HINTS provides NCI with a comprehensive assessment of the American public's current access to, and use of, information about cancer across the cancer care continuum from cancer prevention, early detection, diagnosis, treatment, and survivorship. The content of the survey focuses on understanding the degree to which members of the general population understand vital cancer prevention messages. More importantly, this NCI survey couples knowledge-related questions with inquiries into the communication channels through which understanding is being obtained, and assessment of cancer-related behavior. HINTS collects data using a stratified random sample of the non-institutionalized adult population (18+) in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. HINTS 4 methodology will consist of a mail survey conducted in 4 data collection cycles between 2011 and 2014.
This submission represents a reinstatement with changes that will provide data for comparison with the previous HINTS survey data. Previous HINTS data collections have had between 5,000-7,000 respondents every other year. HINTS 4 is planning for 14,066 respondents in 4 data collection cycles over the course of 3 years. Each data collection cycle will have up to 3,533 respondents. This is an increase in burden from the previous submission due to a slight increase in the number of respondents and an increase in the estimated time per response. Other changes in this submission that are new include having 4 data collection cycles rather than on a biennial schedule as was the past. This study design will allow HINTS to more quickly address emerging issues in the field of health communication, maintain the ongoing measurement of trends, and include additional topics and measures. Additionally, a Spanish version of the questionnaire is being developed to accommodate Hispanic respondents. As with previous rounds, HINTS 4 will include embedded methodological experiments designed to maximize response rates, reduce bias, and obtain the highest quality data. Experiments will include variations in the respondent selection process, the formatting and structure of questionnaire items administered by mail, and specific activities targeting Spanish-speaking populations.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.