted by Westat,
an independent research firm.
Purpose of the study: This study will collect information to help USDA improve its programs and
help to assure that all residents of the US have access to a healthy diet at affordable prices.
Procedures to follow: If you agree to your child participating, we will ask your child to keep track
of the foods he or she gets for 7 days. We will also ask you to give your consent to minors accessing
the web instrument to report for themselves or ask you to report for minors in your household. The
study procedures for your child include:
1. Keep track of food and drinks purchased or obtained for free during the next 7 days.
This includes scanning food items that your child brings into your home and reporting food
items obtained and consumed outside your home. Your child’s smartphone or a scanner that
can be connected to a computer to scan food items during the week will be used to scan
food items. This may take about 25 minutes per day during the week.
2. Keep track of meals and snacks that your child gets away from home. This may take
about 3 minutes per day during the week for each person age 11 and over who obtains food
away from home.
Incentives for participation: This study provides three types of incentives:
Your household will receive $3 for every day that your child either reports food that he or she got or
indicates that he or she did not get any food on a given day. Each household member can earn a
maximum of $21 for recording food items.
Voluntary participation: Taking part in the study is voluntary. If you choose to participate, your
child can skip any question he or she does not want to answer or that makes him or her feel
uncomfortable. Deciding to take part in the study or not, or withdrawing from the study, will not
affect your eligibility for benefits or services received by anyone in your household—now or in the
future. Each household member may decide to participate. Your household may participate even if
some but not all members agree to participate.
Discomforts or risks: The risks are no greater than those ordinarily encountered in daily life. If you
receive SNAP benefits (or food stamps), the study incentives will not affect your eligibility or benefit
amount.

16

Termination of participation: Your child may choose to withdraw from the study at any time. If
your child withdraws before tracking foods for 7 days, he or she will not receive the study incentives.
The study may use some of the data provided to us up to the time of withdrawal.
Statement of confidentiality: We are required by law (read box below) to use your information for
statistical research only and to keep it confidential. The law prohibits us from giving anyone any
information that may identify you or your family without your consent.
Assurance of Confidentiality: All information which would permit identification of an
individual, a practice, or an establishment will be held confidential, will be used for statistical
purposes only, will be used only by USDA staff, contractors, and agents authorized by USDA to
perform statistical activities only when required and with necessary controls, and will not be
disclosed or released to other persons without the consent of the individual or establishment in
accordance with the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act (PL-107347). By law, every employee as well as every agent has taken an oath and is subject to a jail term
of up to five years, a fine of up to $250,000, or both if he or she willfully discloses ANY
identifiable information about you.
If you have questions about this research, please contact Janice Machado, the Project Director at
(301-294-2801; janicemachado@westat.com)
If you have questions about your rights and welfare as a research participant, please call the Westat
Human Subjects Protections office at 1-888-920-7631. Please leave a message with your full name,
mention that you are calling about the National Food Study, and leave a phone number beginning
with the area code. Someone will return your call as soon as possible.
I read the information provided on this form. I voluntarily agree to allow my child to participate in
this study.

Printed Name of Child

Signature of Parent/Legally Authorized Representative
Printed Name of Parent/Legally Authorized Representative

17

Date

Attachment B: Materials Provided to Pretest Participant’s

18

National Food Study Information
Background:
Who funds this study?
This study is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research
Service (ERS). ERS serves as the USDA’s primary source of economic research and information.
ERS has hired Westat, a social science research firm, to carry out a study to better understand
Americans acquisitions of and accessibility to various foods. USDA hopes to improve services for
food assistance programs. USDA conducted a similar study in 2012 and, due to its success, has
decided to expand and modernize the study to include even more households with the help of
today’s technology.

Study Information:
What does participation involve?
Participation in this study involves recording all of the food that is acquired by each person in
your household, over a 7 day period. This includes food you get from a grocery store,
restaurant, food pantry, soup kitchen, wholesale retailer, work, friend or family member’s
home, or elsewhere. Remember, we are only interested in capturing the food that you acquire
or get during the 7 day period. We do not want you to record the food you eat, only the food
you get. In some cases, the food you get is also the food you eat—but maybe not all the time.
Westat has developed user-friendly tools to enter your daily food acquisitions, including a
mobile application, accessible on a smartphone as well as a website, accessible on a computer.
If you do not own a smartphone or a laptop, we will provide you with one for the study. You or
one of your household members will be trained by a Westat interviewer on the study’s
procedures and equipment. After each person in your household has completed the training,
you will be asked to keep track of all of the food you for the following 7 days. You will use
receipts, pictures on your phone, and other technology to assist you with this. At the end of the
week, a Westat interviewer will visit your home again to conduct a closing interview, collect any
equipment loaned to you, and provide you with an incentive. You may receive up to $250 for
participating in the study, depending on the size of your household and if you enter your food
acquisitions daily.

