A 1-Round 1 Advanced Letter to Study Participants-English

Appendix A1

Round 1 Advance Letter to Study

Participants: English

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 30 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. 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 Service, Office of Research and Analysis, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302 ATTN: PRA (0584-xxxx). Do not return the completed form to this address.

[WITH ABT, WESTAT AND FNS Logos]

ROUND 1 ADVANCE LETTER TO STUDY PARTICIPANTS: ENGLISH

<< Date>>

<<Name>>

<<Address>>

<<City, State Zip>>

Dear <<Honorific>> <<Last Name>>

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) would like you to be part of an important study. The study will look at how the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is working for about 3,000 families in Hampden County. SNAP gives you an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card you use to buy groceries. Abt Associates and Westat are conducting the study.

We’ll call three times to ask questions about your family, your diet, how you shop for food, and how you decide what to buy. We’ll call you for the first time in the next week or so. Then we’ll call between February and May 2012 and again between August and November 2012.

The first interview should take about 30 minutes. We’ll send you a $20 check afterwards. You’ll get $30 for the second interview, which will take about 50 minutes. The third interview will also take about 50 minutes. You’ll get $40 as a thank you for your time.

Taking part in the survey is up to you. Deciding not to join the study won’t affect your SNAP benefits. But your answers might help make SNAP benefits better for everyone. There isn’t much risk from being in the study except that someone could find out you were in the study. We’ll be careful to protect your information and make sure this does not happen.

Only some people from USDA/FNS and the research team will see your answers. Your name will be kept separate from your answers. Your answers will be put together with answers from the other people in the study and reported as totals and averages. No one’s name will be used. Everyone on the research team has signed a confidentiality form to protect your information, and it will not be shared with anyone outside the researchers for this study, except as otherwise required by law.

Someone from Westat will call you in the next week or so. You’ll use the yellow response card in this packet during the interview.

Please call NAME at our toll-free telephone number, (XXX-XXX-XXXX) if you have any questions,

Thank you for your help in this important study

Sincerely,

Susie McNutt

Westat Project Director