Supporting Statement for I-CORPS Survey Improvement

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine
Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 3145-0215)
TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Improvement of NSF/NIH I-Corps Teams
Longitudinal Outcomes Survey
PURPOSE:
This information collection will gather participant feedback on a data collection instrument that seeks to
collect data on entrepreneurship among principal investigators (PIs) and participants of NSF’s
Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Teams Program, including its spinoffs in other Federal agencies, and a
comparable group of NSF PIs who did not go through the program. The instrument will be refined based
on the feedback provided in the cognitive interviews with those participating in a pre-test of the
information collection. (An omnibus survey instrument, combining the questions and applicability to
each respondent group, appears in Appendix B).
A similar instrument used only for I-Corps participants had already received full clearance from OMB. 1
However, NSF has decided to amend the instrument, including the addition and removal of selected
questions from the approved instrument (revisions to the instrument appear in Appendix C). Moreover,
the instrument also has been modified for use with two groups: 1) NIH I-Corps participants and NSF
principal investigators who have not participated in the I-Corps Teams training. It is these additional
groups are, who have not previously used the instrument, that drive the need for a pre-test and cognitive
interviews (interview protocol appears in Appendix A). Ultimately, the final refined instruments (for the
various groups described) will be submitted for OMB clearance for full-scale data collection.
DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS:
Respondents fall into two groups: 1) NSF principal investigators who did not participate in the I-Corps
Teams program but have pursued entrepreneurial efforts and 2) participants in the NSF/NIH I-Corps
Teams program, including principal investigators, entrepreneurial leads, and mentors. NSF and NIH
have a memorandum of understanding in place for the implementation of the I-Corps program (see
Appendix D). NSF is responsible for the development of the instrument to be used for both agencies.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)
[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form
[ ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software
[ ] Focus Group

[ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey
[ ] Small Discussion Group
[X] Other: Cognitive Interviews

CERTIFICATION:
I certify the following to be true:
1. The collection is voluntary.
2. The collection is low-burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.
3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal agencies.

1

The longitudinal survey instrument received clearance for two data collection periods (time 1 and time 2). Time 1 data
collection has already taken place – this request is seeking changes to the time 2 instrument. Original OMB approval number
is 3145-0238, expiration date April 30, 2018.

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4. The results are not intended to be disseminated to the public.
5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy
decisions.
6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with
the program or may have experience with the program in the future.
Name: Suzanne H. Plimpton, NSF Reports Clearance Officer_______________________
To assist review, please provide answers to the following question:
Personally Identifiable Information:
1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected? [X ] Yes [ ] No
2. If Yes, is the information that will be collected included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act
of 1974? [X] Yes [ ] No
3. If Applicable, has a System or Records Notice been published? [ ] Yes [ ] No
Gifts or Payments:
Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to
participants? [ ] Yes [X] No

BURDEN HOURS
Category of Respondent
NSF I-Corps Teams
Non-I-Corps NSF Principal Investigators
I-Corps at NIH participants
Totals

No. of
Respondents
25
12
9

Participation
Time
30 minutes
30 minutes
30 minutes

Burden
12.5 hrs
6 hrs
4.5 hrs
23 hrs

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is $36,000.00. This estimate
includes contractor time to review and revise the instruments to different participant groups, program the
survey website, identify interviewees, schedule and conduct the interviews, and summarize findings for
a total 240 hours of work for all pre-test interviews. The average rate used for this cost estimate is
$150.00.
If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide
answers to the following questions:
The selection of your targeted respondents
1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential respondents
and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe?
[X] Yes
[ ] No

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For the 34 participants from the NSF and NIH I-Corps program participants, respondents will represent
a random selection of all I-Corps program participants from the 2011 through 2013 cohorts who
consented to participate in the Longitudinal Outcomes study using the previously approved time 1
instrument and match key demographic characteristics of interest for cognitive interviewing purposes.
We will recruit 12 non-I-Corps principal investigators from university programs without much exposure
to the I-Corps program to date. Entrepreneurship program officers at North Carolina State University
and the University of Florida were recommended and have agreed to support the identification of PIs
who have pursued commercialization of NSF-funded research, but have not been exposed to the I-Corps
program.
Administration of the Instrument
1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)
[X] Web-based or other forms of Social Media
[X] Telephone
[ ] In-person
[ ] Mail
[ ] Other, Explain
2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [X] Yes [ ] No
Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

Instructions for completing Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for
the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback”
TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Provide the name of the collection that is the subject
of the request. (e.g. Comment card for soliciting feedback on xxxx)
PURPOSE: Provide a brief description of the purpose of this collection and how it will be used. If this
is part of a larger study or effort, please include this in your explanation.
DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: Provide a brief description of the targeted group or groups for
this collection of information. These groups must have experience with the program.
TYPE OF COLLECTION: Check one box. If you are requesting approval of other instruments under
the generic, you must complete a form for each instrument.
CERTIFICATION: Please read the certification carefully. If you incorrectly certify, the collection
will be returned as improperly submitted or it will be disapproved.
Personally Identifiable Information: Provide answers to the questions.
Gifts or Payments: If you answer yes to the question, please describe the incentive and provide a
justification for the amount.

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BURDEN HOURS:
Category of Respondents: Identify who you expect the respondents to be in terms of the following
categories: (1) Individuals or Households;(2) Private Sector; (3) State, local, or tribal governments; or
(4) Federal Government. Only one type of respondent can be selected.
No. of Respondents: Provide an estimate of the Number of respondents.
Participation Time: Provide an estimate of the amount of time required for a respondent to participate
(e.g. fill out a survey or participate in a focus group)
Burden: Provide the Annual burden hours: Multiply the Number of responses and the participation
time and divide by 60.
FEDERAL COST: Provide an estimate of the annual cost to the Federal government.
If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide
answers to the following questions:
The selection of your targeted respondents. Please provide a description of how you plan to identify
your potential group of respondents and how you will select them. If the answer is yes, to the first
question, you may provide the sampling plan in an attachment.
Administration of the Instrument: Identify how the information will be collected. More than one box
may be checked. Indicate whether there will be interviewers (e.g. for surveys) or facilitators (e.g., for
focus groups) used.
Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

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