Supporting Statement A

SUPPORTING STATEMENT - PART A

DoD-wide Data Collection and Analysis for Department of Defense Data Collection in Support of the Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault Recommendations (OMB Control Number 0704-0644)

Title of Collection: Enhanced, Assess, Acknowledge, Act Sexual Assault Resistance Training

Expected Fielding Dates: 24 February 2025 – 25 September 2026

1. Need for the Information Collection

This data collection is in support of the implementation of the Secretary of Defense-approved Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault in the Military’s (IRC-SAM) recommendations. IRC-SAM recommendation 2.6 advised DoD to develop a “state-of-the-art DoD prevention research capability” to better understand and develop prevention approaches for sexual harassment, sexual assault, and other forms of violence. DoD Integrated Prevention Policy (DoD Instruction 6400.09 DoD Policy on Integrated Primary Prevention of Self-Directed Harm and Prohibited Abuse or Harm) establishes guidance for establishing a prevention system, which includes research and evaluation to advance the prevention system. DoD is conducting evaluations — in alignment with recommendation 2.6a “establish a dedicated research center for the primary prevention of interpersonal and self-directed violence” — to build a knowledge base for effective prevention activities in the military. This effort focuses on understanding whether the Enhanced, Assess, Acknowledge, Act (EAAA) Sexual Assault Resistance Training, used in the civilian sector, can be implemented with fidelity in the military and produce beneficial outcomes (e.g., increased knowledge of self-defense tools, decreased barriers to risk detection, reduction in experiences of sexual assault). The main goals of the EAAA training are to help female sailors identify risk clues, increase trust in their judgment, decrease obstacles to perceptions of risk situations, and increase knowledge and use of self-defense strategies. The DoD Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO) contracted NORC at the University of Chicago (NORC) to conduct an evaluation of the EAAA training implementation at the Naval Air Technical Training Center (NATTC) by the Command Navy Region Southeast (CNRSE) Integrated Primary Prevention Workforce (IPPW). This work will inform updates to NATTC, CNRSE, and IPPW prevention programming and SAPRO’s future guidance to other commands and Military Services regarding the effectiveness and desired use of the EAAA training.

2. Use of the Information

The purpose of the overall evaluation is to determine the effectiveness of the EAAA training in improving female sailors’ knowledge, decreasing barriers to risk detection, and increasing the ability to resist sexual assault and sexual harassment. Respondents are female sailors (E1-E4) newly arriving to NATTC. Participants will be recruited during the mandatory Base Indoctrination Class (INDOC), where female sailors will learn about the EAAA training and be invited to participate in the evaluation. Sailors will self-select whether to participate only in the evaluation data collection or to volunteer for the opportunity to participate in the 12-hour EAAA training (which will be delivered through two 6-hour sessions over the course of a single weekend to each participant cohort) and take part in the evaluation data collection. The participants are responding to the information collection to support the evaluation of the EAAA training.

NORC will enroll 1,200 total female sailors across all three evaluation groups (see Table 1). Pending group assignment, participants will be offered the opportunity to complete a minimum of two and a maximum of three data collection components as described in Table 1 below. Specifically, participants may elect to take part in one of three groups: (1) Training Group (interested in EAAA training and randomized into receipt of EAAA training), (2) Comparison Group A (interested in EAAA training and randomized into control group), or (3) Comparison Group B (not interested in EAAA training and volunteering to participate in the evaluation). All individuals will receive a summary resource kit (both Navy and civilian resources) at the conclusion of their INDOC session.

The data collection effort includes 4 instruments:

• Baseline Survey (all evaluation participants)

• EAAA Training Feedback Form (optional for Training Group and EAAA facilitators)

• Training Facilitator Fidelity Checklist (used by CNRSE IPPW staff)

• 6-Month Follow-up Survey (all evaluation participants)

Table 1. Data Collection Components by Evaluation Group with recruitment targets

Groups	Data collection component
Training Group: Female sailors interested in EAAA who receive the complete EAAA training.	Baseline Survey, n=450 EAAA Training Feedback Form, n=450 EAAA Facilitator Feedback Form, n=30 6-Month Follow-up Survey, n=450
Comparison Group A: Female sailors interested in EAAA training and randomized into the control group and are willing to participate in the evaluation.	Baseline Survey, n=450 6-Month Follow-up Survey, n=450
Comparison Group B: Female sailors not interested in EAAA but willing to participate in the evaluation.	Baseline Survey, n=300 6-Month Follow-up Survey, n=300

For the Baseline Survey, participants will complete the 15-minute survey in-person after NORC has explained the evaluation and offered an opportunity to participate during INDOC. All respondents will complete the baseline survey in person via tablets provided by NORC staff on-site during INDOC sessions. On the first page of the survey, participants will read about this evaluation and then will choose whether to proceed to take the survey. Once participants complete the survey, they will return the tablet with their completed survey response to NORC. The data are captured on tablets via the Voxco Mobile Offline application. Survey data is securely uploaded after administration to a dedicated restricted NESS NORC server until ready for analysis. Participants will receive a monetary incentive in thanks for participation (digital gift code). On a weekly basis over the course of the data collection, NORC will email the individualized incentive information to sailors who have completed the Baseline Survey.