Why do you want me to participate?
USDA wants a representative sample of American households. To participate in this study, you
do not need to be on any government provided food assistance programs to participate.

19

The National Food Study
Quick Reference Guide: What to
and What Not to Report
Rule of Thumb: Only enter in food you buy or get for free during the 7 day window. We don’t want you
to report all the food you EAT, only the food you GET during this time frame. Here are some sample
scenarios that you may encounter and guidelines for how to handle them.
Sample Scenario #1: Eating Dinner at Home (using existing food in the home)
In this scenario, you have cooked a dinner for your family at home using food in your house that was
purchased before you began your participation in the Food Study. You do not need to report any of the
food items from this meal in the web food diary. You do need to log into the system and indicate the
meals and snacks you ate in that day and mark your day as “complete.”
Sample Scenario #2: Eating Dinner at Home (with fresh food from your garden)
In this scenario, you have cooked a dinner for your family at home using mostly food you already had in
your home, but you also made a salad with fresh vegetables from your garden. In this scenario, you will
only need to report the food items you picked from your garden.
Sample Scenario #3: Eating Dinner at Friend/Family Member’s Home
In this scenario, you got food from someone else (even if it was food cooked by someone in their home)
so you will need to report all the food you received during this meal. If you spend an extended period of
time at a friend or family member’s home (maybe you visited your grandma and grandpa for the
weekend) you would need to report all food you got from your grandma and grandpa during the
weekend, including food they made for you (free) or food they bought for you (purchased).
Sample Scenario #4: Grocery Store Purchase
In this scenario, we would like you to enter in all food and drinks obtained during the study period.
However, do not record non-food items purchased from the grocery store visit, including but not limited
to things like paper products, cleaning supplies, pet supplies, etc.
Sample Scenario #5: Work Day Food
In this scenario, you pour yourself a cup of coffee in the work kitchen, buy a bag of chips from the
vending machine, and purchase yourself some lunch from a local restaurant during the work day. You
would report all the food you got in this scenario, however, the cup of coffee would be marked as “free”
but all the other items would be entered in as “purchased”.
Sample Scenario #6: Work Day Food
In this scenario, you ate some yogurt at home for breakfast, made yourself a cup of coffee to-go, packed
yourself a lunch and afternoon snack to take to work. You would not need to report any of this food in
the web food diary if you didn’t purchase it that same day. You do need to log into the system and
indicate the meals and snacks you ate in that day and mark your day as “complete.”

20

Sample Scenario #7: Saturday Birthday Party
In this scenario, you attended an afternoon child’s birthday party where they served fruit, pizza, and
cake. You ate the fruit and pizza but decided to take the cake home with you for later. In this scenario,
you would need to report all the food you got from the party, even the cake.
Sample Scenario #8: Food Obtained from Food Pantry
In this scenario, you visited a local food pantry for a few food items. These items were free to you; you
did not pay for them using your own money or food stamps. In this scenario, you would report the food
you received from the food pantry in the web food diary if you got it during the study period.
Sample Scenario #9: Toddler Eats Food Provided by Daycare
In this scenario, your childcare provider provides all the meals and snacks during the day for your child.
You will need to report the food that your child eats during the day at the childcare provider.

21

At the end of each day
1. Check the status of all food entries
2. Complete any entries that are InProgress
3. Indicate which meals and snacks you ate during the day.
4. Press
when you are finished reporting each day. Each day must be completed by
the following day to receive the $3 incentive.

Finish InProgress entries

Indicate meals
and snacks eaten
during the day

You can view your progress by clicking on Progress at the top of the home page.

