Information Collection Form

Attachment 1

Request for Approval under the “Fast Track Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 0136)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION:

Communication of hazard information and other factors influencing consumer decision making in online purchases

PURPOSE:

On Behalf of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Fors Marsh Group is conducting ethnographic intercept interviews and individual in-depth interviews with primary caregivers of children aged 3-6 years. The primary objective of this study is to better understand what they look for when purchasing household items (both toys and non-toys) that their children may have access to and their reactions to warning labels on these items. We are also interested in understanding parents’ suggestions for improving warning labels to make them more useful. The data from this study will assist CPSC in developing more effective warning labels for products sold online used by or accessible to young children. This study will take place in two phases.

Given that most CPSC product safety hazard regulations were initially drafted to regulate the purchase of toys in brick and mortar stores, it is important to first understand how consumers are interacting with product safety information in this setting. The long-term goal of this research is to be able to update product safety hazard guidelines to be inclusive of online sales but also to still reflect how safety hazard guidelines are interpreted through the sale of toys in general. We see this initial research in brick-and-mortar stores as laying the groundwork for the questions and hypothesis we bring into the online research phase.

BACKGROUND:

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is charged with protecting the public against dangers associated with consumer products. CPSC research shows that emergency departments across the United States treated approximately 251,366 toy-related injuries in 2017 and that approximately 36% of those cases were for children 0 – 4 years-old.¹ Some data suggests that parents purchase toys regardless of labels that indicate the toy is hazardous for their child’s age group.² Factors that influence the effectiveness of warning labels include warning location and vividness along with familiarity with the warning message.³

By way of ethnographic intercept interviews and individual in-depth interviews, CPSC seeks to better understand (1) what safety information consumers look for in traditional and online shopping experiences for both toy and non-toy products and (2) how to translate that information in an effective manner to provide recommendations about how to improve communication of safety information in online shopping experiences. Many consumers today use online purchasing platforms to research and buy consumer products. Several factors (e.g., lack of warnings about the potential safety hazards) impact whether consumers are well-informed about product’s potential risks and intended users. Ultimately, CPSC is interested in understanding the type, placement, and content of online information that should be presented to help consumers make informed decisions before they purchase a product.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: For the CPSC Communication of Hazard Information and Other Factors Influencing Consumer Decision Making in Online Purchases interviews, primary caregivers of children between the ages of 3-6 years will be included. Participants will be interviewed either in the ethnographic intercept interviews or the individual in-depth interviews (IDIs):

• Sixteen caregivers will participate in the 10-minute intercept interviews.

• Twenty-four caregivers will participate in the 60-minute individual interviews.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form [ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey

[ ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software [] Small Discussion Group

[ ] Focus Group [X ] Other: Individual Interviews

CERTIFICATION:

I certify the following to be true:

1. The collection is voluntary.

2. The collection is low burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.

3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal agencies.

4. The results are not intended to be disseminated to the public.

5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions.

6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the future.

Name:

To assist review, please provide answers to the following question:

Personally Identifiable Information:

1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected? [ ] Yes [X] No

2. If Yes, will any information that is collected be included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [ ] No

3. If Yes, has an up-to-date System of Records Notice (SORN) been published? [ ] Yes [ ] No

Gifts or Payments:

Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to participants? [X] Yes [] No ($15 for intercepts and $45 for in-depth interviews)

Participants in the ethnographic intercept interviews will receive $20 for about 10 minutes of their time. Participants in the individual interviews l receive $75 for about 60 minutes of their time.

BURDEN HOURS

Ethnographic Intercept Interviews

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden
Screened participants who did not qualify	48 (three times the final participant sample)	2 minutes per participant	2 hours and 40 minutes
Screened participants who qualified and did participate in the study	16	10 minutes per participant	2 hours and 40 minutes

Individual In-Depth Interviews

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden
Screened participants who did not qualify	72 (three times the final participant sample)	10 minutes per participant	2 hours and 40 minutes
Screened participants who qualified and did participate in the study	24	60 minutes per participant	24 hours

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is $_________.

Total estimated cost to the government for conducting the data collection is as follows:

Number of Participants 40

Total estimated cost of conducting interviews

Cost per completed Participant includes $15-$45 stipend

This estimate is based on the total cost of the conducting the interviews, divided by the specified number of completed participants.

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents

1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential respondents and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe? [X]Yes [ ] No

If the answer is yes, please provide a description of both below (or attach the sampling plan)? If the answer is no, please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them

For the ethnographic intercept interviews, participants will be recruited from a privately-owned toy store and asked if they would like to participate. All participants will be primary caregivers of at least one child between the ages of 3-6 years. Recruitment will involve the following strategy. Our research team will set-up a table either just inside or just outside of the store we choose for recruitment. Strategy #1 will be to verbally greet customers as they walk by and say, “would you be interested in answering a few questions in exchange for a gift card?” Depending on customer traffic and the effectiveness of strategy #1, we will also walk around the store and greet customers with the aforementioned message.

For the individual in-depth interviews, participants will be recruited from Fors Marsh Group’s participant panel. All participants will be primary caregivers of at least one child between the ages of 3-6 years. This recruitment plan maximizes our ability to recruit the target audience.

Administration of the Instrument

1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)

[ ] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[ ] Telephone

[X] In-person

[ ] Mail

[ ] Other, Explain

2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [ X ] Yes [ ] No

Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

1 Retrieved from: https://www.cpsc.gov/s3fs-public/2017-Neiss-data-highlights.pdf?3i3POG9cN.rIyu2ggrsUkD1XU_zoiFRP

2 Langlois, J. A., Wallen, B. A., Teret, S. P., Bailey, L. A., Hershey, J. H., & Peeler, M. O. (2016,). The Impact of Specific Toy Warning Labels. JAMA. 1991;265(21):2848–2850. doi:10.1001/jama.1991.03460210094036

3 Argo, J. J., & Main, K. J. (2004). Meta-Analyses of the Effectiveness of Warning Labels. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing,23(2), 193-208. doi:10.1509/jppm.23.2.193.51400

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