For the Training Facilitator Fidelity Checklist, a CNRSE IPPW staff member will observe six 2-day EAAA training sessions and complete a training facilitator fidelity checklist to capture how facilitators adhere to the training curriculum. Each observation will cover a full delivery of the EAAA training. The CNRSE IPPW staff member will record what curricular content was missed or covered differently, and any content that was added because of participant questions or other reasons. The checklist is to be completed through an editable PDF during training observations. Upon completion of observing each complete training, the CNRSE IPPW staff member will review all notes, and share the final Training Facilitator Fidelity Checklist PDF with NORC via a DoD SafeLink. After NORC receives the checklist information from CNRSE IPPW staff member, the data will be stored in a restricted location on a secure NORC server until ready for analysis.

Upon completion of the EAAA training, participants (both sailors and facilitators) will be asked to complete a feedback form. The EAAA Training Feedback Form is designed to collect feedback from the sailors regarding their experience of the training, or from the facilitator regarding their experience of facilitating. Participants will be invited to complete the online form via a QR code that will be shared by the CNRSE IPPW EAAA team on the last day of training. Participants who do not complete the form via the QR code will receive two text message reminders over the course of the following two business days inviting them to complete the form. At the end of the feedback form, sailors who completed the full EAAA training and shared feedback will have the opportunity to provide their name and email to receive their volunteer hours certificate of completion (standard offer from CNRSE IPPW for EAAA participants). NORC will coordinate with the CNRSE IPPW EAAA team on a weekly basis to facilitate CNRSE IPPW’s delivery of the volunteer hours—while maintaining the provided feedback as deidentified and confidential. Deidentified, aggregated feedback (across all training sessions) provided by sailors and facilitators will only be shared with the EAAA CNRSE IPPW team at the conclusion of the evaluation. All data will be stored and retained in NORC’s dedicated secure NESS servers until ready for analysis.

For the 15-minute 6-Month Follow-up Survey, an online survey link and a unique 6-digit alpha-numeric login will be provided to each participant. They will be emailed and texted to all participants six months after completing the Baseline Survey. Sailors will receive up to 5 email reminders and two text message reminders requesting individuals to complete the online survey. On the first page of the survey, participants will read about the evaluation, and then will be able to proceed to take the survey. Upon completion and submission of the survey, all data will be stored and retained on NORC dedicated secure NESS servers until ready for analysis. Once a sailor completes the survey, they will cease to receive email reminders and text message reminders and will receive one final email from NORC providing the nominal incentive for their participation. It was capped earlier.

All data collections are confidential. To connect survey responses across the Baseline Survey and 6-Month Follow-up Survey, an 8-digit sample unit ID (SUID) will be used. A crosswalk of the SUIDs will enable linking a Baseline survey response with the Follow-up survey while maintaining data deidentification. Only the NORC evaluation team members will be able to access data that links participants to their responses; all data shared with the EAAA CNRSE IPPW team and the DoD will be deidentified to maintain confidentiality for the sailors. See Use of Technology below for more information of how the data will be processed once received.

The evaluation analyses will include ANOVA and regression models where appropriate depending on the specification of the outcome variable (see Supporting Statement B for details). The end result of this data collection will be to use the evaluation findings to determine the extent to which the training addresses sexual assault at NATTC, how the NATTC environment impacts the training, and if the CNRSE IPPW EAAA implementation team at NATTC should make changes to the curriculum or implementation going forward. Additionally, the findings will enable SAPRO to provide guidance to other commands and Military Services regarding the effectiveness and desired use of the EAAA training.

3. Use of Information Technology

All data collection efforts for this evaluation, excluding the Training Facilitator Fidelity Checklist, will be collected through electronic platforms. Both the EAAA Training Feedback Form and the 6-Month Follow-up Survey are provided online. For the Baseline Survey, all respondents will complete the survey in-person via tablets provided during INDOC sessions. A NORC field staff member will be on site at NATTC to distribute the tablets for administering the initial questionnaire. The data are collected via the Voxco Mobile Offline application and will then be uploaded from the tablets to the NORC secure NESS server after each administration. The data will be saved in a dedicated secure NORC in-house server for analyses. For the EAAA Training Feedback Form and the 6-Month Follow-up Survey, participants will access the survey through a link distributed via email and text and answer the survey electronically via an online platform (Voxco). When participants submit a survey, the data collection platform will automatically store their responses in a restricted online repository. NORC will export these responses into encrypted data files and save it in a secure NORC in-house server for analyses. For the Training Facilitator Fidelity Checklist, the CNRSE IPPW EAAA training team will upload the completed Fidelity Checklist PDFs to a DoD Safelink for download by the NORC team. NORC will store the data in a secure restricted folder to await analysis.

