Evaluation of Different Qualitative Pretesting Methods

Study Design: Evaluation of Different Qualitative Methods

Scope & Timing

Collect data from 500 respondents, who will be sampled from the Census Bureau’s Affinity Panel. We will oversample to ensure we will meet the following respondent breakdown:

• 100 general population respondents.

• 100 general population respondents who consider privacy an important concern.

• 100 general population respondents who have used data for school or work.

Entry screener

1. What is your age?

   1. Under 18 years old - Terminate

   2. 18-25

   3. 26-30

   4. 31-35

   5. 36-40

   6. 41-45

   7. 46-50

   8. 51-55

   9. 56-60

   10. 61 or older

2. Which of these issues concerning the Internet would you consider a top concern for you? Please select no more than 3 options. {randomize options, select max 3}

   1. Net neutrality

   2. Connection speed

   3. Cost of being online

   4. Data privacy {quota: min 100 respondents}

   5. Cost of Icicles (attention screener: terminate)

   6. Fake news

   7. Malware

   8. None of these

3. Which of these statements describe activities you have done for school or work in the last 12 months. Select up to 3 activities.

   1. Launched a marketing campaign

   2. Built a presentation

   3. Made a sale to a customer

   4. Managed others

   5. Downloaded and analyzed data {quota: min 100 respondents}

   6. Reviewed someone else’s work

   7. None of these

4. How familiar are you with what The Census Bureau does?

   1. Very familiar

   2. Somewhat familiar

   3. Neither familiar nor unfamiliar - Terminate

   4. Somewhat unfamiliar - Terminate

   5. Very unfamiliar - Terminate

Main study

Message:

Thank you! You have qualified for this study. To what extent do you agree with the following statement? Census Bureau keeps your data confidential

1. Completely agree

2. Somewhat agree

3. Neither agree nor disagree

4. Somewhat disagree

5. Completely disagree

5. To what extent do you agree with the following statement? I am confident in the Census Bureau’s ability to keep my data confidential.

   1. Completely agree

   2. Somewhat agree

   3. Neither agree nor disagree

   4. Somewhat disagree

   5. Completely disagree

6. Do you think the Census Bureau’s data use and protection practices are transparent?

   1. Yes

   2. No

   3. I have no opinion

Open ended question #1a {if answered yes}:

What makes you believe that the Census Bureau’s data use and protection practices are transparent?

Open ended question #1b {if answered no}:

What makes you believe that the Census Bureau’s data use and protection practices are not transparent?

7. Do you think the Census Bureau is more transparent than other government agencies or is it less transparent?

   1. Much more transparent

   2. Somewhat more transparent

   3. About the same

   4. Somewhat less transparent

   5. Much less transparent

8. Do you think the Census Bureau respects or invades people’s privacy?

   1. Definitely respects

   2. Probably respects

   3. I am not sure

   4. Probably invades

   5. Definitely invades

Open ended question #2a {if answered probably or definitely respects}:

What makes you believe that the Census Bureau’s respects people’s privacy?

Open ended question #2b {if answered probably or definitely invades}:

What makes you believe that the Census Bureau’s invades people’s privacy?

Message:

Different government agencies collect data about people’s jobs, earnings and participation in government programs.

9. How confident are you that the Census Bureau could combine data from these agencies while keeping the data strictly confidential?

   1. Very confident

   2. Somewhat confident

   3. Neither confident nor uncertain

   4. Somewhat uncertain

   5. Very uncertain

Message:

The Census Bureau strives to adhere to principles of transparency and openness in its data collection, use and privacy protection practices.

10. Do you think that the Census Bureau is transparent and open?

    1. Yes

    2. No

    3. I don’t have an opinion

Open ended question #3a {if answered yes}:

What makes you believe that the Census Bureau is transparent and open?

Open ended question #3b {if answered no}:

What makes you believe that the Census Bureau is not transparent and open?

Exit questionnaire

11. In which industry do you work?

    1. Retail / Apparel

    2. Construction / Real Estate

    3. Education / Public Entity

    4. Food & Beverage

    5. Healthcare

    6. Hospitality

    7. Life Sciences

    8. Labor Organization

    9. Manufacturing

    10. Non-Profit

    11. Technology

    12. Other

12. What is your sex?

    1. Male

    2. Female

    3. Prefer not to answer

13. What best describes your race? Mark all that apply.

    1. Black or African American

    2. White

    3. Asian

    4. Hispanic

    5. Native American or Alaska Native

    6. Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

    7. Prefer not to answer

14. What is your total annual household income?

    1. Less than $25,000

    2. $25,000 to $34,999

    3. $35,000 to $49,999

    4. $50,000 to $74,999

    5. $75,000 to $99,999

    6. $100,000 to $149,999

    7. $150,000 or more

    8. Prefer not to answer

15. Which of the following best describes your highest attained education level?

    1. Some High School

    2. Completed High School

    3. Technical school/Community College

    4. Associates Degree

    5. Some College

    6. Bachelor’s Degree

    7. Postgraduate degree (Masters, Doctorate, etc.)

    8. Other

    9. Prefer not to answer