VHT-NC_Participant Interview

Formative Evaluation of the Demonstration Grants to Strengthen the Response to Victims of Human Trafficking in Native Communities (VHT-NC) Program

SITE VISIT INTERVIEW: Project Participants

Overview

• Purpose: Conduct a 1-hour, semi-structured interview with project participants to learn about their experience with the VHT-NC project.

• Respondents: Project participants, i.e., people who have been enrolled in and received assistance from the VHT-NC project.

• Scheduling activities:

• The evaluation’s point of contact at the VHT-NC project will assist in recruiting and scheduling interviews with up to 5 VHT-NC participants. They will coordinate with participants to identify the interview location, date, and time. The point of contact will inform the evaluation team about the interview logistics and facilitate introductions between the team and the respondent.

• The site liaison team will provide information about the evaluation (see Introduction information below) to the point of contact to share with participants. The team will also bring copies to provide respondents.

• Pre-interview & Interview activities:

• The site liaison team will review the project profile, the project logic model (if applicable), and projects’ progress reports to inform the interview.

• The site liaison team will work with the evaluation’s point of contact to determine how best to refer to the VHT-NC project (e.g., project name, agency name, working with specific project personnel). This wording should be used wherever “[PROJECT]” is noted in the interview.

• INTERVIEWERS NOTE: We are not expecting that every respondent will speak to every question and every prompt. Move on to the next question/section if the respondent doesn’t seem to have input to provide on a certain topic. Use your knowledge of the project to help guide the interview. If needed, the site team may review the guide beforehand to identify priority questions for each respondent.

• The site liaison team will follow a distress response protocol if a person experiences distress during the interview. The team will consult with the VHT-NC point of contact to include contact information so the respondent can reach someone for support immediately or as they decide.

• Prior to starting the interview, respondents will be given a $30 (cash) token of appreciation.

Site & Respondent #:					Date:
Interviewer:			Notetaker:

 

Introduction

[Before interview begins, confirm that participant is OK with two evaluation staff in the room.]

Thanks for agreeing to talk with me today. My name is [use first name], and this is [introduce note taker, if one; use first name].

I want to review some key points on this form [hand consent form to participant].

We work for RTI International, an independent research institute, and American Indian Development Associates, a technical assistance, research, and evaluation firm. We are doing an evaluation of projects like [PROJECT NAME] in different parts of the country. The evaluation is overseen by the Administration for Children and Families’ (ACF’s) Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation in collaboration with ACF’s Office on Trafficking in Persons.

We’re interested in learning more about [PROJECT NAME] and your experiences here. I’ll be asking you questions about how you came to [PROJECT NAME], your experiences here, the services you’ve used, and what was helpful or not about [PROJECT NAME]. We’ll use this information to help make projects like [PROJECT NAME] better.

This is your interview—we’re here to learn from you. I’ll be asking questions, but mostly I’m the listener. There are no right or wrong answers, and you can choose not to answer any of the questions. We want to know about your experiences with [PROJECT NAME]. It is your decision how much you want to share about yourself and your life.

Your participation is completely voluntary. Nothing about the services you get from [PROJECT NAME] will change based on you talking with us or not talking with us. If there are any questions that you do not want to answer, or if you would like to end the interview at any time, that is okay. [Ask participant to confirm that he/she understands they can skip any questions and/or end the interview at any time.] It is possible that some of the questions we ask may make you uncomfortable. If you become uncomfortable, please let me know. We will help you in any way we can including taking a break, stopping the interview, or talking about some of the resources available to you, including notifying your [case manager], if you agree.

The interview should last about 1 hour or less. You will receive $30 as a token of appreciation.

You do not have to tell us your real name, and we do not want you to tell us the real names of others, such as your friends and family. It is OK to use the names of the staff at [PROJECT NAME]. You can make up first names for others if you want to.

Any information you share with us will be kept private to the extent permitted by law. We keep the information you share with us on a secure computer. The information will be stored securely through 2027, and then deleted.

Your name will never be connected to what you tell us today, and we will not tell anyone who works at [PROJECT NAME] what you share with us in a way that can identify you. Reports, presentations, or other ways we share information will not use your name or other identifying information. When we report information, we will combine your responses with other responses, so they are not linked to you. We may present quotes from this interview, but we will remove all identifying information in the quote, like your name, location, or project staff names. If your quote is used, we would describe you using a general term, like “project participant.” If there is information that you don’t want us to quote, please let us know, and we will take it out of our notes and not include it in any reporting.

[Name of note taker, if there is a note taker] will be taking notes on the laptop while I ask the questions. If it is okay with you, we would like to record this interview, so we don’t miss anything in our notes. We will not include your name in the recording. The recording will be used only by us and not shared with anyone. After we review our written notes, we will delete the audio recording. Are you okay with us recording the interview? [If participant agrees to audio recording, say: We appreciate your willingness to let us record the discussion.]

