Supporting Statement A - 2024 RPCV Survey - Final

Supporting Statement For

Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey (Part A)

A. Justification

A1. Circumstances of Information Collection

Since its establishment in 1961, the Peace Corps has been guided by a mission of world peace and friendship. The agency exemplifies the best of our nation’s spirit by sending Americans to serve around the world, advancing development, and building cross-cultural understanding. Today, the Peace Corps continues to build strong relationships between our country and the people of our partner nations, while making a difference in overseas communities, in the lives of our Volunteers, and back home in the United States. More than 240,000 Volunteers have served in 144 countries since 1961, changing lives—including their own.

Peace Corps Volunteers are the face of our nation in communities around the globe, building positive perceptions of the United States and sharing American values with their communities. After Volunteers complete their service, they return to the United States with new skills, deep knowledge of other cultures, and long-lasting relationships. Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs) continue their service by promoting awareness of other cultures and global issues with friends, family, and the American people; maintaining relationships with colleagues and friends from the countries where they served; and sustaining their commitment to volunteerism and public service.

The 2024 RPCV Impact Survey is the third wave of the Peace Corps’ multi-year RPCV Impact Survey project and is intended to measure the demonstrable impact of the Peace Corps on Returned Volunteers. The fourth and final wave will take place in 2026 fulfilling the congressional mandate for these surveys. The survey was first administered in 2020, followed by the second wave in 2022. Specifically, this survey project fulfills the mandate required by the H.R.2559 – Sam Farr and Nick Castle Peace Corps Reform Act of 2018 Sec. 103 (22 U.S.C. 2501; Pub. L. 115–256, §1(a), Oct. 9, 2018, 132 Stat. 3650), in compliance with Section 3506(c) (2) (A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, where the Peace Corps shall assess the impact of the Peace Corps on the former Volunteer, including the Volunteers’ well-being, career, civic engagement, and commitment to public service. After the final iteration of the survey in 2026, data from all four waves will be compiled into a comprehensive and detailed report on findings regarding the impact of Peace Corps service on RPCVs at different life stages post-service. The relevant text of the Sam Farr and Nick Castle Peace Corps Reform Act of 2018 can be reviewed in Appendix A1.

Each wave of the RPCV Impact Survey is administered to different cohorts of RPCVs based on their number of years post-service. The 2024 RPCV Impact Survey is designed to collect information from RPCVs whose first service ended in year 2003, 2013, 2018, or 2021, corresponding to 21, 11, 6, and 3 years post-service from the time the survey is fielded. Members of the target audience for the survey are RPCVs from these four cohorts, representing the diversity of our Returned Volunteers’ backgrounds as well as the Peace Corps’ programmatic and geographic reach. The survey design and methodology will remain consistent across all four waves of the RPCV Impact survey in order to maximize comparability across survey periods. Relatively minor updates have been made to the questionnaire since its original submission in 2020, but the survey content remains consistent.

The 2024 Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey will be administered online, with respondents being invited to participate either via email or postal mail, depending on the availability of contact information. The survey will collect data that will relate Returned Volunteers’ experiences of Peace Corps service (determined both through available administrative data and survey responses) to measures representing respondents’ post-service outcomes in the following areas: well-being, career, civic engagement, and commitment to public service. The survey is designed to be administered to each respondent one time.

A2. Purpose and Uses of the Data

Per the reporting requirement established by the Sam Farr and Nick Castle Peace Corps Reform Act of 2018, the results of this survey will be submitted in a report by the Director of the Peace Corps to (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; (2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives; (3) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and (4) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.

Furthermore, this data collection is an opportunity for the Peace Corps to strengthen its quantitative data coverage of the Returned Volunteer experience post-service. The information gathered will allow the agency to generate insight into the lasting direct and indirect impacts Peace Corps operations may have on Returned Volunteers’ lives, their social/family networks, their places of employment, and their communities. These insights will provide the Peace Corps greater capability in making data-informed decisions to optimize the agency’s operational effectiveness and overall value to the United States.

The data collection was designed to fulfill the survey mandate in a manner that:

1. Sufficiently and efficiently covers the key concepts that underlie each of the mandated topic areas of measurement

2. Leverages questions that are in wide use in respected, large scale, and long-running surveys to measure the aforementioned key concepts

3. Minimizes the burden to our respondents

Per a review of federal guidance, research literature, and existing surveys, the agency identified the following concepts underlying their respective mandated topic areas of measurement:

Well-being

1. Physical well-being - Physical health

2. Mental well-being - Mental and emotional health

3. Social well-being - Providing and receiving support from family, friends, and others

Career and public service¹

1. Career intention - Factors influencing the choice of a career or specific job

2. Career outcomes - Employment/Service/Military/Education status and details

3. Career satisfaction - Factors associated with job and career contentment

Civic engagement

1. Civic action - Participation in activities to help better the community

2. Civic commitment/duty - The willingness to make positive contributions to society

3. Civic skills - The ability to be involved in civil society, politics, and democracy

4. Social cohesion - A sense of reciprocity, trust, and bonding to others

In order to identify appropriate questions to measure the topic area concepts, the Peace Corps focused on long-running, large-scale omnibus surveys conducted by federal agencies and respected non-governmental organizations, including:

