Note to Reviewer

Note to Reviewer - CIPSEA OMB Study_OMB_Final.docx

Cognitive and Psychological Research

Note to Reviewer

OMB: 1220-0141

⚠️ Notice: This form may be outdated. More recent filings and information on OMB 1220-0141 can be found here:

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OMB Control Number: 1220-0141

Expiration Date: April 30, 2018

January 6, 2017

NOTE TO THE REVIEWER OF:

OMB CLEARANCE 1220-0141

“Cognitive and Psychological Research”

FROM:

Robin Kaplan

Office of Survey Methods Research

SUBJECT:

Submission of Materials for Testing of Revised CIPSEA Pledge

Please accept the enclosed materials for approval under the OMB clearance package 1220-0141 “Cognitive and Psychological Research.” In accordance with our agreement with OMB, we are submitting a brief description of the study.

The total estimated respondent burden for this study is 260 hours.

If there are any questions regarding this project, please contact Robin Kaplan at 202-691-7383.

Introduction

The passage of the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015 requires the installation of the Department of Homeland Security’s Einstein cybersecurity protection system on all Federal civilian information technology systems by mid-December 2016. Combined with DHS’ stated policies, it also potentially compromises the absolute nature of the Federal statistical system’s (FSS) confidentiality pledges by no longer enabling statistical agencies to pledge that respondents’ data will be seen only by a statistical agency’s employees or its sworn agents. Consequently, the FSS needs to develop a revised confidentiality pledge(s) that informs respondents of this change in circumstances.

BLS previously completed work on a project to optimize the effects of a revised confidentiality pledges versus the current pledge. BLS found that previous BLS survey respondents generally understood and reacted positively to the new confidentiality language used to inform respondents about Einstein, “Per the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015, Federal information systems are protected from malicious activities through cybersecurity screening of transmitted data.” In the online study (Mechanical Turk participants used as a proxy for BLS household survey respondents), we did not observe any differences in unit or item non-response across participants who received the old versus revised pledge (see Attachment A for both the old and revised pledge).

While this research study pointed to evidence that the revised pledge would not have adverse effects on data quality, it did not provide direct evidence on whether or not the new language might influence response rates over time, when respondents are asked to participate in multiple waves of data collection (as is the case with several BLS household surveys, for example, the Current Population Survey and Consumer Expenditure Survey). Although most participants in the previous study said that hypothetically the new confidentiality language would likely not influence their decision to participate in future BLS surveys, we did not assess actual behavior. In addition, most of the questions were relatively neutral compared to other questions that real BLS respondents may encounter. Even so, we did find in the previous study that participants’ level of concern about privacy and data confidentiality led to group differences in several data quality metrics (e.g., attrition, item non-response, time spent reading the pledges, straightlining), as well as in comprehension of the pledge (recalling words such as ‘law,’ ‘data,’ and ‘statistical’). Thus, the aim of this current research is to determine whether the language in the current versus revised pledge affects unit and item response rates in a follow-up survey, and/or non-response bias, and how level of privacy concerns affect these metrics when a wider range of BLS survey questions are included in the survey.

Methodology

In this research, we will use online data collection with participants recruited from Amazon.com’s Mechanical Turk. Please note that the data from this research cannot be used to make inferences about how BLS establishment respondents might react to the revised confidentiality language, but can provide insight into how household respondents may react.

Although the Mechanical Turk population may not be representative of the entire U.S. population, studies using MTurk samples obtain similar results to surveys using population-based samples (e.g., Mullinix et al., 2016). Samples obtained from MTurk are more representative of the general population than other convenience samples, such as university students (e.g., Berinsky et al., 2012), or using the OSMR participant database, which includes only people in the Washington, DC metro area. Due to issues of burden, it would not be feasible to recontact BLS household survey respondents to assess their reactions to the pledge. Even as such, the results of this study are more concerned with internal validity than the representativeness of any one population. All results will be interpreted with caution given the sample was pulled from MTurk and not from former BLS household survey respondents. No further changes will be recommended to the revised language currently implemented. .

