Usda Foods Program

OMB Control # 0584-0524

Expiration Date: 03/2010

ATTACHMENT F – FOCUS GROUP RECRUITMENT SCREENER FOR PARENTS

INTRODUCTION

Hello! My name is ___________ calling from ________. I am calling to see whether you are eligible and willing to participate in a project that we are conducting about government nutrition programs that help people in the community. I’d like to speak to the person in the household who is responsible for the household’s grocery shopping. Please know that participation is strictly voluntary and that there are no penalties for not participating in whole or in part. Who would that be?

IF NECESSARY, SAY: When I say, “the person who is responsible for the household’s grocery shopping,” I mean the person who completes the grocery shopping for the household most or all of the time.

Before I move into my questions, I am required to read you the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Burden Statement.

READ OMB BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-0524. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 2 hours and 20 minutes, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

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 Research and Analysis, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302 (0584-0524). Do not return the completed form to this address.

The research records that will be collected and used for this study may include an opinion survey, written notes, and an audiotape made during your participation in the focus group discussion. However, your comments and survey responses will be shared only in the aggregate with those from other participants. Aggregated information or results from this study may be presented in meetings or in internal reports to the USDA, Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). By aggregated, I mean all your responses will be combined with other participants. Your name and any information that can be traced back to you will not be included in any reports or meetings to the USDA.

SCREENING/RECRUITING

1. In your household, is the primary grocery shopper you or someone else?

1	Respondent – CONTINUE
2	Other Head of Household: May I speak with him/her?
3	Equal – Respondent and other Household Member – CONTINUE
4	REFUSED – TERMINATE. Thank you for your time.

2. Do you live in the greater CITY NAME area?

1	Yes – CONTINUE
2	No – TERMINATE

NOTE: FOR RURAL COMMUNITIES, ASK: Do you live in or near NAME OF TOWN?

1	Yes – CONTINUE
2	No – TERMINATE

NOTE: GROUPS WILL NOT BE HELD IN MARKETS WITH CASH/CLOC SITES.

3. For classification purposes, which of the following categories includes your age?

1	18 to 24 – TERMINATE
2	25 to 29
3	30 to 39
4	40 to 49
5	50 to 59
6	60 to 64
7	65 or older

RECRUIT A MIX.

4. Do you have any children in grades kindergarten through twelfth grade currently living in your household?

1	Yes – CONTINUE
2	No – TERMINATE

5. Are these boys, girls, or do you have both boys and girls in grades kindergarten through twelfth grade?

	YES	NO
Girls	1	2
Boys	1	2

MUST SAY YES TO EITHER/OR BOYS OR GIRLS. IF NO TO BOTH BOYS AND GIRLS, TERMINATE.

RECRUIT A MIX OF PARENTS/GUARDIANS WITH BOYS AND GIRLS.

6. Thinking of your (AS APPROPRIATE) daughter(s) and/or son(s) who is/are in grades kindergarten through twelfth grade, please tell me each child’s gender, grade in school, name of the school, and school district he or she attends, the type of school he or she attends, and the location of the school – do you consider it urban, suburban, or rural?

• By type of school, I mean public, private, or parochial school.

• By urban, I mean within or near a major city.

• By suburban, I mean within the greater metropolitan area, but outside the city center.

• By rural, I mean outside a major metropolitan area, which includes the city center and surrounding suburbs.

We are asking these questions to make sure we have a good mix of parents/guardians from different CITY NAME area schools.

CHILD	GENDER	GRADE	SCHOOL NAME and DISTRICT	SCHOOL TYPE	URBAN/ SUBURBAN/ RURAL
1 Son 2 Daughter	1 Male 2 Female	0 – Kindergarten 1 – First Grade 2 – Second Grade 3 – Third Grade 4 – Fourth Grade 5 – Fifth Grade 6 – Sixth Grade 7 – Seventh Grade 8 – Eighth Grade 9 – Ninth Grade 10 – Tenth Grade 11 – Eleventh Grade 12 – Twelfth Grade		1 – Public 2 – Private 3 – Parochial 4 – Charter 5 – Other; Please specify:	1 – Urban 2 – Suburban 3 – Rural
1 Son 2 Daughter	1 Male 2 Female	0 – Kindergarten 1 – First Grade 2 – Second Grade 3 – Third Grade 4 – Fourth Grade 5 – Fifth Grade 6 – Sixth Grade 7 – Seventh Grade 8 – Eighth Grade 9 – Ninth Grade 10 – Tenth Grade 11 – Eleventh Grade 12 – Twelfth Grade		1 – Public 2 – Private 3 – Parochial 4 – Charter 5 – Other; Please specify:	1 – Urban 2 – Suburban 3 – Rural
1 Son 2 Daughter	1 Male 2 Female	0 – Kindergarten 1 – First Grade 2 – Second Grade 3 – Third Grade 4 – Fourth Grade 5 – Fifth Grade 6 – Sixth Grade 7 – Seventh Grade 8 – Eighth Grade 9 – Ninth Grade 10 – Tenth Grade 11 – Eleventh Grade 12 – Twelfth Grade		1 – Public 2 – Private 3 – Parochial 4 – Charter 5 – Other; Please specify:	1 – Urban 2 – Suburban 3 – Rural