• U.S. Census Bureau - American Community Survey

• U.S. Census Bureau/U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) - Current Population Survey, including the Civic Engagement and Volunteering Supplement

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System

• NORC at the University of Chicago - General Social Survey

We also closely referenced the AmeriCorps Alumni Outcomes Survey, conducted by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), due to the similar objectives of that data collection and the related mission of AmeriCorps/CNCS. Ultimately, the intention is to adhere to topic conceptualizations and instrument constructions that already exist, where there is consensus by practitioners of their validity. This approach has the following advantages:

1. The surveys we are drawing from are acknowledged to be of high quality, with conceptualizations, methodology, and content already developed and rigorously assessed

2. The omnibus nature of these surveys will likely include questions of sufficient specificity to address a particular concept without being unnecessarily burdensome

The questions to be asked in the survey are in the included survey questionnaire, contained in Appendix A2. An overview of the survey questions’ connection to the mandated topic areas for data collection are described in Exhibit A1.

In addition to designing the survey instrument to address required topics for measurement in an efficient manner, the agency will also minimize respondent burden by prioritizing, where possible, the use of existing Peace Corps administrative records instead of soliciting information from the respondent using the survey instrument.

Exhibit A1. Survey question relevance to mandated topic areas for data collection

Survey question number	Mandated topic area	Question source	Notes
Section 1. Peace Corps Volunteer Service
1.1.a-b	n/a	CNCS-AmeriCorps Alumni Outcomes Survey (AAOS) (slightly modified)	These questions classify respondents and relate their experiences as Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) to their subsequent lives as Returned Volunteers. We will leverage available administrative data (such as records of successful Completion Of Service (COS), Medical Separation, post/sector assignment, etc.) to identify seminal Volunteer experiences in service. The questions asked in 1.1 fill in the gaps where administrative records are unavailable or inappropriate. Questions 1.1.c-e align with the three goals of the Peace Corps as enshrined in the Peace Corps Act authorizing the creation of the Peace Corps. Perceived effectiveness in meeting these goals will be treated as a proxy for “skills developed in service”, since the PCV selection, training, and support model is aligned to generating enabled Volunteers with the skills to action on the three Peace Corps goals. Questions 1.1.f-g identify respondents who experienced significant medical or safety/security concerns but did not ultimately need to be separated from service.
1.1.c-e	n/a	Peace Corps- Annual Volunteer Survey (AVS)
1.1.f-g	n/a	Specific to the Peace Corps
Section 2. Education
2.1	Career/Public Service	Census-American Community Survey (ACS), Analogues in NORC-General Social Survey (GSS) and CNCS-AAOS
2.2	Career/Public Service	NORC-GSS (slightly modified)	Required to determine if a respondent pursued graduate-level education before and/or after service, since agency PCV pre-service education records may not be complete and post-service records do not exist.
Section 3. Career/public service arc - Before Peace Corps service
3.1	Career/Public Service, Civic Engagement	CNCS-AAOS (slightly modified), Analogues in Census-ACS, NORC-GSS	We are constructing the career arc measurement similarly to CNCS-AAOS: six months before service, six months after service, current status.

Exhibit A1 (continued). Survey question relevance to mandated topic areas for data collection

Survey question number	Mandated topic area	Question source	Notes
Section 4. Career/public service arc – Transition after Peace Corps service
4.1	Career/Public Service, Civic Engagement	See 3.1	Continuation of career arc measurement. We will also leverage administrative data to determine if a respondent subsequently served again as a PCV or Peace Corps Response Volunteer (PCRV).
4.2.1	Career/Public Service	Census-ACS (slightly modified) CNCS-AAOS	Used Census-ACS classifications (with simplified self-employment categorizations), informed by CNCS-AAOS wording.
4.2.2	Career/Public Service	NORC-GSS (slightly modified)	Identifies the respondent’s general position in their work organization’s hierarchy and if they are in a leadership/managerial position.
4.2.3	Career/Public Service	CNCS-AAOS (modified)	Helps address career “return on investment (ROI)” of Peace Corps service for the individual PCV, and skills development ROI that Peace Corps generates for the United States.
4.2.4	Career/Public Service	NORC-GSS (modified)
4.2.5	Career/Public Service	NORC-GSS	Career satisfaction inventory, covering intrinsic, extrinsic, and interpersonal drivers of satisfaction, per contemporary job satisfaction theory.
4.3	Career/Public Service, Well-being	CNCS-AAOS (slightly modified), Analogue in NORC-GSS
Section 5. Career/public service arc – Current status
5.1.1	Career/Public Service, Civic Engagement	See 3.1
5.1.2	Career/Public Service	n/a, skip logic question	Identifies respondents whose current jobs are not the same as the ones they held six months after service. This will also reduce burden for those respondents who are still at the same job.
5.2.1	Career/Public Service	See 4.2.1
5.2.2	Career/Public Service	See 4.2.2
5.2.3	Career/Public Service	See 4.2.3
5.2.4	Career/Public Service	See 4.2.4
5.2.5	Career/Public Service	See 4.2.5
5.3	Career/Public Service, Well-being	See 4.3

Exhibit A1 (continued). Survey question relevance to mandated topic areas for data collection