Instead, the results from this research will be used to help understand participants’ reactions, responses, and willingness to complete a follow-up survey given the confidentiality pledge they read. This research will assess how participants understand and react to the confidentiality language. It will also be used to contribute to the basic survey research literature on topics of privacy and confidentiality in surveys.

In the previous study, we observed little differences across unit and item non-response across participants who received the current versus the revised pledge, with over 98% of participants answering every item. We suspect this may have occurred for a number of reasons, including that the survey was online, self-administered, and completely anonymous. These conditions tend to minimize effects of social desirable responding and refusal to answer (Kreuter et al., 2008). Further, Mechanical Turk participants are rated on their participation and compensated for participating, which may cause participants to cooperate more than actual survey respondents might. In the current study, we draw on methods from the literature on confidentiality concerns to help reduce this ceiling effect and avoid these limitations, as outlined below:

We will conduct a two-part longitudinal survey to assess response rates over time (2 waves). Participants will complete the first survey, which will consist of a series of questions about their knowledge of the BLS and experience completing surveys. Then they will be shown one of the pledge types and be asked to click a button saying they have read it, along with different BLS survey questions. One week later, they will be notified that they are invited to complete a second follow-up survey.
We will add language to the beginning of the survey stressing the importance of responding “don’t know” or “prefer not to say” rather than giving an inaccurate answer. This will allow us to avoid a ceiling effect of participants answering every item (de Leeuw et al., 2015; Joinson et al., 2008). We will also note that each question is voluntary so that participants are aware they can skip items (Betts, 2016). This mirrors what actual interviewers say to survey respondents in BLS surveys.
We will include a wider range of survey items that real BLS household respondents might encounter across various surveys, including the Current Population Survey (CPS) and its supplements, the Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE), and the American Time Use Survey (ATUS) and its supplements. We expect to get a wider distribution of answers by including these questions, and therefore more power to detect any potential differences in response unit and item rates across items by pledge type. In doing so, this will more closely approximate the actual length of BLS surveys.
We will include a questionnaire to assess participants’ level of concern about their confidentiality online and when completing surveys. As this was an important factor in reactions to the confidentiality pledge in the previous study, we decided to include a valid and reliable scale that directly measures this construct (Buchanan et al., 2006).
One week after completing the first survey, participants will receive a notification via Mechanical Turk inviting them to participate in a follow-up survey (see Attachment D for the full text of the email invitation). We will ask participants what they recall about the pledge they read in the first survey to assess retention and comprehension of the pledge over time. We will also then be able to assess the impact of pledge type language on reporting, response rates to the follow-up survey, and nonresponse bias.

These changes from the previous research study are expected to enable us to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of the confidentiality pledge on respondents’ reaction to the current versus revised pledge. Below we describe the survey content in more detail. Note that for both surveys, participants do not receive an assurance of confidentiality as data is not secure, stored outside the BLS network.

Survey 1

In the first survey, participants will start with answering a series of questions about their knowledge of the BLS and experience completing surveys. Then they will be randomly assigned to read one of the pledges (current vs. revised) and be asked to click a button saying they have read it, along with different BLS survey questions. Participants will then be asked a series of demographic and occupation questions that respondents might be asked in a regular BLS production survey. These questions will not only provide useful background on the participants to compare the composition of the pledge groups, they will also show if there is any differences in item reporting by the versions of the pledge.

Participants will also complete a questionnaire to assess their concerns about privacy and confidentiality so we may assess individual differences across participants and correlate this trait to our dependent measures (Buchanan et al., 2006). The placement of this questionnaire will either be presented before participants read the BLS confidentiality pledge, or at the end of survey, to assess order effects of questionnaire placement within the survey.

