2010 Census Alternative Questionnaire Experiment (AQE) Focus Groups

Attachment B – “Black (African)”

CENSUS FOCUS GROUP MODERATOR’S GUIDE

Thank you all for coming. My name is _______ and I am with JBS International. JBS is a research firm and this focus group is part of a project we are doing with the Census Bureau. Today, I’d like to talk with you about your thoughts on some of the forms that may be used to collect race and ethnicity data for the Census Bureau in the future.

As you know we are audio and video recording our discussion today. These recordings will help us make sure we get what you are saying right. These tapes will only be used by researchers working on this project. Observers are here this evening to see what the focus group is like and to provide feedback to us, as moderators, about what we can do to improve. Your information will be kept strictly confidential and you may choose not to answer a question if you don’t want to.

I will be asking you to look over and complete some questions from the Census forms and then ask you a few questions about the forms. There are no right or wrong answers – we want all of your opinions, ideas and suggestions. We want all of you to feel comfortable and to participate so we have a set of ground rules to help us:

1 – Turn your cell phones and pagers off or to vibrate

2 – Be courteous and respectful of the other participants’ opinions and ideas. Remember there are no right or wrong answers.

3 – Be honest and know that we really want to hear your opinions and ideas

4 – Speak clearly and one at a time. You don’t have to raise your hand to speak.

5 – Actively participate because we want to hear from ALL of you.

Introduction

First, to introduce ourselves to one another, I’d like to go around the table and have everyone take a few seconds to briefly say their first name and share your favorite fun activity.

(Moderator: this can be sharing of favorite food/or something non-threatening to break the ice).

Snippet (XB)

Instructions to Participants

(Moderator: Pass out first two snippets as participants are reviewing form; hold up and/or point to the form or snippet which must be reviewed and completed and ensure participants are understanding and following instructions).

This evening I will be asking you to review a Census form (hold up laminated form) and complete small portions of the forms, which we are calling ‘snippets’ (hold up snippets). The form I’d like you to review, the XB, is in front of you. I would like each of you to read through this form.

Then, when you come to questions 8 and 9, please complete the snippets of questions 8 and 9 that I am passing out now. Please put your first name on the snippets. Then, on the first snippet please answer the questions for yourself.

For the other snippet, please answer the questions for one of your children. If you don’t have any children, please complete the other snippet for any child living in your household. If there are no children living in your household please complete the other snippet for another adult living in your household. If you live alone, please complete only the first snippet.

For the other snippet, please write down the age and relationship of the person you are filling out the snippet for and then complete questions 5 and 6.

(Moderator: Read through the instructions about filling out the second snippet again if necessary. You can shorten the instructions for the second snippet if you read it through a second time.)

Imagine you are Person 1 and the other person is Person 2. Please complete the form to the best of your ability and let me know when you have finished.

Are there any questions about my instructions? If you have any questions about the snippet itself, please note them and we will have a chance to go over them in our discussion.

THEME 1: RESPONSE TO HISPANIC/RACE QUESTIONS

Questions

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of ALL participants unless otherwise noted. Ask all questions of first participant, then ask all questions of the second participant, etc.)

Please tell me how you completed the snippet for yourself for questions 8 and 9?

1. Which box or boxes did you choose?

2. Did you write an answer on any of the lines?  What did you write?

3. Under which checkbox did you write your answer?

4. Why did you choose the box or boxes you did?  

5. If you choose more than one, why did you check each one?

6. Why did you choose to write an answer? OR Why did you choose not to write anything?

7. How did you decide where to write in your answer?

8. Did you think about answering any other way?  If so, in what way?

9. (Moderator: This question should be asked only of those participants who reported a general term like African.) Tell me more about why you used a general term (like African) rather than a specific term (like Ethiopian).

THEME 2: THOUGHTS ABOUT THE SNIPPET

Questions

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of SOME participants.)

1. How did you feel about the instructions or wording on this snippet?

* If respondents say that the instructions or wording were confusing or unclear, probe: Which words or instructions were confusing/unclear? How could it be improved?

2. How many races did you think you could mark for question 9?

3. Did you see the instruction to mark one or more boxes for question 9? How do you feel about this instruction?

4. (Moderator should point out the examples if necessary. Examples are used with Other Hispanic, Other Asian, and Other Pacific Islander categories.) Look at the examples used for both questions. Do you think having these examples helped you in completing the form?

*If respondents say yes probe: Could you tell me more about that?

THEME 3: RESPONSES FOR OTHER HOUSEHOLD MEMBER

Questions

1. How many of you completed the other snippet for a child? How did you answer the Hispanic and race questions for this child? Was this the same or different from what you did for yourself? Why?

