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RAS Public Perceptions Experiment

OMB Control Number: 0693-0089

Expiration Date: 9/30/2024

This collection of information contains Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) requirements approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Notwithstanding any other provisions of the law, no person is required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the requirements of the PRA unless that collection of information displays a currently valid OMB control number. Public reporting burden for this collection is estimated to be approximately 20 minutes per response. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Attn: Emily Walpole, NIST, 100 Bureau Drive, MS 8603, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1710, telephone 301-975-2617, or via email to Emily.walpole@nist.gov. OMB Control 0693-0089; Expiration date: 09/30/2024.

Start of Block: Consent

Information about this research study:

• Purpose and activity: We are conducting this research to understand what the public thinks about community planning activities and plans. In the following sections you will be asked for your opinions on community planning activities and related topics. There are no right or wrong answers and you are welcome to withdraw from the study at any time.

• Duration: We anticipate that your participation in this research study will take about 20 minutes.

• Risks and Benefits: No significant risks are expected to result from participation in this study. Upon completing the survey, you will be compensated in the amount indicated in your survey invitation.

• Privacy and Confidentiality: Responses will be kept confidential and we will not ask for any personally identifying information (e.g. name or address). Data will only be reported in aggregate.

• Use of data: The de-identified, aggregated survey information will be analyzed by NIST researchers and incorporated into one or more technical reports that may be published may be used or shared for future research.

• Questions or complaints: If you have any questions, concerns or complaints about this study, or experience an unanticipated problem please contact Emily Walpole via telephone: 301-975-2617, or via email: Emily.walpole@nist.gov. If you have questions about your rights as a participant in this study, or have complaints, concerns or issues you want to discuss with someone outside the research team, call the Research Protections Office (RPO) at (301) 975-5445.

By selecting "Yes" below, you consent to your responses being used as part of this effort.

• Yes, I consent to my responses being used in this research [proceed to survey]

• No, I do not consent to my responses being used in this research [skip to end page]

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End of Block: Consent

Start of Block: Pre-Treatment Items

This survey will be asking you questions about community planning. Planning structures a process to accomplish various goals through community action plans. 

Creation of these plans is led by local government officials with input from experts and community stakeholders. These plans often include policies and actions such as:
    - Improvements to infrastructure and buildings (for example, improving bridges, roads, and building safety)
    - Improvements to public services (for example, expanding public health services or public transportation services)
    - Supporting local economies, and/or
    - Enhancing the natural environment

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To begin, we would like you to think about the community you live in, current concerns for your community, and priorities for improvement.

Knowledge How knowledgeable would you say you are about planning efforts in your local community?

• Not at all

• Slightly

• Moderately

• Very

• Extremely

Engagement How engaged would you say you are in planning efforts in your local community?

• Not at all

• Slightly

• Moderately

• Very

• Extremely

Awareness Are you aware if your community has any of the following? (Select any that apply):

• Resilience plan or related efforts

• Climate adaptation plan or related efforts

• Sustainability plan or related efforts

• Social equity plan or related efforts

• Other kinds of planning or improvement effort - __________________________________________________

• Not aware of any / Not sure

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Concern How much of a priority do you think the following issues are for your community to address?

	Not at all a priority	Slight priority	Moderate priority	High priority	Highest priority
Climate change
Community resilience
Sustainability
Economic issues (e.g. high cost of living; Inflation)
Natural hazards (e.g. Flooding; wildfires; hurricanes)
Environmental issues (e.g. land use; pollution)
Safety and security
Healthcare (e.g. costs; addiction)
Social equity and justice
Governance and leadership
Other _________

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Hazard_concern How concerned are you about the following hazards in your community?

	Not at all concerned	Slightly concerned	Moderately concerned	Very concerned	Extremely concerned
Coastal Flooding
Inland or river flooding
Wildfires
Tornadoes
Hurricanes
Earthquakes
Strong storms and wind
Extreme heat
Extreme cold and winter storms
Drought

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End of Block: Pre-Treatment Items

Start of Block: ConceptsGoals

[Participants in the following section will be randomly assigned where the text labeled [RASE] will be consistently replaced with either “resilience”, “climate adaptation”, “sustainability” or “social equity”. Otherwise, questions will be identical between participants.]

Treatment.Info In the next section, we will be asking you about [RASE] planning and goals in general (not just in your community).

There are no right or wrong answers - we are simply interested in your opinion. 

Concepts When you hear the term [RASE] in relation to communities, which of the following concepts do you closely associate with that term? (Select any that apply):

• The ability to prepare for and adjust to changing conditions

• Quick recovery of infrastructure, utilities, and public services after a disruption

• Managing risks from climate-related hazards such as wildfire, sea level rise, and drought

• The ability to withstand and recover rapidly from extreme events or disasters

• Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the needs of future generations

• Meeting the needs of current and future generations without compromising environmental systems

• Policies and programs within the community are transparent, fair, and inclusive

• Resources, benefits, and risks are fairly distributed across neighborhoods and social groups

• Commitment to correct past harms and prevent future unintended consequences

• Preservation and expression of local culture and traditions

• I am not familiar with this term / Not sure

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Goals If a community wanted to invest resources to develop a plan to improve its [RASE], which of the following goals do you assume would be included? (Select all that apply):

• Encourage renewable energy use

• Promote energy and/or water conservation

• Reduce the community's carbon footprint

• Protect or enhance the natural environment

• Protect the built environment (e.g. buildings, infrastructure, utilities) from hazards

• Improve safety and health for all community members

• Improve accessibility of services and facilities for all community members

• Protect community members from hazards and toxins

• Enhance livability and quality of life in the community

• Encourage environmentally friendly transportation options

• Support or improve the local economy

• Educate the public about relevant issues

• Ensure availability of resources for future generations

• Address uncertainty related to climate change

• Reduce the production of solid waste (i.e. trash)

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ConceptsTEXT Briefly, in your own words how would you define [RASE] as it relates to community planning and goals?