Survey 2

About one week after participating in the first survey, participants will be invited to complete a follow-up survey. Participants who provided their Mechanical Turk ID in Survey 1 will receive the invitation approximately one week later. Participants will receive a notification via their Mechanical Turk account explaining that they previously participated in a survey about data confidentiality pledges at BLS, and that they’re invited to complete a follow-up survey. The survey will assess their memory for the confidentiality pledge they read in the previous study. We will be able to assess what information about each pledge that participants retained over the week. This will provide insight into what information participants recall about the confidentiality pledge and what keywords made it into their long-term memory. We will also include some of the same questions they completed in Survey 1 to assess potential attitude change toward data confidentiality over time. By matching the data from both surveys, we will be able to determine the following across pledge type:

Overall response rate
Item non-response rate
Nonresponse bias (e.g., demographic groups that were more or less likely to participate in the second survey) by pledge type
Attrition rate within survey one and between survey one and two
Consistency across ratings of confidentiality concerns over time
What information about the pledges participants retained across survey one and two

Survey 1 is can be found in Attachment B, Survey 2 can be found in Attachment C, and the language used in the email notification can be found in Attachment D.

Participants

Up to 600 Amazon Mechanical Turk participants will be recruited. This sample size was determined based upon previous OSMR studies, which have indicated we can expect a 40% attrition rate, leaving approximately 360 participants, with 180 participants per condition. This sample size also takes into account break-offs, incomplete data, and participants who do not follow the task instructions. Similar sample sizes have been used for studies of this nature (e.g., Shapiro et al., 2013) and in previously completed work in OSMR.

IV. Burden Hours

Survey 1 is expected to take 20 minutes, and Survey 2 will take about 10 minutes, for a potential burden of up to 30 minutes per participant.

Table 1. Estimated Burden Hours

	# of Participants Screened	Minutes per participant for Screening	Total Screening Burden	Maximum number of Participants	Minutes per participant for data collection	Total Collection Burden	Total Burden (Screening + Collection)
Survey 1	600	0	0	600	20	200	200
Survey 2	600	0	0	360 (assuming a 40% attrition rate, based on prior OSMR studies)	10	60	60
Total Burden							260 hours

V. Payment to Participants

Participants will receive $1.50 for participating in survey one and $1.50 for participating in survey two, for a potential total of $3.00 if participants complete both surveys, a typical rate for similar tasks. A total of 600 participants will participate in Survey 1, and we expect approximately 360 of those participants to also participate in Survey 2. The costs for Survey 1 total $1,260 (1.50 x 600, plus a $360 commission fee to the company). For Survey 2, the costs will total $756 (1.50 x 360, plus a $216 commission fee to the company). Survey 1 should take about 20 minutes and Survey 2 should take about 10 minutes to complete. The estimated maximum total for participant fees is $2,016.

Recruiting of participants will be handled by Amazon Mechanical Turk. Once participants are recruited into the study, they will be given a link to the survey, which is hosted by Qualtrics. The data collected as part of this study will be stored on Qualtrics servers.

Participants will be informed of the OMB number and the voluntary nature of the study.

This voluntary study is being collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under OMB No. 1220-0141. This survey will take approximately [20 minutes / 10 minutes] to complete. The BLS cannot guarantee the protection of survey responses and advises against the inclusion of sensitive personal information in any response. This survey is being administered by Qualtrics and resides on a server outside of the BLS Domain. Your participation is voluntary, and you have the right to stop at any time.

Attachments

Attachment A: Pledge language

Attachment B: Survey 1

Attachment C: Survey 2

Attachment D: Email notification for invitation to complete Survey 2

References

Berinsky, A.J., Huber, G.A. and Lenz, G.S. (2012) ‘Evaluating Online Labor Markets for Experimental Research: Amazon.com’s Mechanical Turk’, Political Analysis, 20(3), pp. 351–368. doi: 10.1093/pan/mpr057.

Betts, P.M. (2016). Asking About Sexual Orientation on the 2021 Census in England and Wales: Research into Public Acceptability, Question Design, and Administration in Online and Paper Modes. QDET2 Conference.