22

Accessing the National Food Study Website
Quick Reference Guide

From Your Computer

1. Launch your internet browser. Compatible browsers include: Firefox version 3 or
higher, Internet Explorer version 7 or higher, and Chrome.
2. Type in the website Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.
3. You can save this to your favorites or bookmark it so that you do not have to type it in
every time. If you are using a Westat computer, thre will be a shortcut to the website on
the desktop.
4. Log into the site with the username and password provided to you by the field
interviewer.
5. Navigate through the system as you were trained to do and enter in the food you get.
From a Smartphone or Tablet

1. Download the Food Study app and enter your food items through there. Please refer to
the document titled, “ Quick Reference Guide: Downloading the App” if you do not have
the App downloaded on your phone already.

*Remember, if you have any problems or questions about this, you can contact the Westat at
(240) 863-4436 or by emailing nationalfoodstudy@westat.com.

23

Follow these simple steps to enter food and drinks that are obtained. Have your receipts with you to make it
easier to enter information.
1. Visit https://www.nationalfoodstudy.org and log in using your user name and password.
2. Select
3. Select the type of place where the food was obtained (e.g. grocery store, restaurant, etc.) and answer the
questions on the next few screens.

4. Use the Enter Food table to enter food and drinks in one of the following ways.

a. Scan the barcode or UPC for all food and drinks with a barcode
o If items are packaged together (such as a six-pack of soda, four-pack
of yogurt, or 12-pack of bottled water), scan the barcode on the
outside of the package or scan only one item from the package.

*A green pop-up tells you that the item has been added.
*A red pop-up tells you that the item cannot be found
and you need to type a description.

Product not found
Please enter a description

b. Type the produce look up or PLU code for fruits and vegetables
o Enter the 4 or 5 digit produce look up (PLU) code on fruits or
vegetables.

c. Type a description for food and drinks without a UPC or PLU code
o When possible use the suggestions provided while you are typing.
Otherwise enter your own description.

5. Use the My Food tab to enter details about the food or drinks.
*The red circle on the My Food tab displays the number of food
or drinks that have been entered and need additional details.
*The circle on the My Food tab will turn blue when all of the
required details have been entered for all food or drinks
6. Take a picture of your receipt and upload it to the website when all food and drinks are entered.

Store name
and location

Pepsi Cola – 20 Oz.

Price paid for
food or drinks

Weight of
produce item

Discount
card savings
Gummy Bears 1 lb. bag

Nonfood item
Total
amount paid

No barcode enter
description

Broccoli Crowns

PLU code = 94011

Organic bananas

Not food
Do not enter

Recording Food Eaten Away From Home at Places Like Restaurants
1. Enter information about the total receipt
Name of the place and address
Who bought the food
Total paid before tax
Amount paid in taxes
Amount paid in tips
Type of payment
Who ate the meal snack or drink
Type of meal (e.g. breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack)
Indicate if any non-food items such as toys were included
Type of restaurant (e.g. fast-food, full-service)

2. Enter information about meals or combos and individual food and drinks.
A meal or combo has one price for several items together. Examples include:
o
o

Meal with a quarter pounder with cheese, medium French fries, and a
medium Coke
Happy meal with 4 chicken nuggets, kids size French fries, Strawberry
Go-Gurt, and apple juice.

**All of the items within a meal may not be shown on the receipt.**
The chocolate shake is an individual item on the receipt above with its own
price.
Press to enter meal or combo (e.g.
Quarter pound cheeseburger meal
or happy meal)

Enter individual items here

3. Enter details about the food or drinks that you got.
4. Upload a picture of your receipt.

26

Income Reporting
We will be asking the primary respondent to report income for the entire household at the end of the
week. We would like each member of the household age 11 and older to report their income online
during the week. We are asking about your income to help us understand how much money your
household has available to spend on food. Completing this worksheet during the study week will make
the final interview go faster.
We would like you to report all sources of income including earnings from work, unemployment
compensation, welfare, child support, alimony, retirement, disability, investment and any other sources
of income. You only need to report income that you have received in the last month.
Follow these steps to report income.
1. From the homepage select
2. From the income worksheet page select who you will be reporting income about.