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

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End of Block: ConceptsGoals

Start of Block: DVs

For the following questions we would like you to imagine your community is investing resources in creating a new [RASE] plan. Please respond to the following questions as if this planning effort is now underway in your community. 

Overall_Support In general, how much would support or oppose the [RASE] plan?"

• Strongly oppose

• Moderately oppose

• Slightly oppose

• Neither support nor oppose

• Slightly support

• Moderately support

• Strongly support

Importance_Overall On a scale of 1 - 10, where 1 is extremely unimportant and 10 is extremely important, how important do you think this [RASE] plan and effort would be for your community?

Extremely unimportant

Extremely important

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Benefit Overall, how much do you expect the [RASE] plan to harm or benefit:

	Extremely harmful	Moderately harmful	Slightly harmful	No effect	Slightly beneficial	Moderately beneficial	Extremely beneficial
...Your community as a whole?
...You or your family specifically?

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Certainty_2 Thinking again about this hypothetical planning effort in your community, how likely do you think it is that the [RASE] plan will be successful?

• Not at all likely

• Slightly likely

• Moderately likely

• Very likely

• Extremely likely

Distance_3 Where do you think impacts from the [RASE] plan will be felt? (Select all that apply):

• My neighborhood

• My community

• My state

• My region of the country

• Nationwide

• Globally

Social_3 Who do you think impacts from the [RASE] plan will be mostly felt by?

• Entirely people who are like me

• Mostly people who are like me

• Both people who are like me and those who are not like me

• Mostly people who are not like me

• Entirely people who are not like me

Time_3 When do you feel most of the impacts from the [RASE] plan would be felt? In the next:

• 1-10 years

• 11-20 years

• 21 - 30 years

• 31 - 40 years

• 41 - 50 years

• 50 - 100 years

• More than 100 years

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Efficacy Please tell us how much you agree or disagree with the following statements about this [RASE] plan in your community:

	Strongly disagree	Somewhat disagree	Neither disagree nor agree	Somewhat agree	Strongly agree
[RASE] Plans and their associated policies will be effective in achieving increased [RASE]
Personal actions will be effective in achieving increased [RASE]
I am confident that my community could take action towards achieving [RASE] goals
I am confident that I could take personal action towards achieving [RASE] goals

Responsibility In general, who do you feel is responsible for achieving the goals outlined in the [RASE] plan? 

• Entirely individuals

• Mostly individuals

• Both individuals and the government

• Mostly the government

• Entirely the government

End of Block: DVs

Start of Block: Beliefs and Demographics

Info Thank you! You have reached the last section of the survey. Please just tell us a little about yourself. 

CCB1 Do you think that global warming (also called climate change) is happening?

• Yes

• No

• Don't know / Not sure

CCB2 How concerned are you personally about the impacts of climate change?

• Not at all concerned

• Slightly concerned

• Moderately concerned

• Very concerned

• Extremely concerned

Gov.Trust How often do you trust your local government to do what is right?

• Never

• Some of the time

• About half the time

• Most of the time

• Always

P_Orient In general, would you describe your political views as:

• Very conservative

• Conservative

• Moderate

• Liberal

• Very liberal

Q46 Which of the following political groups, if any, do you most identify with? 

• Republican

• Democrat

• Independent

• Libertarian

• None of the above / other

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Age What is your age in years? (if you prefer not to answer, please skip this question)

________________________________________________________________

Race Which of the following racial/ethnic groups best describes you? (if you prefer not to answer, please skip this question)

• Black or African American

• Asian (including Asian Indian)

• Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander

• American Indian or Alaskan Native

• White

Ethnicity Are you Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish in origin?

• No, not of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin

• Yes, Mexican, Mexican Am., Chicano

• Yes, Puerto Rican

• Yes, Cuban

• Yes, another Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin

Gender What is your gender? If you do not identify with these categories, please skip this question

• Male

• Female

Education What is the highest level of education you have completed?

• Less than high school diploma

• High school diploma or equivalent

• Some college but no degree

• Associate degree (for example, AA, AS)

• Bachelor degree (for example, BA, BS)

• Graduate or professional degree (for example MA, MBA, JD, PhD)

Income What is your annual household income? 

• Less than $10,000

• $10,000 - $19,999

• $20,000 - $29,999

• $30,000 - $39,999

• $40,000 - $49,999

• $50,000 - $59,999

• $60,000 - $69,999

• $70,000 - $79,999

• $80,000 - $89,999

• $90,000 - $99,999

• $100,000 - $149,999

• More than $150,000

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RentOwn Do you or your family rent or own your current home or residence? (Note: owning includes having a home mortgage). 

• Rent

• Own

State What State do you currently live in?

▼ Alabama ... Wyoming

Zip What is your 5-digit postal (zip) code? (If you prefer not to say, please leave blank)

________________________________________________________________

UrbanRural How would you describe the community you currently live in?

• Rural

• Suburban

• Urban

Tenure How many years have you lived in your current community?

________________________________________________________________

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Comments Thank you for responding to our survey! We greatly appreciate your time.

Please use the space below if you have any additional comments you would like to share on this topic.

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End of Block: Beliefs and Demographics

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