Survey question number	Mandated topic area	Question source	Notes
Section 6. Social network and engagement
6.1	Civic Engagement, Well-being	Census-Current Population Survey (CPS) (modified), Analogue in NORC-GSS	Recent academic research suggests that a person’s social networks not only have implications for career and levels of civic engagement, but also have an impact on their well-being. CDC guidance now incorporates the view that meaningful social connectedness is a necessary element of general well-being, in addition to the traditional physical and mental/emotional health elements.
6.2	Civic Engagement, Well-being	Census-CPS, Analogue in NORC-GSS
6.3	Civic Engagement, Well-being	Census-CPS, Analogue in CNCS-AAOS
6.4	Civic Engagement	Census-CPS, (modified) Analogue in NORC-GSS
6.5	Civic Engagement	Specific to the Peace Corps
Section 7. Civic engagement and community involvement
7.1	Civic Engagement	Census-CPS
7.2	Civic Engagement	Census-CPS, Analogue in NORC-GSS
7.3	Civic Engagement	NORC-GSS (modified), Analogue in Census-CPS
7.4	Civic Engagement	Census-CPS (modified), Analogue in NORC-GSS	This will help determine where RPCVs are focusing their volunteering efforts.
7.5	Civic Engagement	Census-CPS (modified)	This will help determine where RPCVs are focusing their volunteering efforts.
7.6	Civic Engagement	Census-CPS (modified), Analogue in NORC-GSS	Topic is of interest to external Peace Corps stakeholders.
7.7	Civic Engagement	Specific to the Peace Corps

Exhibit A1 (continued). Survey question relevance to mandated topic areas for data collection

Survey question number	Mandated topic area	Question source	Notes
Section 8. Physical and mental well-being
8.1 - 8.4	Well-being	CDC-Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). Same question in NORC-GSS
8.5	Well-being	Specific to the Peace Corps
Section 9. Final questions
9.1 - 9.2	n/a	Standard demographic questions	Education, current place of residence, and household size/composition are the only demographic data we need to collect on the survey itself. All other required demographic data exist in agency administrative records. Requesting ZIP code in question 9.1 provides maximum flexibility with any post-survey weighting. Question 9.2 is employed to determine if the respondent lives with children under the age of 18, as this can impact career and civic engagement outcomes. Additionally, this question may have some limited utility in inferring other family status characteristics.
9.3	n/a	Stakeholder request	Addresses the request voiced both by internal agency stakeholders and general public commenters asking that respondents have an opportunity to provide relevant narrative data. The data collected may also be potentially useful for qualitative analysis.

A3. Use of Information Technology to Reduce Burden

The Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey will be administered online, with invitations distributed either via email or postal mail. We anticipate that an online survey will be considered less invasive for prospective participants compared to other formats and will be the most convenient for them to complete. Furthermore, using online surveys will allow for skip patterns to be employed where appropriate, reducing the total number of items that a respondent has to read and answer. In an effort to make the survey process as convenient as possible, most eligible participants will be sent an email invitation that includes a brief description of the survey and an accompanying survey link. In situations where we do not have the email address of an eligible participant, they will be invited via a paper mailing with an identical description of the survey accompanied by a survey link. Respondents will also be provided the link to a dedicated Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey email address where they will be able to reach out for questions, comments, or concerns.

A4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

Based on a review of existing data collection efforts, the most recent systematic and comprehensive collection of data concerning the RPCV experience (aside from previous waves of the RPCV Impact Survey in 2020 and 2022) occurred in a survey conducted by the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA) in 2021. While the intent of the study was similar to that of the Peace Corps’ RPCV Impact Survey, there are significant differences in scope and survey content which limits comparability of results. Furthermore, the 2018 Farr-Castle Act federally mandates the Peace Corps to continue administering a survey every two years until 2026 that measures the impact that the Peace Corps has on RPCVs in specifically defined areas of life. Given these circumstances, we have concluded that the NPCA Study cannot be used in place of the Peace Corps RPCV Impact Survey, and as such, the data that we will be collecting is necessary and not duplicative of any other available information.

A5. Small Business

Participation in the Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey data collection will not involve small businesses or small entities, or their workforces.

A6. Consequences of Not Collecting the Information

Without this data collection, the agency would not be complying with the Congressionally-mandated H.R.2559 - Sam Farr and Nick Castle Peace Corps Reform Act of 2018 Sec. 103 (22 U.S.C. 2501; Pub. L. 115–256, §1(a), Oct. 9, 2018, 132 Stat. 3650). Specifically, the mandate requires the Director of the Peace Corps to conduct a survey to assess the impact of the Peace Corps on Returned Volunteers once every two years for a total of six years following the initial launch. Given that the RPCV Impact Survey was first administered in 2020, with a second iteration in 2022, the 2018 Farr-Castle mandate requires the Peace Corps to conduct the survey again in 2024 and 2026 to remain in compliance.

A7. Special Circumstances Justifying Inconsistencies with Guidelines in 5 CFR 1320.6

This information collection fully complies with 5 CFR 1320.6(d)(2) guidelines.