3. Select the type of income that was received in the last month.

4. Follow the questions on the next few screens to report the amount of each type of income.

27

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Section 1. General Questions
Who is sponsoring this study?
This study is being sponsored by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic
Research Services (ERS). ERS has hired Westat, an independent contractor, to do the data
collection for this study.
Why are you doing this study?
The USDA ERS is interested in learning about the kinds of foods that American households have
access to and acquire.
Can I just save my receipts and not enter information online?
No, because some receipts are hard to read or don’t include all the information we need. You
need to take a picture of the receipt, save the receipt and enter information about the food or
drinks online.
I do not have time to enter in the details for each food item, can I just scan the items and
enter in the details later?
Yes, if you do not have time to enter in the details of all the food items you got, you can do a
batch scan of all food items then come back later when it is more convenient for you to enter in
the details for each food item using information from your receipt.
Will I get reimbursed for cell phone data usage required to participate in the study?
No, you will not receive any reimbursement specifically for data used to participate in the
study. You will receive the promised incentives that you and your household accumulate
during the study week.
What do I get for participating in the study?
This study provides three types of incentives:
1. Your household, upon completing the Initial interview and the Final Interview, will
receive $75 at the end of the week after returning any equipment.
2. Your household will receive $5 for completing the income worksheet online.

28

3. Each household member will receive $3 for every day that they either report food that
they got or indicate that they did not get any food on a given day. Each household
member can earn a maximum of $21 for recording food items.
Your household will receive a $50 bonus if all household members complete the required
interviews, income worksheet, and record food items (or indicate that they did not get food) on
all 7 seven days.
What if I am having a meal out at a restaurant and I do not have access to or the time to enter
in the food at that moment?
Food you get outside of the home during a study day can be entered at any time. If it is easier,
you can take a picture of your meal before you eat so that you remember what you had. The
picture will serve as a reminder for you when you are able to enter in the details.
Who in my household needs to enter food and drinks online?
Each person age 11 and older may enter food and drinks online. An adult should write foods
acquired by children age 11 online.
What should I do if someone buys food for me?
If someone buys food for you, go to the food reporting system to enter the place where they
got the food and other information about the food and write down $0.00 for the total paid
since you did not pay anything.
What should I do if I only paid for part of the meal?
If the receipt is for multiple people, but you only paid for some items, circle the items that you
paid for on the receipt and enter the amount that you paid to the food reporting system.
What if my SNAP money has run out? Should I continue entering in the food I get?
Yes, we want to know about ALL the food you get during the study week, not only the food you
get with your SNAP money.
Section 2. Questions about the Food Entry Process
What types of food do I scan?
Scan all the foods and drinks with a barcode that you acquire during the seven days in the study
week. This includes food you purchase at a store or a restaurant, food you get for free –for
example, from friends, a garden, a good pantry, or other place.

29

How should I enter description about the food or drinks I got if there is no barcodes and no
PLUs?
When describing each food or drink, make sure you mention the following pieces of
information whenever possible:
the brand, product name, or menu item;
the type of food (e.g., white bread or whole wheat bread; chicken nuggets or grilled
chicken breast);
the form of the food (e.g., raw carrots or cooked carrots);
the flavor (e.g., chocolate milk; oatmeal cookie, or vanilla yogurt)
the fat and sugar (e.g., whole milk or 1% milk; regular or diet soda; 100% juice or fruitflavored drink)
things you added (e.g., butter on bread, ketchup with French fries, or dressing on
salads).
Should I estimate the amount or size?
No. Write the amount (for example, the number of ounces or grams) or the size (for example,
small, medium, large) only if it is listed on a package or menu. If the amount or size is not listed
on the package or menu, you can leave these fields blank.
Section 3. Questions about the Types of Food to Enter
What types of foods and drink do you want to know about?
We want to know about all of the food that you and everyone in your household get during the
study week. Include all the food you get, even if it is paid for by someone else or offered to you
for free by friends/neighbors/coworkers.
Are beverages/drinks considered food?
Yes, we want to know about any beverages/drinks you get.
What if all the food I ate on a particular day came from my refrigerator or cupboard?
Remember it’s not about what you eat- it’s about what you got. Just check the day at the top of
the Daily List and leave the page blank.
Do I report food that I already have in my home, or only new things?
Report new food and drinks you obtain during the study week. Do not report food that was in
your home before the study began.
30