Buchanan, T., Paine, C., Joinson, A. N., & Reips, U. D. (2007). Development of measures of online privacy concern and protection for use on the Internet. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 58(2), 157-165.

de Leeuw, E. D., Hox, J. J., & Boevé, A. (2015). Handling Do-Not-Know Answers Exploring New Approaches in Online and Mixed-Mode Surveys. Social Science Computer Review, 0894439315573744.

Joinson, A. N., Paine, C., Buchanan, T., & Reips, U. D. (2008). Measuring self-disclosure online: Blurring and non-response to sensitive items in web-based surveys. Computers in Human Behavior, 24(5), 2158-2171.

Kreuter, F., Presser, S., & Tourangeau, R. (2008). Social desirability bias in CATI, IVR, and Web surveys the effects of mode and question sensitivity. Public Opinion Quarterly, 72(5), 847-865.

Mullinix, K.J., Leeper, T.J., Druckman, J.N. and Freese, J. (2015) ‘The Generalizability of Survey Experiments’, Journal of Experimental Political Science, 2(2), pp. 109–138. doi: 10.1017/XPS.2015.19.

Shapiro, D. N., Chandler, J., & Mueller, P. A. (2013). Using Mechanical Turk to study clinical populations. Clinical Psychological Science, 1(2), 213-220.

Attachment A: Pledge language

Pledge 1 (Old pledge):

The Bureau of Labor Statistics, its employees, agents, and partner statistical agencies, will use the information you provide for statistical purposes only and will hold the information in confidence to the full extent permitted by law. In accordance with the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2002 (Title 5 of Public Law 107-347) and other applicable Federal laws, your responses will not be disclosed in identifiable form without your informed consent.

Pledge 2 (Revised pledge):

Attachment B: Survey 1

Page 1

Introduction

This is a survey for the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. This voluntary study is being collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under OMB No. 1220-0141. This survey will take approximately 20 minutes to complete. Your participation is voluntary and you have the right to stop at any time.

We are looking for information about how respondents answer our surveys. Please take your time as you answer these questions. The information you provide will contribute to valuable research at the BLS, one of the leading Federal statistical agencies.

This survey is being administered by Qualtrics 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. By proceeding with this study, you give your consent to participate in this study.

Based on your responses, you may receive an invitation to complete a follow-up study through your Mechanical Turk account. To allow us to contact you again for this project, please provide your Mechanical Turk Worker ID here: ___________

{continue button}

Page 2

The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor is the principal Federal agency responsible for measuring labor market activity, working conditions, and price changes in the economy.

Its mission is to collect, analyze, and distribute essential economic information to support public and private decision-making.

As an independent statistical agency, BLS serves its diverse user communities by providing products and services that are objective, timely, accurate, and relevant.

Prior to today, had you heard of the Bureau of Labor Statistics?
1. Yes
2. No
Have you ever completed a survey for a market research firm, polling company or other private company?
1. Yes
2. No
Have you ever completed a survey for the US Government?
1. Yes
2. No
In the last year, outside of MTurk, how many surveys have you completed?
1. Fewer than 5
2. 5 to 10
3. 11 to 20
4. More than 20

Prior to today, how much have you thought about how survey companies (the government or otherwise) keep your information confidential?
1. No thought
2. A little thought
3. Moderate thought
4. A lot of thought

How important is confidentiality to you in deciding whether to participate in a survey?
1. Not important
2. A little important
3. Moderately important
4. Very important
5. Extremely important

How much do you trust each of the following groups to keep the information they collect from you confidential?

	Not at all	A little	Moderately	Very much	Completely
Public opinion research companies
Market research companies
Government agencies
Banks

Page 3

[insert confidentiality concern questionnaire here for half of participants, as seen below]

For this part of the survey, we are interested in your privacy related attitudes and behavior in general and when online. Please answer every question using the full scale provided.

	Never	Rarely	Sometimes	Frequently	Always
Do you shred/burn your personal documents when you are disposing of them?
Do you hide your bank card PIN number when using cash machines/making purchases?
Do you only register for websites that have a privacy policy?
Do you read a website’s privacy policy before you register your information?
Do you look for a privacy certification on a website before you register your information?
Do you read license agreements fully before you agree to them?