A8. Consultation Outside the Agency

The 60-day public comment Notice was published in the Federal Register on January 19, 2024 [89 FR 3698]. No public comments were received. The 30-day public comment Notice was published in the Federal Register on March 22, 2024 [89 FR 20505]. No public comments were received. Additionally, the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA), an independent non-profit organization that serves as the alumni association for returned Peace Corps Volunteers and staff, was made aware of the Notice and was encouraged to publicize the Notice to its membership. The comment period ended March 19, 2024. Ultimately, no public comments were received.

Consultations on the design, sampling plan, instrumentation, and analysis of this data collection effort occurred throughout the initial planning phase of this project in 2019. The Peace Corps initiated informal consultations with stakeholder groups such as the NPCA and with federal agencies such as the Corporation for National and Community Service which share a similar or complementary mission with the Peace Corps and/or have experience in data collections similar to the one being proposed. These consultations provided the opportunity to ensure the technical quality and appropriateness of the overall survey design, sampling approaches, and data analysis plans; to obtain advice and recommendations concerning the instrumentation; and to structure the data collection and instruments so as to minimize overall and individual response burden.

A9. Payment to Respondents

There will be no payment to respondents for participating in the survey.

A10. Assurances of Confidentiality

It is the policy of the Peace Corps to comply with the Privacy Act of 1974 as outlined in 22 CFR Part 308. Respondents will be advised that the Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey is entirely voluntary and that any information they provide will be combined and summarized with information provided by others, and no individually identifiable information will be released. All sampled Returned Volunteers will be assured that no adverse consequences will accrue to non-respondents, and that their comments and opinions will be kept private. In addition, survey invitation letters (both in email and print form) that will link to the online survey will indicate the Peace Corps’ federal status and the purpose of the survey.

The survey will be administered by the Peace Corps, utilizing a specialized survey management software platform supplied by a FISMA ACT of 2002 and FIPS Publication 200-compliant vendor contracted by the Peace Corps. During the administration process, collected data will be stored on a vendor server that has redundancies implemented in the event of system failure and is protected by high-end firewall systems which are scanned regularly for vulnerabilities.

Upon completion of the survey administration period, data stored on the vendor server will be removed and transferred to the Peace Corps utilizing a compliant encryption standard. The entire dataset will be encrypted so that any data stored will be further protected. Finally, access to any data with identifying information will be limited to Peace Corps staff working directly on the survey. Upon completion of the study, the Peace Corps will destroy the dataset with individuals’ names, addresses, and other identifying information.

A11. Questions of a Sensitive Nature

None of the questions will request any personally invasive or sensitive information. Respondents will be informed about the purpose of the data collection and that responding to all survey questions is voluntary.

A12. Estimates of Response Burden

Estimate the Annualized Hour Burden of the Collection of Information from Participants

The estimates for hour burden were informed by the online survey methodology being used. The final per-respondent hour burden estimate was based on an initial survey duration estimate (17 minutes) calculated by the agency’s survey management software assuming that respondents would see and answer every question on the survey. However, because many respondents will not see every question due to skip logic incorporated in the survey programming, the final survey duration estimate was adjusted down to 15 minutes per respondent. This 15-minute final estimate was corroborated by small-scale testing by agency employees with the same characteristics as the target audience (i.e., testers were Returned Peace Corps Volunteers). Although an analysis of past responses to the 2022 survey showed the median response duration to be a little more than 10 minutes, we have kept the estimate for the 2024 survey at 15 minutes per respondent to remain conservative. Taking this final estimate of 15 minutes per respondent into account results in an overall estimate of 241 total burden hours, assuming the desired minimum number of respondents (964) participate in the survey. Exhibit A2 presents estimates of annualized burden. Sampling procedures are discussed in Section B1.

Estimate the Annualized Cost Burden to Respondents for the Collection of Information from Participants

There are no direct costs to respondents other than their time to participate in the study. The total annual costs of the time respondents spend completing these surveys is $7,172.16, calculated as the number of respondent hours, which is 241, multiplied by the estimated average hourly wages for individuals working in all occupations in May 2022, $29.76, as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023). Exhibit A2 contains estimated response burdens for the target audience included in this survey.

Exhibit A2. Data Collection Burden for Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey

Components of Burden Estimation	Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey
Minimum Number of Respondents	964
Frequency of Response	1
Average Hours per Respondent	0.25
Total Annual and Total Aggregate Hours Burden	241
Estimated Annual Cost per Respondent	$29.76 x 0.25
Annualized Cost to Respondents for the Hours Burden*	$7,172.16

* Respondents’ total annualized cost are calculated as hourly wage x time spent on survey x number of participants

A13. Estimate of Total Capital and Startup Costs/Operation and Maintenance Costs to Respondents or Record Keepers

No capital, startup, or operational and maintenance costs are incurred by study participants in this information collection activity.

A14. Estimates of Costs to the Federal Government

The total incremental cost for the survey, which runs for a 1-year period, is approximately $5,100.00. These costs are inclusive of printing and mailing survey invites and reminders. All other resources required will not incur incremental expense to the agency.

A15. Changes in Burden

This submission is a reapproval of OMB 0420–0569, which was originally approved in 2020. Since the target audience for the 2024 RPCV Impact Survey is smaller than that of the 2020 RPCV Impact Survey, the estimated annual burden for 2024 is 8.25 hours less than what was submitted in the original 2020 request. Exhibit A3 shows the change in the burden to the public from 249.25 hours in 2020 to 241 hours in 2024. It should also be noted that the estimated annual burden hours for 2024 reported in this supporting statement is one hour less than what was reported in our 60-day public notice (242 hours) since further cleaning of the sample frame reduced our minimum number of respondents by four.