2. How many of you completed the other snippet for another adult who lives in the household? How did you answer the Hispanic and race questions? Was this the same or different from what you did for yourself? Why?

Second Snippet (X9)

THEME 2: THOUGHTS ABOUT THE SNIPPET

(Moderator: pass out X9 snippets)

Now I’d like you to look at our second snippet, labeled X9. Please place the XB and X9 snippet side by side. Please compare the two.

Questions

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of SOME participants.)

1. Did you see that the examples are different in question 9 on form XB and X9. What do you think about the differences? Would you have answered question 9 the same or differently on the second form because of these examples?

2. Which of these two forms do you prefer? Why do you prefer one instead of the other?

Third Snippet (X3)

THEME 1: RESPONSE TO HISPANIC/RACE QUESTION

Questions

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of ALL participants unless otherwise noted. Ask all questions of first participant, then ask all questions of the second participant, etc.)

Please turn over your second snippet and put it with the first ones. (Moderator passes out snippet X3) Now we are going to move to a different snippet labeled X3, please review and complete it. Complete it as though you are filling out your census form and it is the first form you have been given; in other words, don’t reflect on the previous form.

Please tell me how you completed the snippet for this question?

1. Which box or boxes did you choose?

2. Did you write an answer on any of the lines?  What did you write?

3. Under which checkbox did you write your answer?

4. Why did you choose the box or boxes you did?  

5. If you choose more than one, why did you check each one?

6. Why did you choose to write an answer? OR Why did you choose not to write anything?

7. How did you decide where to write in your answer?

8. Is this the same or different from what you marked and wrote on the XB? If different, why?

THEME 2: THOUGHTS ABOUT THE SNIPPET

Questions

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of SOME participants.)

1. How did you feel about the instructions or wording on this form?

* If respondents say that instructions of wording were confusing or unclear, probe:

“Which words or instructions were confusing/unclear? How could it be improved?”

2. How many races did you think you could mark on this snippet?

3. Did you see the instruction to “mark one or more boxes AND write in the specific race(s) or origin(s)? How do you feel about this instruction?

4. What does the term “race” mean in this question? What does the term “origin” mean to you in this question? Do they mean the same thing or different things to you?

General Questions

THEME 2: SNIPPET PREFERENCES

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of ALL participants.)

1. Thinking back on all the snippets, which do you prefer and why?

*Wording?

*Instructions?

*Boxes and write in space?

*Examples?

*Categories?

*Layout?

2. Do you think any of the 3 snippets are better for reporting as African?

THEME 2B: RECOMMENDATIONS

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of SOME participants.)

1. Do you have any recommendations on the forms that you believe would help people provide more accurate information, especially Africans? Also, to make people feel more comfortable answering?

THEME 4: SITUATIONAL IDENTITY

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of MOST participants.)

1. Have you been asked to identify your race or race(s) in conversations?

* If yes, in what kinds of situations have you been asked? How do you answer?

2. When you are asked to identify your race on forms, do you answer the same or differently than when you are asked in person?

* If participants answer differently, probe: Please explain why. What influences the way you answer these questions?

THEME 5: AWARENESS AND FLUIDITY

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of MOST participants.)

1. As we have been discussing today, all of these forms are asking you to identify your race or races. I’d like you to think of some of the earliest instances in which you thought about your racial identity. Please describe one of these experiences and why/how this is an important memory for you.

2. Do you believe your racial identity has changed over time? How so? For example, early childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, now?

3. Have any other of your life experiences had an important impact on your racial identity? How so?

4. How many of you have lived in another country, for example, if you were born or lived in some place other than the U.S.? Did you identify your race differently there than you do here? If so, how did it differ? When you came here, did you identify your race differently?

5. Do you feel that people may wonder “what” your race or races are? What race or races do people typically think you are? Why do you think that is?

THEME 7: “RACE” & “ORIGIN” CONCEPTS

(Moderator: These questions will be asked of SOME participants.

Questions

During our discussion of the X3, we talked about the use of the terms “race” and “origin.” Now, I’m going to ask about a couple of other terms.

1. What does the term ‘ethnicity’ mean to you? Does it mean the same thing to you or something different than ‘race’? Does “ethnicity” mean the same thing or something different than “origin?”

2. Do you think that any of these questions on any of these forms is asking about where you were born? If so, Which ones and why?

Wrap up by JBS – i.e., Additional comments? Questions? Ideas? Suggestions?

Moderator: Thank the participants for their time and provide instructions for collecting participation incentives.

MODERATOR INFORMATION

Focus Group Moderator: ______________________________________________

Location: _________________________________________________________

Date:___________________________________________ Time of FG ________

Attachment B – African Moderator Guide v2a February 12, 2011

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