Do I report food I already had in my house if I’m going to eat it during the study week?
No. Remember it is not about what you eat—it is about what you get during the study week
only.
Do I enter all my groceries?
Only enter food and drinks. Do not report non-food products like toilet paper or tissues and
cleaning products.
Do I need to report food and drinks my young kids had in school or in day care?
Yes. We encourage you to talk with the child, check the school breakfast/lunch menu, or contact
the day care provider to determine what foods the child received (even if the meal or snack was
free). You should try to account for all components of the meal (main course, vegetable, starch,
milk or other drink, and dessert). Again, we are interested in the foods served to the child, not
necessarily what he or she ate.
Do I report food, drinks, and snacks that I packed for my kids to school?
No. You do not need to report anything your kids brought to school but you need to report any
food, drink, or snack served to your kids in school.
Section 4: Questions Related to Who Paid for the Food
What if I don’t buy any meals, snacks, or drinks on some days?
That’s okay. Some people don’t get food every day. Just indicate that the day is complete and
don’t forget to report the meals and snacks that you ate that day.
What if I got food that I didn’t pay for?
People get food that they don’t pay for all the time. For example, cups of coffee at work, food
at a friend’s or relatives, etc. We want to know about these foods. Enter the food in the system
as free.

31

How to Connect a MiFi (if no internet is available)
To connect a Windows laptop to a Verizon MiFi device:
Step 1: Power on the MiFi by pushing the power button on the side.
The indicator light will flash green and purple, and then become solid green once
the hotspot is connected to the Verizon Wireless network.
o Once the device is on the network, there will also be "signal strength bars" on
the small screen on the front of the device, indicating connection strength.
o

o

Step 2: Turn on the Computer. Click your Wifi Internet Options on the bottom right corner of

your screen (looks like this):
Select the correct MiFi network for your card, then enter the password. Network name
and password will be located on the MiFI device.
Step 3: Once the Computer is connected to Mifi, you can access the National Food Study
website.
How to Connect Handheld Scanner to Computer
Step 1: Plug the barcode scanner cable into a USB port located on the right side of the laptop.
Once the scanner is plugged in, you should hear a beep, beep, beep sound to indicate
that the scanner and laptop are connected -- skip to Step 2
Step 2: Click the scanning button -- or depress the scanning trigger -- to scan the bar code. Login
to the web site and navigate to the page that allows you to scan a barcode. Make sure
the cursor is in the UPC text field before scanning an item, then scan any bar code on
any product.

32

Quick Reference Guide
Downloading the App
Please follow the instructions below for downloading the National Food Study App on your Android
smartphone.
If you have an Android Device:
1. The study App can be downloaded from the study website. However, since your Android phone
doesn’t know whether the App is secure, you will need to agree to allow apps from non-secure
places to be downloaded onto your device. To do this, you will need to go to Settings-> Security> Unknown Sources. Then slide to the “On” position.
2. From your mobile device, go to the “National Food Study” website at:
https://www.nationalfoodstudy.org.
3. Scroll to the bottom of the page and select the green
“Download” icon (shown to the right).
4. Once you click on the icon, you will see a prompt that says
“This type of file can harm your device. Do you want to keep
the app.apk anyway?” select “Ok.”
5. The app will download onto your device. This process does not take long.
6. Once the app has downloaded, go back into to Settings-> Security-> Unknown Sources. Then
slide back to the original position.
7. Next, you will need to find the “Food Study” app icon among
all other apps on your phone and drag it to your home screen.
8. The “Food Study” app icon on your home screen will look like
this:
9. After tapping on the Food Study app icon, you will be
prompted to enter a username and password. This can be
found on the sheet of paper left with you by your field
interviewer.
10. Navigate through the system as you were trained to do and
enter in the food you have received.

Important to Remember

1. The App may not run if you are using an older operating system. If you encounter this problem,
please go to your Settings and update to the newest version of the operating system available to
you.
2. Remember, if you have any problems or questions about this, you can contact Westat at (240)
863-4436 or by emailing support@nationalfoodstudy.org.