FOR THE ELEMENTARY GROUPS: RECRUIT MIX OF PARENTS/GUARDIANS WITH CHILDREN IN GRADES KINDERGARTEN, FIRST, SECOND, THIRD, FOURTH, AND FIFTH GRADES. RECRUIT A MIX BASED ON SCHOOL TYPE AND DISTRICT.

FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL GROUP: RECRUIT MIX OF PARENTS/GUARDIANS WITH CHILDREN IN GRADES SIXTH, SEVENTH, AND EIGHTH. RECRUIT A MIX BASED ON SCHOOL TYPE AND DISTRICT.

FOR HIGH SCHOOL GROUP: RECRUIT MIX OF PARENTS/GUARDIANS WITH CHILDREN IN GRADES NINTH, TENTH, ELEVENTH, AND TWELFTH. RECRUIT A MIX BASED ON SCHOOL TYPE AND DISTRICT.

7. Do any of these children qualify for the free or reduced lunch program at school?

1	Yes
2	No

8. Thinking of your son(s)/daughter(s), which of the following best describes how often they eat their____ provided by the school cafeteria? Would you say:

BREAKFAST			LUNCH
5	All of the time		5	All of the time
4	Most of the time		4	Most of the time
3	Some of the time		3	Some of the time
2	Not very often		2	Not very often
1	Not at all		1	Not at all

FOR EACH GROUP, RECRUIT AT LEAST SEVEN PARENTS/GUARDIANS WHOSE CHILD(REN) PURCHASE THEIR LUNCH AT SCHOOL ALL, MOST, OR SOME OF THE TIME.

9. Regardless of their grade or age, how many family members live in your household?

______________ RECORD

10. Was your total 2008 household income at or less than ___________? (DO NOT READ: 130% OF POVERTY LEVEL BASED ON NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLD RESIDENTS – INCOME CHART PROVIDED TO INTERVIEWERS)

1	AT OR BELOW 130% POVERTY LEVEL – SCREEN FOR SNAP ELIGIBLE GROUPS
2	MORE THAN 130% POVERTY LEVEL – SCREEN FOR NON-SNAP ELIGIBLE GROUPS

RECRUIT A MIX.

Household Size (Q8)	Gross Annual HHI (130%)	Gross Monthly Income	Gross Weekly Income
1	$13,524	$1,127	$282
2	$18,204	$1,517	$379
3	$22,884	$1,907	$477
4	$27,564	$2,297	$574
5	$32,244	$2,687	$672
6	$36,924	$3,077	$769
7	$41,604	$3,467	$867
8	$46,284	$3,857	$964
Each additional member	+$4,680	+390	+$98

*Food and Nutrition Service, USDA, 2009.

FOR SNAP-ELIGIBLE GROUPS, MUST BE AT OR BELOW 130% POVERTY LEVEL.

FOR NON-SNAP ELIGIBLE GROUPS, MUST BE ABOVE THE 130% POVERTY LEVEL.

11. Have you or anyone in your household ever worked?: IF NECESSARY, SAY: This includes work that you or others in the household are currently doing.

PROFESSION	Yes	No	Don’t Know
As a nutritionist or dietitian?	1	2	3
For the local, state or federal government?	1	2	3
For the food or beverage industry?	1	2	3
For a marketing or marketing research firm or department?	1	2	3
For a public relations firm or advertising agency?	1	2	3
The news media?	1	2	3

IF YES TO ANY OF THE SHADED ITEMS, TERMINATE.