Exhibit A3. Change in Estimated Burden from 2020 to 2024

Burden to the Public	2020 RPCV Impact Survey	2022 RPCV Impact Survey
Minimum Number of Respondents	997	964
Frequency of Response	1	1
Average Hours per Respondent	0.25	0.25
Estimated Annual Burden Hours	249.25	241

A16. Plans for Publication, Analysis, and Schedule

Time Schedule

The project covers a 1-year period from July 2024 through June 2025. Data collection activities and data analysis will be conducted over this time period. Exhibit A4 indicates when each of the activities associated with the project will occur.

Exhibit A4. Project Timeline

Project Activity	Time Frame
Survey Prep	July 2024 - October 2024
Field Survey	October 2024 - November 2024
Process Data and Analyze Survey Results	December 2024 - March 2025
Prepare Interim Summary Report	April 2025 - June 2025

Publication Plans

Per the reporting requirement established by the Sam Farr and Nick Castle Peace Corps Reform Act of 2018, the results of this survey will be submitted in a report by the Director of the Peace Corps to (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; (2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives; (3) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and (4) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives. Additionally, the Peace Corps intends to make this written report publicly available on its website and may further disseminate the results through conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications. The full comprehensive report will be published in 2027, following the fourth and final iteration of the RPCV survey in 2026. However, an interim summary report covering the first through third iterations of the survey will be provided to Congress in 2025.

Analysis Plan

The analyses will be descriptive in nature, with both quantitative and qualitative analyses being conducted in order to document the impact of the Peace Corps on Returned Volunteers’ well-being, career, civic engagement, and commitment to public service. The findings will be shared with Congress as mandated, Peace Corps staff, and the general public.

Data Set Up, Cleaning, and Reliability and Validity Analysis

• Data set up and cleaning. Once the survey fielding period has closed, the data will be downloaded and cleaned, applying any post-coding as needed for the analysis. The data files produced will be in restricted format only for use by Peace Corps staff directly responsible for analyzing the collected data to produce reporting deliverables. Sampling weights will be calculated and applied to the survey results during analysis and reporting.

• Response rates and nonresponse bias analysis. The data analysis will calculate response rates (per OMB’s Standards and Guidelines for Statistical Surveys) for the overall sample and for all relevant subgroups. If the response rate is below 80 percent or the item response rate is below 70 percent, a nonresponse and response bias analysis for individual survey items will be conducted. See Sections B2 and B3 for a detailed description of procedures used to address nonresponse.

• Response frequencies. Response frequencies (i.e., counts and percentages) for each item and the mean, median, mode, standard deviation, and minimum and maximum values for continuous survey questions will be calculated. Frequencies and descriptive statistics will be calculated for all participants combined and for each cohort separately.

• Psychometric analysis. Psychometric analysis of the data will be conducted to assess the quality and limits of the survey instrument. Inter-item reliability will be calculated for items making up scales to assess internal consistency using Cronbach’s alpha. If internal consistency, as measured by Cronbach’s alpha, is below .70, alternative scales will be developed using factor analysis. Validation of the survey items will illustrate that the items on the survey are internally consistent.

Analysis for reporting

Basic descriptive analyses (including frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations) will be calculated. Statistical associations will be calculated between respondent characteristics and any constructed scales’ factors using t-tests and ANOVA as necessary.

The survey questions on the Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey were modeled on relevant questions asked in the American Community Survey, Current Population Survey, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, General Social Survey, and AmeriCorps Alumni Outcomes Survey. Original question wording and construction were retained to the greatest extent possible in order to maximize the possibility that the results of the source surveys could serve as reference points to the results of the Peace Corps survey.

Analytic techniques (e.g., regression) and more granular comparisons (e.g., results comparison by sector or geography of service) may be attempted if the final sample size permits. Finally, the included open-ended survey question will be analyzed qualitatively, and will consist mostly of narrative summaries of the answers and the identification of general themes.

A17. Approval to Not Display Expiration Date

The expiration date will be displayed on all instruments approved for this study.

A18. Explain each exception to the topics of the certification statement identified in “Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions.”

This collection of information involves no exceptions to the Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions.

Appendix A1. Legal justification

H.R.2559 - Sam Farr and Nick Castle Peace Corps Reform Act of 2018 Sec. 103

(22 U.S.C. 2501; Pub. L. 115–256, §1(a), Oct. 9, 2018, 132 Stat. 3650)

SEC. 103. PEACE CORPS IMPACT SURVEY.

(a) In General.—Beginning not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act and once every 2 years thereafter for the following 6 years, the Director shall conduct a survey of former Peace Corps Volunteers.

(b) Scope Of Survey.—The survey required under subsection (a) shall assess, with respect to each former Peace Corps Volunteer completing the survey, the impact of the Peace Corps on the former Volunteer, including the Volunteer’s—

(1) well-being;

(2) career;

(3) civic engagement; and

(4) commitment to public service.

(c) Report.—The Director shall submit a report containing the results of the survey conducted under subsection (a) to—

(1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;

(2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives;

(3) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and

(4) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.

