Moderator's Guide

Form Approved

OMB No. 0920-0910

Exp. Date 03/31/2018

Moderator’s Guide:

Parents’ Perceptions of Public Service Announcement Concepts

on Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems

Parents of one or more children 12-17 years of age

1. Welcome/Introduction (5 minutes)

Welcome and thank you very much for agreeing to participate in this focus group. My name is ________, and my role is to guide the discussion tonight. I work for ICF, a research and consulting firm. I am not an expert in the topic we will be discussing. There are no right or wrong answers to the questions I’m going to ask, so please just try to relax and enjoy the discussion.

Before we start, I want to make sure that everyone has signed the consent form. [Note to moderator: all participants must submit a signed consent form prior to beginning the group. If any participants have not signed the consent form, have them sign it prior to beginning the group and give it to you.] I just want to go over some things mentioned in the consent form:

• Participation in this focus group is voluntary.

• All of your answers are private.

• You may choose to not answer any question.

• You will receive an appreciation for your participation in the group.

• The group will last approximately 1.5 hours.

The main purpose of our discussion tonight is to get your feedback on some advertising messages and concepts that have been developed. Your responses will help determine whether changes or enhancements need to be made to these pieces.

Ground Rules

To make our discussion more comfortable and run smoothly for everyone, we will need to follow a number of ground rules. [Note to moderator: Read the ground rules]

• Everyone’s input is important.

• Please speak one at a time.

• The session is being audio recorded, so please speak at the same volume that I speak at—If you are talking softly, I may ask you to speak up to ensure your comments are captured.

• People from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, also known as the CDC, and my company observing the session in person and by live stream on the internet through a password-protected site. A recording will not be made of the stream.

• Stay focused on the question. I may need to cut a discussion short because of the limited time we have, so try to be brief with your comments and don’t take it personally if I have to move us along.

• Share the floor space. [Note to moderator: Invite quiet persons to share their opinions.]

• It is okay to disagree with another’s opinion or perspective. If you dislike something or disagree with something that is said, I want to hear about it. However, please avoid debating or trying to sway the opinion of others.

• There are no wrong answers to any of the questions I will ask you.

• Please show respect for one another.

Are any other ground rules needed for everyone to feel comfortable? [Note to moderator: seek consensus on ground rules]

2. Warm-up (5 minutes)

Let’s begin by finding out a little bit about each of you. Please tell us your first name only and perhaps an activity you like to engage in with your child/children or family members during your spare time. [Icebreaker: Note to moderator: start by restating your name and state one of the activities you like to engage in with your family.]

3. Introduction to concepts (2 minutes)

So, let’s get started. I am going to be showing you three different advertising concepts or ideas. As I present each one, I would like you to imagine that you’re watching a commercial at home on the television or somewhere else via the internet perhaps. These concepts are in development so you won’t see final advertisements. Rather, I’m going to show some visuals to help you imagine what each commercial might look like. I’m going to show the concepts one at a time, give you a few minutes to react to them, and then ask you questions.

[Note to Moderator: Rotate order of concepts across total number of groups conducted. Show each concept separately and after each concept is shown, ask questions 1-20. Repeat these activities for the second and third concept. After all three concepts have been reviewed, ask questions 20-23.]

4. Review of concepts (20 minutes per concept)

Comprehension and Impression

1. What is the main idea that this advertisement is trying to get across, in your own words?

   1. Tell me about whether you think the information in this ad is important. How so

2. How would you sum up, in just a few words, your first impression of the words and visuals in this ad? Do you like it? Not like it? What makes you say that?

3. What action, if any, is the audience being asked to take? What is the ad trying to get people do? What might you do if you saw this ad?

4. Is the information in this ad new to you, or did you know it already? If new, does the information surprise you? Motivate you to take action? Anger you? Other?

5. If this commercial came on your television at home, would it get your attention? Why or why not?

6. How does the ad make you feel? [Probe: de-motivated; shamed; lectured; motivated; energized; afraid]

7. Do you strongly agree or disagree with any part of this message, if so what?

8. Who is this message from? [Probe: who do they consider a trustworthy source for health information?]

9. How likely would you be to visit the website that is listed in the ad? [Show hands of those who would definitely visit, then another round of hands for those who would be likely to visit. Explore reasons for this (and those who are not likely to visit).]

[Note to Moderator: Ask participants to complete questions 1 and 2 on the feedback form.]

Images

Now I’d like to shift gears and have you think specifically about the images or visuals in this concept. Would anyone like to see the concept again before we continue the discussion?

10. How do you feel about the images or visuals used in this concept? Describe your thoughts. Are they helpful/engaging? Why or why not?

11. Are there any images or visuals that are not appropriate for any reason?

Words and Phrases

Next, let’s talk about the script or the words in this commercial.

12. Are there any words or phrases that you think are especially attention-getting or appealing?

13. Can you think of any ways to say things differently that would make you personally more likely to notice and think about the message? What additional information would you need in order to more strongly believe this message?

14. Were there any words that were unfamiliar, confusing or hard to understand? What other words could be used in their place? [Note to moderator: Probe preference of use of “e-cigarettes” vs. “electronic cigarettes”.]

[Note to Moderator: Ask participants to complete questions 3-12 on the feedback form.]

5. Ranking (5 minutes)

Thinking about all the concepts you saw, I would like you to rank each one, with a 1 being the one you think will most effectively motivate parents to talk to their children about e-cigarettes and 3 being the least motivating. [Note to Moderator: Direct participant to complete the rating on the feedback form].

15. What did you rank highest? Why? Lowest? Why?

6. Concluding discussion (8 minutes)

16. Before today’s discussion, what would you say you knew about electronic cigarettes?

17. Before today’s discussion, what concerns, if any, did you have about young people and electronic cigarettes? Youth smoking conventional cigarettes (NO ENDS use)?

False Close

[Note to Moderator: please leave the room to check with observers for any follow-up questions that should be asked].

Closing

Thank you very much for coming this evening, and for sharing your ideas with us—we really appreciate your time.

Thank You/Wrap Up

Before you leave this facility, please remember to pick up your incentive and as well handouts we have for you on electronic cigarettes and quitting smoking.

[Note to moderator: collect feedback forms.]

Concept ____ (One sheet for each concept.)

Questions 1 & 2

Please circle your opinion for each of the items below.

1. This ad is easy to understand.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
2. This ad is believable.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree

Questions 3 - 10

Please circle your opinion for each of the items below.

3. This ad taught me something new.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
4. This ad made me stop and think.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
5. This ad made me feel concerned.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
6. This ad was relevant to me.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
7. This ad is powerful.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
8. This ad is convincing.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
9. This ad is ridiculous.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
10. This ad is terrible.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
11. I would be likely to talk to another adult about this ad after seeing it on television.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
12. I would be likely to talk to my child about e-cigarettes after seeing it on television.	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree

RANKING

Please rank each ad, with a 1 being the one you think would be most effectively motivate parents to talk to their children about e-cigarettes and 3 being the least motivating.

____ Concept 1

____ Concept 2

____ Concept 3

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