33

Change Password Instructions
Each member of your household will be provided with a username and password. The
password can be changed to something easier to remember, but there are specific rules for
changing your password. Below are instructions on how to change your password.
1. At the login screen, click on “Retrieve a new password if you forgot your password.”
2. You will then be prompted to enter in your username and click “Send Password”. This
will initiate an email that will be sent to you with a new temporary password.
3. Check your email for the new temporary password.
4. Use that temporary password to log in to the application or website.
5. You will be prompted to change your password.
a. Remember: Passwords must be at least 8 characters long with at least 1 number
and 1 special character (!, @, #, $, %, &, etc.)
6. Make sure you save your password somewhere you can find it if you can’t remember it.
Original Username and Password
(Interviewer: Please fill this in)
Household Member
Household Member 1:

Username

Password

Household Member 2:
Household Member 3:
Household Member 4:
Household Member 5:
Household Member 6:
Household Member 7:

34

Attachment C: Screenshots of the web-based diary

35

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36

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37

38

39

40

Attachment D: Debriefing Protocol

41

Thank you for participating in this study and recording the food items that your household got
throughout the week and reporting your household’s income. Now, we would like to follow-up
with a few questions about how things went for you.
1. About how often did you complete the meals and snacks question? Was it…
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Every day
More than once but not every day
Once before the end of the week
Once at the end of the week
Did not complete at all

1A. Did you report meals and snacks on behalf of someone else in your household?
YES, THOUGHOUT THE WEEK. For whom did you report? (DETERMINE WHETHER THIS WAS FOR
ADULTS AND MINORS)
YES, SOME DAYS OF THE WEEK. For whom did you report? (DETERMINE WHETHER THIS WAS
FOR ADULTS AND MINORS)
NO
2. How often did you report the foods that you got yourself? Was it….
1.
2.
3.
4.

Every day
More than once but not every day
Once before the end of the week
Once at the end of the week

PROBE: Tell me about when you reported the food you got.
2A. Did you report the foods that someone else in your household got for themselves?
YES, THOUGHOUT THE WEEK. For whom did you report? (DETERMINE WHETHER THIS WAS FOR
ADULTS AND MINORS) GO TO Q4
YES, SOME DAYS OF THE WEEK. For whom did you report? (DETERMINE WHETHER THIS WAS
FOR ADULTS AND MINORS)
NO

GO TO Q3B

42

3A. How often did you report the foods that other household members got? Was it…
1.
2.
3.
4.

Every day
More than once but not every day
Once before the end of the week
Once at the end of the week

PROBE: Tell me about when you reported the food you got.
GO TO Q4
3B. About how often would you say that other members of your household reported the foods
that they got? Was it…
1.
2.
3.
4.

Every day
More than once but not every day
Once before the end of the week
Once at the end of the week

PROBE: Tell me about when you reported the food you got.
On a scale from 1 to 5, where 1 is “very easy”, 2 is “somewhat easy”, 3 is “neither easy nor
difficult”, 4 is “somewhat difficult”, and 5 is “very difficult”, please tell us…
4. How easy or difficult was it to keep track of the foods you got?

PROBE: Explain your answer.
5. [IF Q2A=YES: ] How easy or difficult was it for you to get information from other household
members about the food or drinks they got during the data collection week?

PROBE: Tell me about any difficulty you had getting other household members to take
part.
6. [IF Q1A=YES: ] How easy or difficult was it for you to get information from other household
members about the meals and snacks they got throughout the week?

PROBE: Tell me about any difficulty you had getting other household members to take
part in this study.
43

6B. What device did you use to report food and drinks you or someone else obtained
throughout the week?
1.SMARTPHONE ONLY GO TO 6C
2.COMPUTER ONLY GO TO 10
3.BOTH SMARTPHONE AND COMPUTER GO TO 6C
6c. Did you use the smartphone to enter food items in the APP or through the browser?
IN THE APP GO TO Q7
THROUGH THE BROWER GO TO 7B
7. How easy or difficult was it for you to use the smartphone to enter food items in the App?

7a. Did you have any issues or problems with the smartphone when entering food items or the
details about each food item?
1. Yes
2. No
PROBE: [IF YES] Tell me about any problems that you had.
7B. What device did you use to scan barcodes? The smartphone or the scanner?
SMARTPHONE
SCANNER
8. How easy or difficult was it for you to use the (smartphone/scanner) to scan barcodes?

8a. Did you have any issues or problems using the (smartphone/scanner) to scan barcodes?
1. Yes
2. No
PROBE: [IF YES] Tell me about any problems that you had.

44

8b. Did you use the smartphone to take pictures of receipts, food, or drinks you ate outside
your home?
1. YES GO TO Q9
2. NO SKIP TO INSTRUCTION BEFORE Q10
9. How easy or difficult was it for you to use the smartphone to take pictures of receipts, food,
or drinks you ate outside your home?

