In Person Q&A Brochure 2025

If you have more questions
about NHSBH, please call

What is the National Household Survey on Behavioral Health?

1-800-848-4079

The National Household Survey on Behavioral Health (NHSBH)
provides up-to-date information on alcohol, tobacco, and drug use,
mental health and other health-related issues in the United States.
NHSBH is directed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration (SAMHSA), part of the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services (HHS). The study is being conducted by
RTI International, an independent nonprofit research organization.

or visit our Web site at

nhsbh.rti.org

A trusted source of data since 1971

For more information on SAMHSA or
RTI International:

NHSBH began in 1971 and is conducted every year. This year almost
70,000 people from across the United States will be interviewed for
this important study.

National Study Director
SAMHSA
5600 Fishers Lane
Rockville, MD 20857
samhsa.gov

Information from NHSBH is used to support prevention and treatment
programs, monitor substance use trends, estimate the need for
treatment facilities and assist with the creation of government policy.

Director of Data Collection
RTI International
3040 Cornwallis Road
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
rti.org
If you want to talk to someone about a mental
health, alcohol, or drug use issue,
call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration’s National Helpline,
a 24-hour service for local treatment options.
1-800-662-HELP (4357)
1-800-487-4889 (TTY)
findtreatment.gov
RTI International is a trade name of Research Triangle Institute.

v.1.25

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration. Conducted by RTI International.

Answers to Your Important Questions
Why Should I Participate?
You are important! Your household was one
of only a few in this area selected for this
study, and no other household or person
can take your place.
Every person who is selected and
completes the full interview will receive
$30 at the end of the interview in
appreciation for their help.
If chosen for an interview, you will represent
the residents of your community and help
us gather important information that is
needed to make sound policy decisions.
Your participation also provides vital
information to researchers and local, state
and federal agencies to design education,
treatment and prevention programs. The
data help identify areas where the funding
may be needed to support these efforts.

What if I Do Not Smoke, Drink
or Use Drugs?
In order to know the percentage of people
who smoke, drink or use drugs, we also
need to know how many people do not.
The responses of people who do not use
these substances are just as important as
the responses of people who do.

How Is My Privacy Protected?

While some questions ask about drug
knowledge and experience, other questions
ask about a number of health-related topics
relevant for all people. You do not need to
know anything about drugs to answer the
questions.

All information collected for this study will
be kept confidential and used only for
statistical purposes, as required by federal
law – the Confidential Information
Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of
2002 (CIPSEA).
Names are never recorded or linked with
the answers to the interview questions.
Computers are protected with strong
passwords and data are encrypted for
added security.

Your participation matters!

Your household has been
chosen at random, and no
one else can take your place.

Your answers are private.

How Was I Chosen?
Household addresses, not specific people,
are randomly chosen through scientific
methods. Once a household has been
chosen, it cannot be replaced for any
reason. This assures that NHSBH
accurately represents the many different
types of people in the United States.
A professional RTI interviewer will visit your
household to ask several general questions
that only take a few minutes to answer.
Afterwards, one or possibly two members
of your household may be asked to
complete the full interview. It is possible
that no one in your household will be
selected for the interview.

What Will Happen During
the Interview?
An interviewer will conduct the interview
with each selected person using a laptop
computer. No prior computer skills are
necessary.
Participants will answer most of the
interview questions in private, entering
their responses directly into the computer.
For other questions, the interviewer will
read the questions aloud and enter the
participant’s responses into the computer.
The survey takes about an hour to complete.
Those who complete the full interview will
receive $30 as a token of our appreciation.

Your answers are combined
with the answers of thousands
of other people and reported
only as overall numbers.

What is the Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services
Administration?
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration (SAMHSA) is an
agency in the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS). SAMHSA was created
to improve the lives of people with or at risk for
mental and substance use disorders.
SAMHSA selected RTI International, an
independent nonprofit research organization,
to administer NHSBH.