Appendix A2. Data collection instrument

Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey 2024 – Draft

[INTRO SCREEN]

Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey

Thank you for your service. To support current and future Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) and Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs), and in accordance with the Sam Farr and Nick Castle Peace Corps Reform Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-256), we are asking you to answer some brief questions to better understand how your experiences after Peace Corps service may have been impacted by your time spent as a PCV. 

 

This survey is conducted by the Peace Corps and is voluntary. Your responses will remain private to the extent permitted by law, as is provided for in the Privacy Act of 1974. This information is protected and maintained in the Peace Corps systems of record PC-17, PC-18 for Returned Peace Corps Volunteers. Your survey responses will be summarized in reports along with the responses of other returned Volunteers in aggregate form only. This survey will take approximately 15 minutes to complete. The OMB control number for this collection is #xxxx-xxxx, which expires on xx/xx/xxxx. For any questions, comments, or concerns that you may have, please email the Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey team at  [email protected].

[SURVEY BODY]

[SECTION 1. PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEER SERVICE]

We would like you to think back to your Peace Corps service. If you served more than once, either as a two year Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) or as a Peace Corps Response (formerly known as Crisis Corps) Volunteer, you should refer only to your first service. Please answer the following questions to the best of your ability.

1. Please indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statements related to your Peace Corps service.

[SCALE: Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly disagree, Do not remember]

1. My Peace Corps service was personally rewarding

2. My Peace Corps service was professionally rewarding

3. I was able to transfer knowledge and skills to help individuals and organizations in my host country build their capacities

4. I was able to promote a better understanding of the United States and Americans among individuals and groups in my host country

5. I was able to promote a better understanding of my host country and its people among individuals and groups in the United States

6. I needed to spend a significant time away from my host community due to a personal health situation

7. I needed to spend a significant time away from my host community due to a safety and security situation (e.g., crime incident, political instability, natural disaster, etc.)

[SECTION 2. EDUCATION]

Now we would like to hear about some of your experiences both prior to your Peace Corps service and after your service ended.

2.1 As of today, what is the highest degree or level of school you have completed? Select your expected degree, if you are currently enrolled in an education program.

1. Some college, no degree

2. Associate’s degree (for example: AA, AS)

3. Bachelor’s degree (for example: BA, BS)

4. Master’s degree (for example: MA, MS, MEng, MEd, MSW, MBA)

5. Professional degree beyond a bachelor’s degree (for example: MD, DDS, DVM, LLB, JD)

6. Doctorate degree (for example: PhD, EdD)

7. Other (please specify): [open ended textbox]

2. In what year were you most recently enrolled in school?

[Select Year from Dropdown Menu]

[SECTION 3. CAREER/PUBLIC SERVICE ARC - BEFORE PEACE CORPS SERVICE]

3.1 What were you doing in the six months before your first Peace Corps service? Please select all that apply

1. Employed part-time or full-time, including military service

2. Enrolled in an education program part-time or full-time

3. Serving in a national service program (e.g., AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, NCCC, or VISTA)

4. Doing non-paid work, such as an internship or apprenticeship

5. Seeking work, providing caregiving, or occupied outside of the workforce

6. Retired

7. Other (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

[SECTION 4. CAREER/PUBLIC SERVICE ARC - TRANSITION AFTER PEACE CORPS SERVICE]

1. What were you doing in the six months after your first Peace Corps service? Please select all that apply.

1. Employed part-time or full-time, including military service

2. Enrolled in an education program part-time or full-time

3. Serving in the Peace Corps or in a national service program (e.g., AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, NCCC, or VISTA)

4. Doing non-paid work, such as an internship or apprenticeship

5. Seeking work, providing caregiving, or occupied outside of the workforce

6. Retired

7. Other (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

[If 4.1=Employed part-time or full-time, including military service ASK 4.2.1-4.2.8]

4.2.1 What type of organization were you working in, six months after your first Peace Corps service?

1. For-profit company or organization

2. Non-profit organization (including tax-exempt and charitable organizations)

3. Local government (for example: city or county school district)

4. State government (including state colleges/universities)

5. Active duty U.S. Armed Forces or Commissioned Corps

6. Federal government civilian employee

7. Self-employed (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

8. Other (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

4.2.2 Did you supervise anyone in this job who was directly responsible to you?

1. Yes

2. No

4.2.3 How much do you agree or disagree that the following aspects of your Peace Corps service played a role in helping you obtain this job?

[SCALE: Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly disagree, Do not remember]

1. Skills and experience that you acquired during your service

2. Connections that you made during your service

3. Connections and resources available to you after your return because of your service (e.g., networking opportunities, job fairs, NCE status, etc.)

4.2.4 How much of your previous work experience, including your Peace Corps experience, and/or job skills did you make use of in this job?

1. Almost all

2. A lot

3. A little

4. Almost none

5. Do not remember

4.2.5 For each statement below, indicate how much you agree or disagree that it applied to this job.

[SCALE: Strongly agree, agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly disagree, Do not remember]

1. My job was secure

2. My income was high

3. My opportunities for advancement were high

4. My job left a lot of leisure time

5. My job was interesting

6. I could work independently

7. In my job I could help other people

8. My job was useful to society

9. In my job, I had personal contact with other people

10. My job had flexible working hours

[If 4.1=Seeking work, providing caregiving, or occupied outside of the workforce ASK 4.3]

3. What job seeking or caregiving were you engaged in six months after your first Peace Corps service? Please select all that apply.

