Second Follow-up Field Test of the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) – Recruitment and Screening for Cognitive Interviews

High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 Second Follow-up (HSLS:09)

2014/15 Cognitive Interviews

Participant Recruitment and Screening

Attachment I

Recruitment Procedures

Description of Cognitive Interviewee Recruitment Process

Advertisement:

The cognitive testing will be advertised at a variety of locations and through a variety of media in the Chicago metropolitan area to maximize exposure to a diverse group of young adults between the ages of 20 and 22, such as:

• community locations (e.g., coffee shops, community organizations serving youth and/or LGBT populations);

• neighborhood and city newspapers;

• internet listing services (e.g., Craigslist, Meet-up groups, Facebook); and

• Word of mouth (e.g. snowball sampling)

The advertisements will describe the purpose of the cognitive research and details of participation, including the time commitment, incentive for participation, and contact information. The flyer will also describe the eligibility requirements for participation.

Recruitment:

Individuals who are interested in participating in a cognitive interview will be asked to call the Research Support Services (RSS) office to complete a brief screening interview to determine eligibility. Eligible participants will be those determined to between the ages of 20 and 22. In general, respondents should reflect a range of demographic characteristics.

Sample Recruitment Flyer

Are you 19-23 ¹Years Old?

You may be eligible to earn $40 by participating in a cognitive interview (a discussion between you and an interviewer about how you understand certain questions concerning your experiences and plans since leaving high school).

About the interviews:

Research Support Services (RSS) and RTI International are conducting this study for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) of the U.S. Department of Education. The purpose of the study is to obtain your feedback on some of the questions that will be used in an NCES national study. The cognitive interviews will begin in November 2014 and will be held at a central location convenient to public transportation in the Chicago area. The interview will last about 60 minutes. A researcher will ask you to respond to questions, including what you think the questions mean. Questions will be about your experiences since high school and future plans.

Eligibility to participate:

Please call RSS between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays to complete a brief telephone screening in order to determine if you are eligible. The telephone screening will take approximately 3–5 minutes to complete. You will not be compensated for completing the telephone screening.

Contact:

Helen Solis

Research Support Services

888-540-6770

Sample Online Ad (e.g., Craigslist)

1 Hour Interview- Are you 19-23 Years Old?

You may be eligible to earn $40 by participating in a cognitive interview (a discussion between you and an interviewer about how you understand certain questions concerning your experiences and plans since leaving high school).

Research Support Services (RSS) and RTI International are conducting this study for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) of the U.S. Department of Education. The purpose of the study is to obtain your feedback on some of the questions that will be used in an NCES national study. Interviews will begin in November 2014 and will be held at a central location convenient to public transportation in the Chicago area. The interview will last about 60 minutes. Questions will be about your experiences since high school and future plans.

Please call RSS between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays to complete a brief telephone screening in order to determine if you are eligible. The telephone screening will take approximately 3–5 minutes to complete. You will not be compensated for completing the telephone screening.

Contact: Helen Solis, Research Support Services, 888-540-6770

Attachment II

Eligibility Screening Questions

Thank you for inquiring about the cognitive interviews for this study about young adults and their plans for the future. I will first need to ask you a few questions to determine if you are eligible to participate in the cognitive interviews. This screening for potential participants will take 3 to 5 minutes. Both this screening and the interview are voluntary; you may choose not to answer any question you don’t want to. If you are eligible, the cognitive interview will be recorded so that we can review your ideas and comments. We will prepare a report that does not single out any one person but summarizes what we have heard from various individuals as a whole. In accordance with federal confidentiality requirements, we will keep the recording only until our report is finished. No names will be mentioned in the report.

Screener

1. What is your age?

If 20–22, go to Q3

If no – terminate screener; ineligible

2. Are you…

• Male

• Female

• Transgender, transsexual, or gender non-conforming?

• Other ________________________?

3. Do you think of yourself as…

• Straight

• Gay or lesbian

• Bisexual

• Other_________________________________?