Page 4

Next, we are interested in any privacy concerns you might have when online. Please answer every question using the full scale provided.

	Not at all concerned	A little concerned	Moderately concerned	Very concerned	Extremely concerned
In general, how concerned are you about your privacy while you are using the internet?
How concerned are you about online organizations not being who they claim they are?
How concerned are you that you are asked for too much personal information when you register or make online purchases?
How concerned are you about online identity theft?
How concerned are you about people online not being who they say they are?
How concerned are you about who might access your medical records electronically?
How concerned are you about people you do not know obtaining personal information about you from your online activities?
How concerned are that if you use your credit card to buy something on the internet your credit card number will obtained/ intercepted by someone else?
How concerned are you that an email you send may be read by someone else besides the person you sent it to?
How concerned are you about emails you receive not being from whom they say they are?

Page 5

Please read the below information about confidentiality at the BLS:

Confidentiality at the BLS: {Insert one of pledge versions, randomly assigned}

Please click to indicate that you’ve read the above information about confidentiality at the BLS.

[ ] I have read about confidentiality at the BLS

Page 6

Now, we’ll ask you a few questions about yourself. All questions are voluntary.

For statistical purposes, it’s very important to answer ‘don’t know,’ ‘prefer not to say’, instead of giving incorrect answers.

[ ] Please click to indicate that you understand all questions are voluntary.

What is your age?
1. _____
2. Prefer not to say
What is the highest level of education you’ve completed?
1. Less than high school
2. High school diploma or GED
3. Some college
4. Associate degree
5. Bachelor’s degree
6. Graduate school degree
7. Prefer not to say
Are you currently employed:
1. Full time (go to 4)
2. Part time (go to 4)
3. Unemployed (go to page 7)
4. Student (go to page 7)
5. Retired (go to page 7)
6. Other, specify (go to 4)
7. Prefer not to say (go to page 7)
What is your occupation?
1. Administrator, manager
2. Teacher
3. Professional
4. Administrative support, including clerical
5. Sales
6. Technician
7. Protective Services
8. Other service
9. Machine or transportation operator
10. Construction worker, mechanic
11. Farming
12. Forestry, fishing or grounds keeping
13. Armed Forces
14. Other, specify:______
15. Don’t know
16. Prefer not to say
What is your job title? ____
1. Don’t know
2. Prefer not to say
What is the name of your employer?: _____
1. Don’t know
2. Prefer not to say

Page 7

What is your annual income? ____
1. Don’t know
2. Prefer not to say
[If 1 is blank], In which of these ranges does your annual income fall?
1. Less than $25,000
2. $25,000 - $50,000
3. $50,001 – $75,000
4. $75,001 - $100,000
5. More than $100,000
6. Don’t know
7. Prefer not to say
What is your annual household income? ____
1. Don’t know
2. Prefer not to say
[If 3 is blank] In which of these ranges does your annual household income fall?
1. Less than $25,000
2. $25,000 - $50,000
3. $50,001 – $75,000
4. $75,001 - $100,000
5. More than $100,000
6. Don’t know
7. Prefer not to say
In the past 3 months, how much money have you given to benefit charities or other organizations? ____
1. Don’t know
2. Prefer not to say
What has been your usual monthly expense for alcohol, including beer and wine to be served at home? _____
1. Don’t know
2. Prefer not to say

Page 8

Because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition, do you have serious difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions?
1. Yes
2. No
3. Don’t know
4. Prefer not to say
Do you have difficulty dressing or bathing?
1. Yes
2. No
3. Don’t know
4. Prefer not to say
Because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition, do you have difficulty doing errands alone such as visiting a doctor’s office or shopping?
1. Yes
2. No
3. Don’t know
4. Prefer not to say
On average, how many hours of sleep do you get in a 24-hour period? ____
1. Don’t know
2. Prefer not to say