1. Unemployed, looking for work

2. Unemployed, not looking for work

3. Employed, but looking for another job

4. Staying at home to care for one or more family or household members

5. Not working because of a disability or health reasons

6. Other (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

[SECTION 5. CAREER/PUBLIC SERVICE ARC – CURRENT STATUS]

5.1.1 What are you doing now? Please select all that apply.

1. Employed part-time or full-time, including military service

2. Enrolled in an education program part-time or full-time

3. Serving in a national service program (e.g., AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, NCCC, or VISTA)

4. Doing non-paid work, such as an internship or apprenticeship

5. Seeking work, providing caregiving, or occupied outside the workforce

6. Retired

7. Other (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

[If 5.1.1=Employed part-time or full-time, including military service and 4.1=Employed part-time or full-time, including military service, ASK 5.1.2]

[If 5.1.1=Employed part-time or full-time, including military service and 4.1≠Employed part-time or full-time, including military service, SKIP 5.1.2, ASK 5.2.1-5.2.8]

5.1.2 Are the job and organization at which you worked six months after your first Peace Corps service the same as the job and organization at which you work now?

1. Yes

2. No

[If 5.1.2=YES SKIP to 5.3]

5.2.1 What type of organization are you working in now?

1. For-profit company or organization

2. Non-profit organization (including tax-exempt and charitable organizations)

3. Local government (for example: city or county school district)

4. State government (including state colleges/universities)

5. Active duty U.S. Armed Forces or Commissioned Corps

6. Federal government civilian employee

7. Self-employed (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

8. Other (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

5.2.2 Do you supervise anyone in this job who is directly responsible to you?

1. Yes

2. No

5.2.3 How much do you agree or disagree that the following aspects of your Peace Corps service played a role in helping you obtain this job?

[SCALE: Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly disagree]

1. Skills and experience that you acquired during your service

2. Connections that you made during your service

3. Connections and resources available to you after your return because of your service (e.g., networking opportunities, job fairs, Non-Competitive Eligibility status, etc.)

5.2.4 How much of your previous work experience, including your Peace Corps experience, and/or job skills do you make use of in this job?

1. Almost all

2. A lot

3. A little

4. Almost none

5.2.5 For each statement below, indicate how much you agree or disagree that it applies to this job.

[SCALE: Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly disagree]

1. My job is secure

2. My income is high

3. My opportunities for advancement are high

4. My job leaves a lot of leisure time

5. My job is interesting

6. I can work independently

7. In my job I can help other people

8. My job is useful to society

9. In my job, I have personal contact with other people

10. My job has flexible working hours

[If 5.1= Seeking work, providing caregiving, or occupied outside of the workforce ASK 5.3]

5.3 What job seeking or caregiving are you engaged in now? Please select all that apply.

1. Unemployed, looking for work

2. Unemployed, not looking for work

3. Employed, but looking for another job

4. Staying at home to care for one or more family or household members

5. Not working because of a disability or health reasons

6. Other (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

[SECTION 6. SOCIAL NETWORK AND ENGAGEMENT]

The following questions measure your social engagement and focus on your interactions with family, friends, neighbors, and members of your "Peace Corps network" in person, over the phone, or through the internet or social media. Your "Peace Corps network" refers to fellow Peace Corps Volunteers and other people you met or worked with during your Peace Corps service who you still engage with socially, professionally, or educationally.

1. In the past 12 months, how often did you talk to or spend time with the following people?

[SCALE: Basically every day, A few times a week, A few times a month, Once a month, Less than once a month, Not at all]

1. Your friends and family

2. Your neighbors

3. Your “Peace Corps network” in the United States

4. Your “Peace Corps network” in your country(s) of service

2. In the past 12 months, how often did you and your neighbors do favors for each other such as house sitting, watching each other’s children, lending tools, and other things to help each other?

1. Basically every day

2. A few times a week

3. A few times a month

4. Once a month

5. Less than once a month

6. Not at all

3. In the past 12 months, how often did you talk to or spend time with people from a racial, ethnic or cultural background that is different than yours? This may have been in person, over the phone, or through the internet or social media.

1. Basically every day

2. A few times a week

3. A few times a month

4. Once a month

5. Less than once a month

6. Not at all

4. In the past 12 months, how often did you discuss current events or social/local issues with the following people?

[SCALE: Basically every day, A few times a week, A few times a month, Once a month, Less than once a month, Not at all]

1. Your friends and family

2. Your neighbors

3. Your "Peace Corps network" in the United States

4. Your "Peace Corps network" in your country(s) of service

6.5 Think about your social engagement before you joined the Peace Corps. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement:

My Peace Corps service increased my social engagement.

a. Strongly Agree

b. Agree

c. Neither Agree nor Disagree

d. Disagree

e. Strongly Disagree

[SECTION 7. CIVIC ENGAGEMENT AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT]

The next few questions will ask you about your participation in your community.

1. In the past 12 months, did you attend a public meeting, such as a zoning or school board meeting, to discuss a local issue?

