NSDUH Questionnaire Change Flexibilities Online Panel-Platform Test Supporting Statement B

National Survey on Drug Use and Health:

Questionnaire Change Flexibilities

Online Panel/Platform Test

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

B. COLLECTIONS OF INFORMATION EMPLOYING STATISTICAL METHODS

1. Respondent Universe and Sampling Methods

The two panels will recruit a maximum of 420 participants (30 participants from each subpopulation in both of the panels; 360 English-speaking and 60 Spanish-speaking). Some participants may belong to multiple subpopulations, resulting in less than 420 unique participants overall. The participants will consist of volunteers who are screened within the panels and determined to meet recruitment criteria.

English-Speaking Participants

A maximum of 360 surveys will collect data from English-speaking participants. The objectives mentioned previously for the online panel testing require the study to include people who match selected characteristics of the target populations relevant to NSDUH. Specifically, participants must meet the criteria for at least one of these categories: general population; youth (aged 12 to 17); Spanish speakers; those who have received substance use treatment in the past 12 months; those who have used methamphetamine, fentanyl, or kratom in the past 12 months; or those who have received mental health treatment in the past 12 months.

Table 4 shows the sample targets for English-speaking participants.

Table 4. Targeted Sample Sizes per English Survey by Population/Subpopulation

Group/Recruitment Source	Sample Size
Total	360
KnowledgePanel
General population	30
Youth (aged 12-17)	30
SUD treatment – past 12 mos.	30
Specific drug users (meth, fentanyl, kratom) – past 12 mos.	30
Specific mental health issues	30
Mental health treatment – past 12 mos.	30
Amazon’s Mechanical Turk
General population	30
Youth (aged 12-17)	30
SUD treatment – past 12 mos.	30
Specific drug users (meth, fentanyl, kratom) – past 12 mos.	30
Specific mental health issues	30
Mental health treatment – past 12 mos.	30

Adults: English-speaking adult participants will be recruited from both online panels. They will complete a screener within each panel to determine if they meet the requirements for at least one of the subpopulations and are eligible to participate in the 30-minute survey. All panel recruitment information will reference an incentive.

Youth: English-speaking participants aged 12 to 17 years old will be recruited from both online panels via their parents. After adults complete their screening questions, they will be asked the same screening questions about any (or all) of their children in their household aged 12-17. For all children aged 12-17 eligible to participate in the main survey, the panel will obtain parent consent (KnowledgePanel), or the parent will call a telephone number displayed at the end of the web screening to provide their consent over the phone with Contractor staff (MTurk). The youth must be present when the parent calls so that the youth can give their assent over the phone to participate as well (Attachment B). Staff will explain the purpose of the study and provide any additional details about NSDUH, SAMHSA or the main survey as requested.

Contractor staff will read an informed consent script, which includes the expectations that the parent and youth be at home when the youth completes the survey, the youth must be in a private location, and parents cannot view answers. It also references the availability of the treatment helpline. If consent is obtained through the panel, this information will be relayed to parents during the consent process.

Spanish-speaking participants

Spanish-speaking participant recruitment for adults and youth will follow the same protocol as recruiting of English-speaking participants. A participant will be considered Spanish-speaking if they endorse the criteria in the screener that Spanish is their primary language.

Table 5 shows the sample targets for Spanish-speaking participants.

Table 5. Targeted Sample Sizes per Spanish Survey by Population/Subpopulation

Group/Recruitment Source	Sample Size
Total	60
KnowledgePanel
General population	5
Youth (aged 12-17)	5
SUD treatment – past 12 mos.	5
Specific drug users (meth, fentanyl, kratom) – past 12 mos.	5
Specific mental health issues	5
Mental health treatment – past 12 mos.	5
Amazon’s Mechanical Turk
General population	5
Youth (aged 12-17)	5
SUD treatment – past 12 mos.	5
Specific drug users (meth, fentanyl, kratom) – past 12 mos.	5
Specific mental health issues	5
Mental health treatment – past 12 mos.	5

2. Information Collection Procedures

Recruitment and Screening: There will be up to 360 adult participants and 60 adolescent participants recruited from the two online panels.

The panels will recruit potential English-speaking and Spanish-speaking adult participants to complete a screener (Attachment A) within their panel platform to determine eligibility for the survey. Potential participants will be screened for primary language, use of methamphetamine, fentanyl and kratom in the past 12 months, and any treatment for substance use or mental health in the past 12 months. Panels will provide participants who are deemed eligible after completing the screener with a link to complete the web survey. Recruitment communications by the panels will notify participants of the nature of the survey, confidentiality of their data, and the incentive.

Potential adolescent participants will be recruited from the online panels via their parent. After an adult completes the screener for themselves, they will be asked the same screening criteria questions for all 12-17 year old children in their household that they are parent or guardian of. If any children 12-17 years old are eligible, the parent will provide their consent through the panel (KnowledgePanel), or over the phone (MTurk). If over the phone, the parent will be asked to call into the provided study line to give consent for their child to participate. The youth must be present when the parent calls so that the youth can give their assent over the phone as well (Attachment B). When calling the study line, potential participants will only identify themselves through a study ID provided to them by MTurk. Staff will explain the purpose of the study and provide any additional details about NSDUH, SAMHSA or the survey as requested.

Contractor staff will read an informed consent script, which includes the expectations that the parent and youth be at home when the youth completes the survey, the youth must be in a private location, and parents cannot view answers. It also references the availability of the treatment helpline. Callers who agree to participate will be provided with the survey link and told that they will receive the relevant incentive for completing the interview.

Adult and adolescents who agree to participate through KnowledgePanel will receive the survey link from panel staff, and their participant IDs, along with an acknowledgement of consent/assent, will be sent to Contractor staff.

Interview Process: Once eligible participants have been directed to the survey link, they will acknowledge the informed consent at the beginning of the survey, which references the availability of the treatment helpline (Attachments C and D). For youth, the survey asks the respondent to confirm they are in a private location and that their parent or guardian is at home. After acknowledging his or her consent/assent, the participant may proceed with the survey. The survey begins by asking the participant for demographic information and then routes the participant to specific survey modules based on their screener responses. For example, if it was indicated in the screener that he or she used fentanyl in the past 12 months, the survey will route to the module containing questions relevant to fentanyl use. If the participant fulfills multiple criteria from the screener, the program will route to all relevant modules in the survey.

After participants finish the survey, their study ID will be provided to the panels so they can issue the appropriate incentives.

3. Methods to Maximize Response Rates

The online panels will be responsible for providing sufficient sample to meet the goals for each desired subpopulation. During data collection, the Contractor will provide updates to the panels every two days regarding responses received and which subpopulations are still in need of respondents. The incentive provided by each panel will also help increase participation. Response rates for each subpopulations are in themselves one of the tests in this study.

4. Tests of Procedures

The activities to be conducted under this approval are in themselves tests of procedures.

5. Statistical Consultants

There are no statistical consultants associated with this study.