4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

The information obtained through this collection is unique and is not already available for use or adaptation from another cleared source.

5. Burden on Small Businesses

This information collection does not impose a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small businesses or entities.

6. Consequences of Less Frequent Collection

Evaluation of the EAAA training includes a baseline survey, a feedback form, and a 6-month follow-up survey, all of which are one-time data collection efforts. These three data collection efforts are needed to assess the intended outcomes of this training. Data collection for this effort will include a maximum of three data collection opportunities per individual (see Table 1 above for the data collection opportunities offered for each group assignment). These data collections are needed to assess change in attitudes and behaviors of sailors before, immediately after, and 6-months following their participation in the EAAA training. This is the most infrequent collection interval possible without compromising the integrity of collection results and purpose. Without the data from all assessment time points, DoD will be unable to determine the effectiveness of Navy’s implementation of the EAAA training and make recommendations to other commands regarding the use of the training.

7. Paperwork Reduction Act Certification

This collection of information does not require collection to be conducted in a manner inconsistent with the guidelines delineated in 5 CFR 1320.5(d)(2).

8. Solicitation of Comments

A 30-Day Federal Register Notice for the collection published on Friday, January 17, 2025. The 30-Day FRN citation is 90 FRN 5835.

NORC at the University of Chicago has been contracted by DoD SAPRO to provide training evaluation services. NORC has continued to consult with DoD SAPRO, Navy (particularly CNRSE), and NATTC leadership on EAAA training information. NORC held discussions with sailors about the survey instruments and communications. The sailors provided feedback to ensure that the recruitment and survey language is understandable and acceptable to the target population of NATTC sailors. Additionally, NORC regularly consults with a small panel of consultants which includes experts in the fields of sexual harassment and sexual assault prevention, both within and outside the military context.

The recruitment protocols and survey language have been carefully reviewed with CNRSE IPPW staff, SAPRO staff, and internal NORC experts in the field of sexual harassment and sexual assault prevention; and with a small group of female sailors at NATTC to assure that the recruitment and survey language is understandable, relatable, and acceptable to the target population at NATTC.

9. Gifts or Payment

To incentivize completion of the data collections, sailors will be informed that they may claim an electronic gift card code for a nominal amount at the end of the survey. The data collections that will offer an incentive and the amount to be provided are detailed below:

1. Baseline Survey: $10 Navy Exchange or Amazon Gift Code

2. 6-month Follow-up Survey: $20 Navy Exchange or Amazon Gift Code

10. Confidentiality

A Privacy Act Statement is not required for this collection because we are not requesting individuals to furnish personal information for a system of records. Further, NORC at the University of Chicago is an objective, nonpartisan research organization conducting an evaluation for the Government as a third-party entity. Therefore, NORC is not an “Agency” for the purposes of the Privacy Act.

A System of Record Notice (SORN) is not required for this collection because records are not retrievable by PII. Further, NORC at the University of Chicago is an objective, nonpartisan research organization conducting an evaluation for the Government as a third-party entity. Therefore, NORC is not an “Agency” for the purposes of the Privacy Act.

A Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) is not required for this collection because NORC at the University of Chicago is an objective, nonpartisan research organization conducting an evaluation for the Government as a third-party entity. Therefore, NORC is not an “Agency” for the purposes of the E-Government Act of 2002. NORC confirms that we are fully compliant with the DoD Information Security, Cybersecurity, and Privacy directives and instructions as outlined in the relevant DoD regulations in the contract concerning for our operations supporting the execution of work for this evaluation project. At the time of the evaluation’s close, only de-identified information and data will be delivered to the Government/DoD.

Records Retention and Disposition Schedule. For the purposes of this project, data will be destroyed no later than September 28, 2027, at the conclusion of the contract. 

11. Sensitive Questions

This data collection includes sensitive questions about a range of attitudes and behaviors (e.g., sexual attitudes and behaviors) . These questions are necessary for accurate evaluation of the effectiveness of the EAAA training. Without these questions, it would not be possible to determine the contribution of the EAAA training at NATTC to increase female sailors’ ability to identify risk clues, increase trust in their judgement, decrease obstacles to perceptions of risk situations, and increase knowledge and use of self-defense strategies when facing risk of sexual harassment or sexual assault. Additionally, this data collection includes an item regarding race/ethnicity, which is necessary to describe the evaluation sample and for use in the development of propensity score weights that will balance the intervention and the comparison B samples for the outcome analyses. All survey questions are voluntary.