Page 9

Was your sex recorded as male or female at birth?
1. Male
2. Female
3. Don’t know
4. Prefer not to say
Do you describe yourself as male, female, or transgender?
1. Male
2. Female
3. Transgender
4. Don’t know
5. Prefer not to say
Which of the following best represents how you think of yourself?
1. Gay or Lesbian
2. Straight, that is not gay, lesion, or bisexual
3. Something else
4. Don’t know
5. Prefer not to say
What is your current marital status?
1. Married
2. Widowed
3. Divorced
4. Separated
5. Never married
6. Don’t know
7. Prefer not to say
How many people currently live in your home? ____
1. Don’t know
2. Prefer not to say
Do you have a boyfriend, girlfriend, or partner living in the household?
1. Yes
2. No
3. Don’t know
4. Prefer not to say
Are you of Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin?
1. Yes
2. No
3. Don’t know
4. Prefer not to say
What is your race?
1. White
2. Black or African American
3. American Indian or Alaska Native
4. Asian
5. Other
6. Don’t know
7. Prefer not to say
What is your zip code? _____
1. Don’t know
2. Prefer not to say

Page 10

Here is the text about how your information is kept confidential at the BLS again {show one of the alternate versions}.

1. Now that you see the information again, how important is confidentiality in deciding whether to participate in a BLS survey?

Not important
A little important
Moderately important
Very important
Extremely important

How secure do you think your information would be if you participated in a BLS survey?

Not at all secure
A little secure
Moderately secure
Very secure
Extremely secure

How concerned are you about how BLS keeps your information confidential?

Not at all concerned
A little concerned
Moderately concerned
Very concerned
Extremely concerned

Would how the BLS keeps your information confidential play a role in your decision to participate in a BLS survey or not?

Page 13/14

[insert confidentiality concern questionnaire for the other half of participants]

Page 15

Earlier, you were asked a number of questions about yourself. In general, how sensitive did you find those questions?
1. Not at all sensitive
2. A little sensitive
3. Moderately sensitive
4. Very sensitive
5. Extremely sensitive

Did you answer any of the questions less than honestly to avoid disclosing too much about yourself?
1. Yes
2. No

Attachment C: Survey 2

Page 1

Introduction

You were invited to participate in this survey because approximately one week ago you completed a survey for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

This is a survey for the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. This voluntary study is being collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under OMB No. 1220-0141. This survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete. Your participation is voluntary and you have the right to stop at any time.

What is your Mechanical Turk Worker ID?: ____

Page 2

Prior to today, how much have you thought about how survey companies (the government or otherwise) keep your information confidential?
1. No thought
2. A little thought
3. Moderate thought
4. A lot of thought

How important is confidentiality to you in deciding whether to participate in a survey?
1. Not important
2. A little important
3. Moderately important
4. Very important
5. Extremely important

How much do you trust each of the following groups to keep the information they collect from you confidential?

	Not at all	A little	Moderately	Very much	Completely
Public opinion research companies
Market research companies
Government agencies
Banks

Page 3

You were invited to participate in this survey because approximately one week ago you completed a survey about your opinions about confidentiality of information at the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Do you remember participating in that survey?
1. Yes
2. No

In the survey you completed a week ago, you also read information about confidentiality at the BLS.

Do you remember reading about confidentiality at the BLS?
1. Yes
2. No
It is important that you do not use outside sources like the Internet to answer the following questions. Will you answer the following questions without help from outside sources?
1. Yes
2. No
From your memory, please summarize what you remember about the information you read about confidentiality at the BLS: _____
Please list as many words or phrases as you can from that information: [10 spaces]

Page 4

From your memory, please check the words that were part of the information about confidentiality (mark all that apply):

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
Department of Labor (DOL)
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
Cybersecurity
Threat
Risk
Terrorist
Mandatory
Voluntary
Law
Statistical
Security
Consent
Confidential

From your memory, who would have access to the information you provided on a BLS survey? (mark all that apply)

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
Department of Labor (DOL)
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
Social Security Administration (SSA)
Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
The Census Bureau
Congress
The White House
All government agencies
Other, please specify:

From your memory, what could be done with the information you provided on a BLS survey? (mark all that apply)

It could be combined with other respondents’ survey answers to create statistics
It could be given to other statistical agencies for policy making
It could be given to other federal agencies for law enforcement
It could be given to the IRS for tax enforcement
It could be given to private companies for telemarketing

Other, please specify: _______________

4 . How important would confidentiality be to you in deciding whether to participate in a BLS survey?

