Vertical Questions

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Introduction

The Bureau of Labor Statistics, a statistical agency in the U.S. Department of Labor,
produces the Consumer Price Index (or CPI), which is the primary measure of inflation in
the U.S.
One of the key inputs into the CPI is the cost of rental housing. Renters who participate in
this survey are asked every 6 months to report the rent that they are paying, along with a
few other questions about their housing (the questions take about 5 minutes to answer).
The Bureau of Labor Statistics sends letters to renters who participate in the survey
reminding them that the survey will be coming and encouraging them to participate.
We would like you to help us improve one of these letters. We are trying to identify more
effective language, more persuasive arguments, and more effective formatting.
Your task is to read the letter, and then answer a few short questions about it. There are
no right or wrong answers to the questions we will be asking. We want your opinions.
Click Next below when you are ready to begin.

This voluntary study is being conducted under OMB Number 1220-0141. The current expiration date is April 30, 2018. Without this
currently approved number, we could not conduct this survey. We estimate it will take 5 minutes to complete this survey. This survey is
being administered by surveymonkey.com and resides on a server outside of the BLS Domain. The BLS cannot guarantee the
protection of survey responses and advises against the inclusion of sensitive personal information in any response.

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Letter Sent to Participants

The letter that is sent to renters who are already participating in the survey is shown
below. Read it to yourself, and then move to the next page when you are ready to
continue.

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*Sample Letter

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
General Reactions

1. What is your general reaction to this letter? How convincing or persuasive would you say it is?
Very persuasive
Persuasive
Somewhat persuasive
A little persuasive
Not at all persuasive

2. Was there anything in the letter that was confusing, or which did not make sense?
Yes – if yes, please describe in the box below
No
What was confusing?

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Confidentiality Pledge

3. How carefully did you read the confidentiality pledge that appears on the bottom of the letter?
Very carefully
Carefully
Somewhat carefully
A little carefully
Not at all carefully

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Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Ratings of Importance

The letter describes several uses of the Consumer Price Index. Please rate the
importance of each use that appears on the following pages.

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Social Security

4. How important is adjusting Social Security payments?
Very important
Important
Somewhat important
A little important
Not at all important

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Retirement Payments

5. How important is adjusting retirement payments?
Very important
Important
Somewhat important
A little important
Not at all important

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)

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School Lunch Programs

6. How important is adjusting the cost of school lunch programs?
Very important
Important
Somewhat important
A little important
Not at all important

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Food Stamp Programs

7. How important is adjusting food stamp benefits?
Very important
Important
Somewhat important
A little important
Not at all important

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Other Uses

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8. Some other uses for the Consumer Price Index that were not mentioned in the letter are shown in the
table below. Please rate how important you think each of these uses is.
Very important

Important

Somewhat
important

A little
important

Not at all
important

Used by the government to set interest rates
Used by businesses to determine worker pay
increases
To “deflate” or account for the impact of inflation, for
example, to adjust the spending power of the dollar

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Persuasiveness of Examples

9. The letter mentions several reasons why the renter should respond promptly by phone or fax when called
in six months. Please rate how persuasive each of these reasons is to you.
Very
persuasive

Persuasive

Somewhat
persuasive

A little
persuasive

Not at all
persuasive

Makes government more efficient
Collection costs drop significantly
A prompt response saves taxpayer dollars
There will be a lower carbon footprint

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)

10. What is your gender?
Male
Female

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11. What is your age?
18-21
22-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61+

12. What is your highest level of education?
Less than high school
High school graduate/GED
Some college
Associate's degree
College graduate (B.A., B.S. etc.)
Some post-college education or training
Master's degree or Ph.D.
Professional degree (e.g., law, medicine, etc.)

Monthly Continuing Cooperation (CPI, Separate Qs, Vertical Scale)
Any comments?

13. Thank you for your help. Any additional comments are welcome. Click Done to exit the survey.
I have no additional comments
Additional Comments

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