Focus Group Script

Public Burden Statement

A Federal agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, nor shall a person be subject to a penalty for failure to comply with an information collection subject to the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 unless the information collection has a currently valid OMB Control Number. The approved OMB Control Number for this information collection is 0648-XXXX. Without this approval, we could not conduct this survey/information collection. Public reporting for this information collection is estimated to be approximately 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the information collection. All responses to this information collection are voluntary. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this information collection, including suggestions for reducing this burden to the BUREAU Name at: address, Attn: NOS/NCCOS, 1305 East West Highway, Bldg. SSMC4, Rm 9320, Silver Spring, MD, 20910, [email protected], 240-621-1999.

Privacy Act Statement

Authority: The collection of this information is authorized under 5 U.S.C. § 301, Departmental regulations which authorizes the operations of an executive agency, including the creation, custodianship, maintenance and distribution of records, and 15 U.S.C. 1512, Powers and duties of Department.

Purpose: NOAA collects limited information, such as name, address, phone number, or email address for a variety of purposes. This information will be used to respond to user inquiries or provide services requested by the user.

Routine Uses: Disclosure of this information is permitted under the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. Section 552a) to be shared among Department staff for work-related purposes. Disclosure of this information is also subject to all of the published routine uses as identified in the Privacy Act System of Records Notice COMMERCE/NOAA-11, Contact Information for Members of the Public Requesting or Providing Information Related to NOAA’s Mission.

Disclosure: Furnishing this information is voluntary. By providing this information, you are consenting to the use of that information only for the purpose for which it is submitted.

1. Introductions (10 min)

• Introduce NCCOS team and purpose

  • Who we are and who we represent

  • Introduce moderator

  • Study sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (or NOAA)

• Why you have been asked to participate

  • You live near [insert location] and may have opinions on outdoor recreation in the area

  • You are here today to help pilot test an upcoming NOAA survey, and share your feedback

  • We’d like to know how you interpret and understand questions and would like to gain perspectives into the types of responses that might be received

  • Pilot studies are a crucial element of good study design, and while conducting such pilot studies do not guarantee success in the main study, it does increase the likelihood of success

• How the discussion will work

  • Session will last about an hour

  • We will write a summary report based on the discussion, but no names will be used

  • Discussion will be open and informal

  • We will hear from everyone in the group

  • One person talks at a time

  • No right or wrong answers or ideas - We want YOUR opinions

  • Silence or turn off cell phones

  • Although we are talking about topics related to outdoor recreation, I am not an expert, so I may not be able to answer all your questions

• Participant introductions

  • First name or pseudonym, where you are from, and how you relate, professionally or personally, to outdoor recreation

1. Survey (20 min)

   • You will answer a series of questions related to outdoor recreation in and around the [insert location]

   • The information from the full implementation of the survey will help local natural resource managers, such as park managers, understand how people use and value the [insert location] and surrounding areas

   • Complete the survey as you would in an everyday setting

   • We will have a discussion when you finish

   • This is not a test and you will not be quizzed when finished, so please just navigate through the questions and respond as you would if you were doing this on your own

   • If you have any questions as you are taking the survey, jot it down and hold your question until after you are done taking the survey

   • We will have time to walk through the questions at the end.

   • Any questions? [If none] Please read the instructions and begin!

[Monitor completion times and watch participants to see which questions take the greatest effort]

3. Review of Questions (25 minutes)

   • Let’s go over a few of the questions.

   • First, looking at the reasons listed in Question 2 for participating in outdoor recreation.

     • Did each of these reasons make sense to you?

     • Were there any important reasons that were missing?

   • ***Next, looking at Question 3.

     • Did you understand what each of these features referred to?

       • [If not mentioned] Some of the items specifically mentioned “access” or “availability.” How did you interpret the items that did not mention those terms? For example, “designated walking/hiking trails.” Did you interpret that as “availability” or “condition” or something else?

     • Were there any important features that were missing?

   • Looking at Questions 4-6, we asked specifically about whether you bring a mobile device and if you leave it on or off, but we would like to hear more.

   • ***Questions 8-20 ask about your most recent trip to the area.

     • How did you interpret the word “trip”?

       • [If difficulty responding] For example, does a trip begin when you leave your home and end when you return? Or when you enter and exit the recreation area?

       • Does this definition change if you spend the night away from home?

     • How did you interpret “personal group” in Question 10?

     • How did you interpret “sole purpose” in Question 12? Was this question difficult for you to answer?

     • In Question 16, are we missing any popular forms of transportation?

     • Was Question 18 difficult for you to answer?

     • Were we missing any activities in Question 19?

     • Looking at the maps on pages 6 and 12

       • Did the first map help orient you to the study area?

       • Did the shape of the map confuse you?

       • Were the labels in the second map helpful?

         1. [If not mentioned] Were the waterbody labels confusing, especially within the [insert location]?

       • Were there any areas you were expecting to see?

   • Question 22 asks about reasons why people may not visit the area.

     • Did each of these reasons make sense to you?

     • Are we missing any major reasons?

   • ***Finally, question 23 asks about the benefits the area may provide to people.

     • Did the transition from Question 22 to Question 23 work well or was it jarring?

     • Did each of the benefits make sense?

       • [If not mentioned] Does “climate change mitigation” make sense? If not, how would you phrase this?

     • Are we missing any major benefits?

   • [If there is time remaining] With the time remaining, let’s open the discussion up to the rest of the survey. Are there any questions, comments, or suggestions you’d like to share?

     • [If not mentioned] Did you need to read any questions more than once because you weren’t sure what they were asking?

     • [If not mentioned] Were any particularly difficult to answer?

     • [If not mentioned] Did the scales make sense?

4. Close out (5 min)

   • Is there anything else you wanted to share today?

   • Thank you for your time