NATIONAL GAMBLING IMPACT STUDY COMMISSION

HOWARD SPEIZER

MR. SPEIZER: I intend to focus on the adolescent component of the general population survey, specifically I will review the procedures that NORC will follow to secure parent or guardian consent for the adolescent participation in the study.

To start, I want to underline that the national gambling impact and behavior study will adhere to all public law, requirements for protecting the confidentiality of and securing consent for participation from all respondents. The identity of our respondents will be protected from unauthorized access in all survey materials and data collection processes. Survey data will only be reported in summary form. Participation in this survey is voluntary. All respondents will consent to taking part in the study and will always have the opportunity to decline their consent or to refuse to answer individual questions in the survey if desired.

For the adolescent component of this survey, we will take the additional precaution of receiving parent or guardian consent before asking the adolescent for their consent to participate.

In Exhibit B of the handout, we outline the process that we will follow to require this consent. I ask you to direct your attention to this Exhibit, as I review the procedure that we will follow. We start the interview by introducing the intent of our telephone call, provide an overview of the study and underscore the confidentiality protection procedures that we intend to follow. After determining that there is an eligible adolescent in the household, we will ask permission from the parent or guardian before proceeding with the adolescent interview.

After receiving this permission, the telephone interviewer will complete and sign the consent attestation form and will ask to speak with the adolescent. The attestation form will be secured and stored with project workers as evidence of consent and will be sent to parents or adolescents if desired.

If the parent or guardian requests written materials or expressed reservations about the survey, our interviewer will ask for their address and send a consent form to the parent. The consent form package sent to the parent will provide mailing materials and instructions for them to follow to decline consent for their adolescents to participate. The package will be sent by certified mail to insure its receipt.

If we do not receive a response from the parent after two weeks from the time the package is received, we will begin making attempts to call and interview the adolescent. Parents and adolescents will always have the opportunity, at any time in the survey process, to renege on their consent acceptance and to pull their data out of the survey.

This summarizes the flow chart in Exhibit B, and I will pass the conversation onto Sam and field questions later.