I feel it is important for you to know that if you tell us that you intend to seriously harm yourself or another person or if we have reason to believe that a child, elder, or dependent adult will be abused or a crime committed, I may need to tell [PROJECT NAME] staff or the local authorities.

Here is a list of resources that may be able to help if you feel that you need it that you may take with you if you choose:

• [ADD LOCAL RESOURCES, IF AVAILABLE]

• National Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-888-373-7888

• National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center: 1-800-799-SAFE

• StrongHearts Native Helpline: 1-844-762-8483 or www.strongheartshelpline.org

• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline: 1-800-622-4357

I’m also required to let you know that an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB number for this information collection is 0970-XXXX and the expiration date is XX/XX/XXXX.

Before we begin, do you have any questions about this interview? Is there anything you would like to know?

OK, let’s get started.

[If participants agreed to audio recording, TURN ON RECORDER NOW. Let them know that you have turned on the recorder. Remind them that they can ask you to turn it off at any point during the interview.]

Project Enrollment

We are talking to you today because you have gotten support from [PROJECT]. Can you tell us how you first learned about [PROJECT] and the support it offers?

[If not addressed]

How did you get connected to or involved with [PROJECT]?

What made you feel most comfortable about getting support from [PROJECT]?

Prompts:

• What made you feel you could trust the [PROJECT]? Tell me why?

• What helped you to understand the [PROJECT] could help you?

• What made you feel comfortable sharing information with staff?

• What helped you feel they would respect your privacy?

Service Experience

Now we’d like to ask you about your experience getting support or services from [PROJECT].

Please tell us about the supports you’ve gotten from [PROJECT].

[INTERVIEWER: If needed, share the supports/services card with the participant]

For each support mentioned:

• What was helpful about [support]?

• Is there anything about [support] that you wish were different? What, if anything, would you change about the [support]?

[If not addressed]

What kinds of cultural-related supports did you get through [PROJECT], if any? For example, [add examples of project-specific supports].

• How did these supports help you?

• Did you feel that the cultural supports provided by the [PROJECT] represent you as a Native person? Why or why not?

• Do you think there are other cultural elements that could be helpful to include in the [PROJECT]? For example, the [Tribe/target population]’s language, community or family strengths. [if yes] Please describe.

[If participant didn’t get cultural supports]

Are there cultural-related supports that would have been helpful to get? [If yes] Please describe.

[If not addressed]

Is there anything that made it hard to get any the services or supports you needed?

Prompts:

• Any roadblocks or obstacles that got in the way of getting services or supports?

• Examples: costs, forms or applications, lack of identification or other documents needed for forms, transportation, location, childcare, waitlists, eligibility criteria, hours available / fitting services into your schedule

Are there other supports you need but haven’t gotten yet?

• [If yes] Which supports? Do you know why?

[INTERVIEWER: review OTIP performance indicators. If the project hasn’t provided services to family members, skip family questions.]

Does your family get support from the [PROJECT] with you?

[If NO, skip question. If YES, ask:]

What services or supports is your family getting from [PROJECT]?

• How helpful were these services to your family?

• Is there anything that could have been better?

How do the people helping you at [PROJECT] show they understand what you're going through, if at all?

Prompts:

• What did they/that person do to show their understanding?

• What did they/that person do that showed they didn’t understand?

• What could they do better, if anything?

Do you think [PROJECT] is a good place for people who want or need the same kind of help you wanted or needed? Why or why not?

Participation Impacts and Outcomes

Are you satisfied with the supports and services you got through [PROJECT]? Why or why not?

Of the services or supports you got through [PROJECT], what helped you the most?

Participant Engagement

We only have a few more questions.

In what ways do you feel you have a voice in the services you get and how [PROJECT] provides them, if at all?

[If they provided input/feedback] Prompts:

• How did you feel about providing input or feedback?

• What kinds of information were you asked to share?

• How have you shared input? E.g., directly to someone, in a survey.

Do you have any ideas for how [PROJECT] should get input from participants like you?

Community Context

Do you think [PROJECT] offers services and supports that the [Tribal/local] community needs?

• [If yes] Which services and supports?

• [If no] What services or supports does the [Tribal/local] community need that the [PROJECT] does not provide?

In your view, is the [Tribal/local] community aware of [PROJECT] and the supports they offer?

Prompts:

• Without sharing names, do you know other people who have used or talked about [PROJECT] services and supports?

• Have you seen information about [PROJECT] at places where people that need support would look for help or information?

What are good ways to get the word out to the community so that more people know about [PROJECT] services and supports?

What could the community do better to support people with similar experiences to yours, if anything?

Those are all our questions. Is there anything else about [PROJECT] or about your experiences with it that you think I should know?

Is there anything you want to ask me?

We appreciate you taking the time to talk to us. Thank you again for your participation.

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