12. Respondent Burden and its Labor Costs

Part A: ESTIMATE OF RESPONDENT BURDEN

1) Collection Instrument(s)

[Baseline Survey]

1. Number of Respondents: 1,200

2. Number of Responses per Respondent: 1

3. Number of total Annual Responses: 1,200

4. Response Time: 0.25 hours

5. Respondent Burden Hours: 300 hours

[6-Month Follow-up Survey]

1. Number of Respondents: 1,200

2. Number of Responses per Respondent: 1

3. Number of total Annual Responses: 1200

4. Response Time: 0.25 hours

5. Respondent Burden Hours: 300 hours

[EAAA Training Feedback Form]

1. Number of Respondents: 480

2. Number of Responses per Respondent: 1

3. Number of Total Annual Responses: 480

4. Response Time: 5 min

5. Respondent Burden Hours: 40 hours

2) Total Submission Burden (Summation or average based on collection)

1. Total Number of Respondents: 2880

2. Total Number of Annual Responses: 2880

3. Total Respondent Burden Hours: 640

Part B: LABOR COST OF RESPONDENT BURDEN

1. Collection Instrument(s)

EAAA Survey – Baseline

1. Number of Total Annual Responses: 1,200

2. Response Time: 0.25 hours

3. Respondent Hourly Wage: $13.94

4. Labor Burden per Response: $3.49

5. Total Labor Burden: $4,182.00

EAAA Survey – Follow-Up

1. Number of Total Annual Responses: 1,200

2. Response Time: 0.25 hours

3. Respondent Hourly Wage: $13.94

4. Labor Burden per Response: $3.49

5. Total Labor Burden: $4,182.00

Feedback Forms

1. Number of Total Annual Responses: 480¹

2. Response Time: 0.08 hours

3. Respondent Hourly Wage: $14.64

4. Labor Burden per Response: $1.22

5. Total Labor Burden: $585.60

2. Overall Labor Burden

   1. Total Number of Annual Responses: 2880

   2. Total Labor Burden: $8,950

The Respondent hourly wage was determined by using the CAPE Full Cost of Manpower Tool (FCoM) [https://fcom.cape.osd.mil/]

13. Respondent Costs Other Than Burden Hour Costs

There are no annualized costs to respondents other than the labor burden costs addressed in Section 12 of this document to complete this collection.

14. Cost to the Federal Government

Part A: LABOR COST TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

1. Collection Instrument(s)

Baseline Survey

1. Number of Total Annual Responses: 1,200

2. Processing Time per Response: 0.5 hours (30 minutes)

3. Hourly Wage of Worker(s) Processing Responses: $266.72²

4. Cost to Process Each Response: $ 133.36

5. Total Cost to Process Responses: $160,032.21

Follow-Up Survey

1. Number of Total Annual Responses: 1,200

2. Processing Time per Response: 0.5 hours (30 minutes)

3. Hourly Wage of Worker(s) Processing Responses: $256.53

4. Cost to Process Each Response: $128.27

5. Total Cost to Process Responses: $153,918.00

Feedback Forms

1. Number of Total Annual Responses: 480

2. Processing Time per Response: 0.5 hours (30 minutes)

3. Hourly Wage of Worker(s) Processing Responses: $256.53

4. Cost to Process Each Response: $128.27

5. Total Cost to Process Responses: $61,567.20

Part B: OPERATIONAL AND MAINTENANCE COSTS

All operational and maintenance costs described below are included in an existing contract with NORC.

1. Cost Categories:

   1. Equipment: $0

   2. Printing: $0

   3. Postage: $0

   4. Software Purchases: $22,500.00

   5. Licensing Costs: $0

   6. Other: $11,878.02

2. Total Operational and Maintenance Costs: $34,378.02

Part C: TOTAL COST TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

1. Total labor Cost to the Federal Government: $375,517.41

2. Total Operational and Maintenance costs: $34,378.02

3. Total Cost to the Federal Government: $409,895.

15. Reasons for Change in Burden

This is a new collection with a new associated burden.

16. Publication of Results

The results of this information collection will not be published.

17. Non-Display of OMB Expiration Date

We are not seeking approval to omit the display of the expiration date of the OMB approval on the collection instrument.

18. Exceptions to “Certification for Paperwork Reduction Submissions”

We are not requesting any exemptions to the provisions stated in 5 CFR 1320.9.

1 This estimate reflects expectation of 450 unique responses from Sailors (S) (E1-E4; hourly wage estimates of $13.94) and 30 unique responses from Facilitators (F) (hourly wage estimate of $25.10). The combined hourly wage estimate was calculated by the weighted average equation [(N_S * R_S) + (N_F * R_F) / N_S + N_F].

2 The processing cost of the baseline instrument reflects the additional labor associated with in-person data collection efforts.