9a. Did you have any issues or problems using the smartphone to take pictures of receipts,
food, or drinks you ate outside your home?
1. Yes
2. No
PROBE: [IF YES] Tell me about any problems that you had.
IF Q6B =2 OR 3, ASK Q10. OTHERWISE GO TO Q11.
10. How easy or difficult was it for you to use the computer (desktop or laptop) to enter food
items in the web-based reporting system?

10a. Did you have any issues or problems with the computer when recording food items?
1. Yes
2. No
PROBE: [IF YES] Tell me about any problems that you had.
11. How easy or difficult was it for you to use the App on the cell phone or the web-based
system on the computer to enter food or drinks you got?

45

11a. Did you have any issues or problems with the App or the web-based system to enter food
or drinks you got? For instance, were you always able to find the food item description you
were looking for?
1. Yes
2. No
PROBE: [IF YES] Tell me about any problems that you had.

12. In general, did you scan all the foods you got immediately when you got home or did you
wait until later?
1. Scanned immediately
2. Waited until later.
PROBE: [IF R WAITED UNTIL LATER] Why did you wait? Is there anything we could
change to make it easier to scan right away?
13. In general, did you enter the details about the food items you got right away when you
scanned or did you come back and enter the details?
1. Entered details right away
2. Entered details later
PROBE: Tell me more about how you did this.
[IF R WAITED UNTIL LATER] Why did you wait? Is there anything we could change to
make it easier to enter the details right away?

14. In general, how burdensome was it for you to record food or drinks you got on the cell
phone App or in the computer’s web-based system? Would you say…
1.
2.
3.
4.

Very burdensome
Somewhat burdensome
A little burdensome
Not burdensome at all?

Which part is the most burdensome? What do you think we can do make the process less of a
burden?
46

15. How much effort did it take you to record food or drinks you got on the App or in the webbased system? Would you say…
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Almost no effort,
A little effort,
Some effort,
A lot of effort, or
Very much effort?

16. Did you receive the e-mail and text messages that were sent to you during the week?
1. Yes
2. No
PROBE: [IF YES] Did you pay attention to them? What messages did you find helpful? Why?

[IF NO] Would there be a better way to send messages to you about the tasks? How?

Would there be a better way to send messages to you about the amount of the
incentives your household earned? How?

17. How helpful did you find the Progression report displayed in the food entry system? Would you say…
1. very helpful
2. somewhat helpful
3. a little helpful, or
4 not helpful at all?
PROBE: Which part(s) is most helpful? Which part(s) is the least helpful?
Would there be a better way to make the progress report helpful? How?

47

18. During the past week, did you (or other household members) do any of the following because you
were taking part in this study? (CHECK ALL THAT APPLY)
1. ATE OUT MORE OFTEN
2. ATE OUT LESS OFTEN
3. DID MORE FOOD SHOPPING
4. DID LESS FOOD SHOPPING
5. BOUGHT A SPECIFIC ITEM JUST TO BE ABLE TO SCAN IT
6. AVOIDED SPECIFIC ITEM(S) SO YOU WOULDN’T HAVE TO SCAN THEM
7. OTHER CHANGES-PLEASE SPECIFY

19. Which of the following best describes how you felt about the training you received before the study
started?
1. The training did NOT prepare me for the study.
2. Training was ok, but I still had a lot of questions.
3. I felt very prepared after the training to participate in the study.

20.What part of the study would you have liked more training or instruction on?

21. Do you have any suggestions for other things we can do to make sure that participants like you are
trained and prepared to participate in a study like this?

48

Attachment E: Detailed Income Questions

49

Detailed Income – First Pass
F1. Next are questions about your household’s income. When we say “income” we mean earnings from work, unemployment, welfare,
child support, retirement income, disability income, investment income, and any type of income even if you do not get it regularly.
INCOME
WORKSHEET
INDICATED AT
LEAST ONE
PERSON HAD
INCOME FROM THIS
SOURCE
According to the
income worksheet,
[FILL NAMES]
had/received... Is that
correct? YES, NO, DK,
REF
1. earnings from
work
2. income from
unemployment
compensation
3. income from
workers
compensation
4. income from
the Temporary
Assistance for
Needy Families
(TANF) program

FOR THOSE WHO WAS NOT REPORTED TO HAVE INCOME
FROM THIS SOURCE OR DK/REF TO CONFIRMATION
ITEM

Did
{you/anyone
[else] in your
household
have/receive …
in the last
month?

