Cognitive Interviews for Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 Third Follow-up 2012 (ELS:2002/12) Survey Draft Items

Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 Third Follow-up 2012 (ELS:2002/12)

2010 Cognitive Interviews

Attachment IV

Cognitive Interview Protocols

ELS:2002/12

Protocol for Cognitive Interviews with Young Adults

INTERVIEW PROTOCOL AS EXPLAINED TO PARTICIPANTS

Introduction and Welcome

Hello, my name is ___________ and I will interview you today. This is ____________ and we are from Research Support Services, or RSS, an organization that is working with RTI International. RSS and RTI International are conducting this study for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) of the U.S. Department of Education. We are developing a questionnaire that will gather information on the work and education experiences of a sample of young adults that have been followed since high school.

As we mentioned when you were recruited, we would like to record this session so that we can review your ideas and comments after this meeting is over. We will prepare a report that will not mention any names and will not single out any one person. It will only summarize what we heard from interviewees as a whole. We will keep the recording only until our report is finished.

All responses that relate to or describe identifiable characteristics of individuals may be used only for statistical purposes and may not be disclosed, or used, in identifiable form for any other purpose except as required by law [Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA 2002) Public Law 107-279, Section 183].

Before we begin, I would like to go over the format for our session. Basically, I will ask you to complete a paper form by answering a series of questions. I will then ask you about your understanding of each question and the process by which you reached or determined your answer.

CONTENT: Interview Questions.

Cognitive Interviews, Form A

There are 11 items. All items are on a 5-point Likert scale: Strongly agree/Agree/Neither Agree Nor Disagree/Disagree/Strongly Disagree.

Occupation Self-Efficacy

1. I’m confident that I can perform my job at a very high level of skill

2. I’m certain that I can solve big problems that occur at work

3. I’m confident that I can reach the goals I set for myself at work

4. I’m certain that I can do my work well despite time pressures

5. I’m confident that I can do my work well even when I need to juggle work with non-work responsibilities (e.g., in my family or community)

Occupation Interests

1. I am really interested in my work

2. I often get totally absorbed in my job tasks

3. I rarely get bored when I am doing my job

Work Support

1. People at work are pretty supportive of me

2. There are people I can learn from at work

3. There are people I can turn to for help in solving a work problem

Cognitive Interviews, Form B

There are 10 items. All items are on a 5-point Likert scale.

Occupation Outcome Expectations

Remaining at my current job will allow me to …

1. get respect from other people

2. do work that I find satisfying

3. earn enough money for the lifestyle I want to have

4. work with other people who share my interests and values

Job Satisfaction

1. I feel fairly well satisfied with my present job

2. Most days I am enthusiastic about my work.

3. I find real enjoyment in my work

Job Persistence intentions (measures of job turnover intentions reframed to generate items to assess persistence intentions)

1. I plan to remain in my current job over the next year

2. I don’t usually think about leaving this job

3. I feel pretty strongly committed to my current job

Cognitive Interviews, Form C

There are 14 items. All items are on a 5-point Likert scale.

Because Form C is slightly longer (14 items) than others (11 and 10 items), as a precaution to ensure all items are sufficiently discussed, 5 respondents will start with education self-efficacy, followed by education interest, then supports, and finally intentions. The other 5 respondents will start with education supports, then go to persistence intentions, and follow this with education interests and education self-efficacy.

Education Self-efficacy

1. I’m confident that I can earn strong grades in my education program

2. I’m certain that I can understand the most difficult material presented in my courses

3. I’m confident that I can do an excellent job on my education assignments

4. I’m confident that I could complete my degree despite financial pressures

5. I’m confident that I could complete my degree despite having competing demands for my time (e.g., from work or family)

Education Interests

1. I really like my education program on the whole

2. I am enjoying the courses in my field of study

3. I get totally absorbed in what I am studying

Education supports

1. I feel support from important people in my life for completing my education program

2. My family members support my choice of education program

3. I have access to a good mentor or advisor who can offer me advice and encouragement

Education Persistence Intentions

1. I am totally convinced that I will complete my education program

2. I think that earning a degree or certificate in my field of study is a realistic goal for me

3. I am fully committed to completing my education program