1. Yes

2. No

2. In the past 12 months, did you contact or visit a public official–at any level of government–to express your opinion?

1. Yes

2. No

3. People sometimes belong to different kinds of groups or associations. For each type of group, please indicate whether you: belong and actively participate, belong but don't actively participate, used to belong but do not anymore, or have never belonged to it.

[SCALE: Belong and actively participate, Belong but don’t actively participate, Used to belong but do not anymore, Have never belonged to it]

1. National Peace Corps Association

2. An RPCV group

3. Trade union or professional association

4. Church or other religious organization

5. Sports, leisure, or cultural group

6. Other voluntary organization or association (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

4. In the past 12 months, did you spend any time volunteering for any of the following types of organizations? Please select all that apply, and include activities that you do infrequently or for children’s schools or youth organizations.

1. Peace Corps (e.g., Speakers Match program)

2. National Peace Corps Association

3. An RPCV group

4. Civic, political, or professional organization in the United States

5. Civic, political, or professional organization in your country(s) of service

6. Educational or youth service organization in the United States

7. Educational or youth service organization in your country(s) of service

8. Environmental or animal care organization in the United States

9. Environmental or animal care organization in your country(s) of service

10. Hospital or other health organization in the United States

11. Hospital or other health organization in your country(s) of service

12. Public safety organization in the United States

13. Public safety organization in your country(s) of service

14. Social or community service organization in the United States

15. Social or community service organization in your country(s) of service

16. Religious organization in the United States

17. Religious organization in your country(s) of service

18. Sport, hobby, cultural or arts organization in the United States

19. Sport, hobby, cultural or arts organization in your country(s) of service

20. Other international organization, not associated with your country(s) of service

21. Other (Please specify): [open ended textbox]

[If 7.4=one or more selected responses, ASK 7.5]

7.5 How much of your volunteer time in the past 12 months was spent on each of the organizations where you volunteer?

[Every organization selected in question 7.4 will appear and have a dropdown with the following answer categories:]

5. Basically every day

6. A few times a week

7. A few times a month

8. Once a month

9. Less than once a month

10. Not at all

7.6 In the past 12 months, did you give money or possessions with a combined value of more than $25 to a non-profit organization, such as a charity, school, or religious organization?

1. Yes

2. No

7.7 Think about your participation in your community before you joined the Peace Corps. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement:

My Peace Corps service increased my participation in my community.

a. Strongly Agree

b. Agree

c. Neither Agree nor Disagree

d. Disagree

e. Strongly Disagree

[SECTION 8. PHYSICAL AND MENTAL WELL-BEING]

Now, please answer a few questions about your physical and emotional well-being.

8.1 Would you say that in general your health is excellent, very good, good, fair, or poor?

1. Excellent

2. Very good

3. Good

4. Fair

5. Poor

8.2 Now thinking about your physical health, which includes physical illness and injury, for how many days during the past 30 days was your physical health not good?

[Select 0 to 30 in drop down menu]

8.3 Now thinking about your mental health, which includes stress, depression, and problems with emotions, for how many days during the past 30 days was your mental health not good?

[Select 0 to 30 in drop down menu]

4. During the past 30 days, for about how many days did poor physical or mental health keep you from doing your usual activities, such as self-care, work, or recreation?

[Select 0 to 30 in drop down menu]

8.5 Think about your physical and emotional well-being before you joined the Peace Corps. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements:

[SCALE: Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly disagree]

a. My Peace Corps service increased my physical well-being

b. My Peace Corps service increased my emotional well-being

[SECTION 9. FINAL QUESTIONS]

To close, we would like to ask you three more questions.

1. What is the ZIP Code where you live? If you live outside of the United States, enter your country of residence.

2. Including yourself, how many people live at your residence?

1. Adults, 18 years of age or older [number entry textbox]

2. Children, under the age of 18 [number entry textbox]

3. Finally, can you describe one experience from your Peace Corps service that has guided you to where you are now?

[Open ended textbox]

[THANK YOU SCREEN]

Thank you for taking the time to participate in the survey. We truly value the information you have provided and experiences you have shared to better understand your Peace Corps service experience. Returned Peace Corps Volunteers are the cornerstone of an active and influential alumni community, leading the way as our most effective recruiters. Your volunteer experience can ignite inspiration and shape the future for new volunteers!

Please click the right arrow to submit your responses.

The Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C § 552a) requires that the following notice be provided: The information requested in the Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey is collected pursuant to 22 U.S.C. 2501; Pub. L. 115–256, §1(a), Oct. 9, 2018, 132 Stat. 3650 of the Peace Corps Act as amended. Purposes and Uses - The information requested is collected for the purpose of assessing the impact of the Peace Corps program on returned Volunteers. Routine Uses - Routine uses may include disclosure of the information to federal, state, or local agencies pursuant to lawfully authorized requests. The information will not otherwise be disclosed to entities outside of the Peace Corps without prior written permission. Effects of Nondisclosure - The information requested is not mandatory. For any questions, comments, or concerns that you may have, please email the Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Impact Survey team at [email protected]. 

[END OF SURVEY]

1 We are generally treating public service as a vocation, since many formal definitions of public service imply working as part of an organization providing that service. Additionally, some elements of public service can and will be considered “civic engagement”.

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