12. What is/was your occupation? RECORD VERBATIM.

___________________

TERMINATE IF WORKS FOR THE FOOD/BEVERAGE INDUSTRY, FOR THE GOVERNMENT, OR PUBLIC RELATIONS/ADVERTISING AGENCY.

13. Have you ever participated in any type of market research discussion group in the past six months?

1	Yes – TERMINATE
2	No – CONTINUE
3	Refused – TERMINATE

14. Are you:

1	Hispanic or Latino
2	Not Hispanic or Latino
3	REFUSED

15. Which of the following includes your race? ALLOW MULTIPLE RESPONSES

1	American Indian or Alaska Native
2	Asian
3	Black or African American
4	Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
5	White
6	REFUSED

RECRUIT A MIX.

16. Are you currently:

1	Employed full-time
2	Employed part-time
3	A full-time student
4	A homemaker
5	Retired
6	Unemployed or looking for work
7	Refused

RECRUIT A MIX.

17. What is the highest level of education you completed?

1	Some high school or less
2	High school graduate or GED
3	Some college/Associate’s degree/technical school
4	College graduate/beyond (Bachelor’s degree, Master’s degree, postgraduate)
5	Refused

RECRUIT A MIX.

The reason for my questions is that we would like to invite you to participate in a focus group sponsored by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) about government nutrition programs. This is for market research purposes only. We are not trying to sell anything. You will receive a $____ reimbursement for your time and expenses.

The focus group will be held on ______ (DATE) and will start at (TIME) ________.

The focus group will last approximately 2 hours. If you agree to participate, it is very important that you make every effort to attend.

18. Will you help us with this study? IF NO, SAY: Only a few people are invited to participate and your opinions are very important to us.

1	Yes
2	No – TERMINATE
3	Don’t Know/Refused – TERMINATE

19. RECORD GENDER WITHOUT ASKING.

1	MALE
2	FEMALE

RECRUIT A MIX.

20. If transportation is a concern, we are able to arrange it for you. Do you need us to provide you with transportation to and from the focus group?

1	Yes
2	No

Again, we will be reimbursing you for your help. We will also be serving refreshments. The group will be made up of 8 to 12 people like yourself. Most of the time that you are there, you’ll be talking with others in a group discussion.

I want you to know that your participation is strictly voluntary.

Please arrive at the discussion group at least 10 minutes prior to the start time so that you can read and sign a confidentiality agreement. If you wish, I can send a copy of this form to you ahead of time. Would you like me to do so?

1	Yes
2	No

21. We will call you the day before the focus group as a reminder. Is this the best number to reach you (DAY BEFORE SESSION)? Is there a preferred time for us to call you?

ALTERNATIVE PHONE, IF NECESSARY: ____________________________

PREFFERD TIME, IF APPLICABLE: _________________________________

22. So that we may also mail you a map with directions to our facility, may I please have your full name and address?

NAME:

ADDRESS:

CITY, STATE:

ZIP CODE:

TELEPHONE NUMBER:

Thank you very much. We look forward to seeing you on DATE. If you should need to cancel, please contact X at XXX-XXX-XXXX.

ANSWERS TO COMMON QUESTIONS

How did you pick me?

We are an independent marketing group that places random phone calls to people in your area.

What is a focus group?

A focus group is really just a small group of people talking about different issues or topics. In this case, it will be around 8 to 12 people. It’s a directed discussion based on questions posed by the discussion leader. We’ll have a few questions for the group to discuss, but mostly you’ll talk to each other about the things you have in common.

Can I bring someone with me?

No. We have tried to select people who represent different backgrounds from the community. The group discussion can’t include friends or relatives. If you need to bring someone with you, there will be a place where they can wait with refreshments. But we cannot pay them or include them in the discussion.

What if I don’t want to give my address for mailing information?

It is important that everyone who is going to participate in the focus group receive the information we will be sending. We are not connected to any other organization, and your name and address will not be given to anyone else. We will not be sending your address to anyone or sharing it with any other organization. If you prefer, we could mail this to your work or to another address. If you want to confirm this project, you can call the NAME OF ORGANIZATION at PHONE NUMBER.

What are the differentiators that help characterize “suburban” versus “urban” versus “rural”?

By urban, I mean within or near a major city. By suburban, I mean within the greater metropolitan area, but outside the city center. And by rural, I mean outside a major metropolitan area, which includes the city center and surrounding suburbs.

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