Did {you/anyone [else] in
your
household}have/receive…
in the last 12 months, that
is, since (month) 1st of
(YEAR)?

Who had/received
… {in the last
month/in the last 12
months}?

What was the
source?

5. income from
General
Assistance,
General Relief, or
the GA program
{OTHER THAN
TANF}
6. income from
child support
7. income from
alimony
8. disability
income or
Supplementary
Security Income
(SSI)
9. income from
social security
10. pensions and
retirement income
11. investment
income
12. income from
other sources

51

INTERVIEWER: THEN ADMINISTER THE SECOND PASS ASKING ABOUT AMOUNTS
IF THE PARTICIPANT INDICATES THAT SOMEONE IN THEIR HOUSEHOLD
RECEIVES THAT SOURCE. YOU CAN PROBE ON ANY DIFFICULTIES THAT THE
RESPONDENT HAS WHEN ANSWERING THESE QUESTIONS.
Second Pass Income Questions Income Source = Work
Person 1
Person 2
[IF PERSON CONFIRMED TO
RECEIVE INCOME FROM WORK
AND REPORTED INCOME TO THE
WORKSEET, ASK 0A AND 0B]
(0A) According to the income worksheet,
{NAME} received {AMOUNT} in
earnings from work in the last month.
Does that sound about right? YES, NO,
DK, REF
[IF NO, DK, REF TO 0A: ] What is your
best estimate of the correct total amount
{NAME} received {in the last month}
before taxes?
[IF PERSON DID NOT REPORT
INCOME TO THE WORKSHEET
BUT WAS SAID TO RECEIVE
INCOME FROM WORK DURING
FIRST PASS: ]
(1) What is the easiest way for you to tell
us {NAME’S} earnings from work before
taxes; hourly, weekly, every other week,
twice a month, monthly, quarterly, semiannually or yearly?
(2) How much did {NAME} receive per
{period in (1)} in earnings from work?
(3) {IF NOT HOURLY} How many
payments did {NAME} receive in the
{last month/last 12 months}? GO TO (6)
(4) {IF HOURLY} How many hours did
{NAME} work in {the last pay period/a
typical pay period}?
(5) {IF HOURLY} How many pay
periods were in {the last month/a typical
month}?
(6) According to our calculations
{NAME} received [TOTAL] altogether
from work {in the last month/per month

Person 3

Person 4

in the last 12 months} before taxes. Does
that sound about right?
(7) {IF NO TO (6)} What is your best
estimate of the correct total amount
{NAME} received {in the last month/per
month in the last 12 months} before
taxes?

53

Income Source
Person 1

Person 2

[IF PERSON
CONFIRMED TO
RECEIVE INCOME
FROM WORK AND
REPORTED INCOME
TO THE WORKSEET,
ASK 0A AND 0B]
(0A) According to the
income worksheet,
{NAME} received
{AMOUNT} from
{SOURCE} in the last
month. Does that sound
about right? YES, NO, DK,
REF
[IF NO, DK, REF TO 0A: ]
What is your best estimate
of the correct total amount
{NAME} received {in the
last month} before taxes?
[IF PERSON DID NOT
REPORT INCOME TO
THE WORKSHEET BUT
WAS SAID TO RECEIVE
INCOME FROM WORK
DURING FIRST PASS: ]
(1) What is the easiest way
for you to tell us
{NAME’S} income from
{INSERT INCOME
SOURCE}; weekly, every
other week, twice a month,
monthly, quarterly, semiannually or yearly?
(2) How much did
{NAME} receive per
{period in (1)} in {INSERT
INCOME SOURCE}?
(3) How many payments did
{NAME} receive in the
{last month/last 12
months} in {INSERT
54

Person 3

Person 4

INCOME SOURCE}?
(4) According to our
calculations {NAME}
received [TOTAL]
altogether from {INSERT
INCOME SOURCE} {in
the last month/per month
in the last 12 months}. Does
that sound about right?
(5) {IF NO TO (4)} What is
your best estimate of the
correct total amount
{NAME} received {in the
last month/per month in
the last 12 months}?

55