Form FEMA Form 008-0-22 FEMA Form 008-0-22 Focus Group Discussion Guide

Ready PSA Campaign Creative Testing Research

DISCUSSION GUIDE

(10 MIN) MODERATOR INTRODUCTION/OVERVIEW OF SESSION

• Explicitly mention OMB details, including OMB #, sponsors and procedures if participants have questions about the research.

• Remind participants of confidentiality: no personal information shared and groups being video-taped for reporting purposes only.

• Explain that we are independent researchers who are impartial in the discussion; we are seeking honest opinions and thoughts.

• We’re going to spend time today talking about your family and emergency preparedness. Could you give me a little background on your home and who lives there with you?

• Can you tell me about the roles or responsibilities you (and your spouse/partner, as applicable) have around the home or within the family?

(25 MIN) GENERAL ISSUE DISCUSSION

• Have you or your household taken steps to prepare for an emergency such as a natural disaster? If so, what have you done? Why did you take those steps? Or, if not, why not?

• What do you think your role is in preparing for emergencies like natural disasters? Do you think there are steps that individuals can take to prepare themselves/family that will make a difference during an emergency? During the recovery stage?

• What do you think is the role of state or federal agencies in helping individuals in disaster situations, if any?

• What’s the biggest challenge to preparing you and your family for an emergency?

• I’m going to walk through a list of preparedness actions, and I want to get your reaction to each. Is this something that you’ve already done, something that you think you will do to prepare, or something that you likely will not do to prepare. Please take a moment to write down a response for each. [Walk through the various actions and have respondents share their responses. Probe further on each response. (Why have you taken this action? Why would you do this in the future? Why are you not likely to take this action?)]

[RANDOMIZE LIST ACROSS GROUPS]

• Create a family emergency plan, including a plan for connecting and reuniting with family when disaster happens

• Get certified in First Aid or CPR

• Join or volunteer with a local community watch or preparedness group

• Ensure you have insurance coverage or invest in insurance to cover relevant hazards (e.g. flood)

• Learn safety steps you can take around your home in an emergency (e.g. how to shut off the gas/electricity)

• Set aside personal financial savings to help you & your family in the immediate aftermath of a disaster.

• There can be a long period of recovery from some natural disasters. Do you feel that you as individual have the ability to prepare financially now so you would be able to handle that recovery period (e.g. financial savings, insurance, etc)?

(20 MIN) CONCEPT A DISCUSSION

(Note: The order of presentation of ads will be rotated across sessions to avoid order bias)

OVERALL REACTION

Moderator will instruct respondents to answer the first two questions by writing their responses down before sharing aloud. This will ground respondents in their initial reaction as the discussion with the group begins.

• Who is bringing you this message? (LISTEN for government, FEMA)

• What is your first reaction to this? What is the main idea of this?

• What made you think that?

• What do you think about that idea?

• Any specific ideas, words or images stick out to you? Why?

• Is this ad believable?

• What about it makes it believable (or not)?

• Is this ad appealing to you? What about it is appealing?

• Is there anything confusing or unclear about this idea?

• What, if anything, are they asking you to do?

• What do you think about that?

• Would you do anything specifically after seeing this advertising? (CHECK on a) potential to take the preparedness actions featured, and b) to visit to web site)

• When/how soon would you take this action? (LISTEN for immediacy)

• (If going on web) What would you search for if you wanted to learn more? (LISTEN for key search terms, etc.)

• Would you talk to your friends and other family members outside of your household about this? What would you tell them?

• [Note as discussed earlier] FEMA is bringing you this message. Does that matter? Why/why not? (CHECK for impact of perceived sponsor, if any)

CONCEPT A: EMOTIONAL CONNECTION / RELEVANCE

• What do you like/dislike about this idea?

• What is the mood or the tone of the advertising?

• How does this make you feel? Is that good or bad?

• Is this advertising speaking to you, personally?

• Can you relate to it?

• If it is not for you, who do you think the “target” for the advertising is?

CONCEPT A: SALIENCE/RESONANCE

• Would this ad catch your attention if you saw it?

• What about it grabs your attention?

• (If not) What keeps it from grabbing your attention?

• Is this different from how you think currently? How so?

(15 MIN) CONCEPT B DISCUSSION: REPEAT SEQUENCE FROM CONCEPT A

Note: The first exposure to an execution is always the most in-depth and longest part of the discussion. Exposure to remaining executions typically elicits much shorter discussion because respondents will compare all remaining executions to the first (e.g. “this ad has the same message” or “I like this one better because”).

(5 MIN) QUESTIONS FROM BACK ROOM AND MODERATOR WRAP-UP /THANK YOU