4. Are you of either Hispanic or Latino origin?

• Yes

• No

5. What is your race? (You may select one or more.)

• American Indian or Alaska Native

• Asian

• Black or African American

• Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

• White

6. Have you completed high school?

• No

• Yes, high school diploma

• Yes, GED or other high school equivalency

7. Do you have any post high school education such as a 4-year, 2-year, or vocational-technical program?

• No, never enrolled in a post high school education program

• Yes, currently enrolled in a post high school education program

• Yes, post high school education program, but left before completing

• Yes, completed a post high school education program

8. (If you have some post high school education) What type of post high school program have you enrolled in?

• 4-year baccalaureate degree program

• 2-year post high school degree program

• Vocational or technical training

9. Which of the following best describes you?

• Employed full-time

• Employed part-time

• Not employed but looking for work

• Not employed and not looking for work

10. What is your name?

__________________________________________________

11. What is the best telephone number to reach you (include area code)?

___________________________

12. Is it ok to leave a voice message at this number?

• Yes

• No

13. Is it ok to send a text message to this number?

• Yes

• No

14. What is your e-mail address?

____________________________________________

Thank you for answering our questions. We will let you know in the next few days whether we can use your help. Once the participants have been selected, they will be contacted by phone to notify them of the date, time, and location of the interview. Upon completion of the interview, you will receive $40.

Attachment III

Sample Consent Forms

HSLS:09 Cognitive Testing of Questionnaire Items

Participant Informed Consent

You are invited to participate voluntarily in this interview, which is being conducted by RTI International, a not-for-profit research firm, and Research Support Services (RSS), a contract research firm, for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), part of the U.S. Department of Education. The purpose of this interview is to help NCES review the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) Second Follow-Up questionnaire to ensure that it can be well understood.

This cognitive interview has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB# 1850-0803). The interview and discussion will take approximately 60 minutes. There are no right or wrong answers to the questions we ask—we just want to ask your opinions about the questionnaire that has been developed. You will be asked how you understand specific terms and phrases in the questions as well as how you arrived at your answers. Finally, we will ask you about your thoughts and feelings toward the questionnaire overall. You can help us by describing anything you find confusing or difficult to understand in the questions or any issues that come up as you answer them.

Again, your participation in this study is voluntary. There is no physical risk and only minimal risk associated with data confidentiality. We will protect your information. We do not anticipate that any of the discussion topics will make you uncomfortable or upset. However, you may refuse to answer any question or take a break at any time. There are no direct benefits to you for participating in this study, but we hope that these interviews will help us develop and improve questions for a national survey about individual’s experiences as they transition from high school to postsecondary education and the labor force. Upon completing the interview, you will receive $40 in appreciation for your time. The information you give us will be combined with the responses of others in a summary report that does not identify you as an individual. Your answers 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 (20 U.S.C. § 9573).

If you have any questions about the study, you may call Helen Solis at Research Support Services (888-540-6770) or Melissa Cominole at RTI International (919-990-8456). If you have any questions about your rights as a study participant, you may call RTI’s Office of Research Protection at 1-866-214-2043 (a toll-free number).

____________________________________________________________________________

The above document describing the voluntary nature, response confidentiality, and procedures for this research study has been explained to me. I agree to participate.

Signature of participant________________________________ Date ___/___/___

I certify that the purpose, the voluntary nature, and response confidentiality associated with participating in this research have been explained to me.

Signature of Person Who Obtained Consent_______________________________

Date ___/___/___

Audio-taping the interview

In order to make best use of our findings, we also request that you allow the interview to be audio-taped, through the use of a tape recorder or laptop computer that will be on the table. The audio-tape will only be heard by people who are working on this project. The only purpose of audio-taping is to allow us to review the interview as we document our findings. We will destroy the tapes upon completion of the project. If you would rather that your interview not be audio-taped, or if at any time during the interview you decide that you would like the audio-taping to be stopped, please tell the interviewer and we will stop taping.

____________________________________________________________________________

I agree to allow the interview to be audio-taped and to be listened to by others who are working on this project:

Signature of participant ________________________________ Date ___/___/___

1 The target group for this study is individuals aged 20-22. However, the recruitment flyers specify a slightly wider range of ages (19-23) in order to maximize the accuracy of the screening process.  That is, during the screening process  a wider range allows RSS to screen out individuals who are close to the desired age but would claim to be the exact desired age if they knew it.