Not important
A little important
Moderately important
Very important
Extremely important

How secure do you think your information would be if you participated in a BLS survey?

Not at all secure
Slightly secure
Moderately secure
Very secure
Extremely secure

How concerned are you about how BLS keeps your information confidential?

Not at all concerned
A little concerned
Moderately concerned
Very concerned
Extremely concerned

Would how the BLS keeps your information confidential play a role in your decision to participate in a BLS survey or not?

Page 5

We are interested in your privacy related attitudes and behavior in general and when online. Please answer every question using the full scale provided.

	Never	Rarely	Sometimes	Frequently	Always
Do you shred/burn your personal documents when you are disposing of them?
Do you hide your bank card PIN number when using cash machines/making purchases?
Do you only register for websites that have a privacy policy?
Do you read a website’s privacy policy before you register your information?
Do you look for a privacy certification on a website before you register your information?
Do you read license agreements fully before you agree to them?

Page 6

Next, we are interested in any privacy concerns you might have when online. Please answer every question using the full scale provided.

	Not at all concerned	A little concerned	Moderately concerned	Very concerned	Extremely concerned
In general, how concerned are you about your privacy while you are using the internet?
How concerned are you about online organizations not being who they claim they are?
How concerned are you that you are asked for too much personal information when you register or make online purchases?
How concerned are you about online identity theft?
How concerned are you about people online not being who they say they are?
How concerned are you about who might access your medical records electronically?
How concerned are you about people you do not know obtaining personal information about you from your online activities?
How concerned are that if you use your credit card to buy something on the internet your credit card number will obtained/ intercepted by someone else?
How concerned are you that an email you send may be read by someone else besides the person you sent it to?
How concerned are you about emails you receive not being from whom they say they are?

Page 7

Now, here is the information about confidentiality at BLS that you read one week ago:

[insert pledge]

1. Now that you see the information again, how important would confidentiality be to you in deciding whether to participate in a BLS survey?

Not important
A little important
Moderately important
Very important
Extremely important

How secure do you think your information would be?

Not at all secure
A little secure
Moderately secure
Very secure
Extremely secure

How concerned are you about how BLS keeps your information confidential?

Not at all concerned
A little concerned
Moderately concerned
Very concerned
Extremely concerned

Would how the BLS keeps your information confidential play a role in your decision to participate in a BLS survey or not?

5. How much of the information about confidentiality would you say you remembered accurately from when you read it one week ago?

None of the information
A little of the information
A moderate amount of the information
A lot of the information
All of the information

6. In the survey you completed one week ago, you were asked a series of questions about yourself. From your memory, how sensitive were those questions?

Not at all sensitive
A little sensitive
Moderately sensitive
Very sensitive
Extremely sensitive

7. Did you use any outside sources, such as the Internet, to help you answer any of the questions in this survey?

a. Yes

b. No

Attachment D: Email notification

Note: Participants who provided their MTurk ID number in Survey 1 will be eligible to participate in Survey 2. Eligible participants will receive an email notification via Mechanical Turk inviting them to complete Survey 2. They will receive this email notification approximately one week after they completed Survey 1, and will have a total of 5 days to complete the survey.

The email will read:

Hello,

We are contacting you because about one week ago, you completed a survey about confidentiality at the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). We are inviting you to participate in a follow-up survey. The survey will take about 10 minutes to complete and you will receive $1.50 for your participation. You will have 5 days to complete the survey.

If you are interested in completing this follow-up survey, please select the link below to take the survey now:

[insert link]

File Type	application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document
Author	Edgar, Jennifer - BLS
File Modified	0000-00-00
File Created	2021-01-22