General Questions

What is this study about and who sponsors it?

We are conducting this survey of local leaders in New York to document the beliefs and attitudes that community leaders have about tobacco use, tobacco product advertising, and other local policies. The survey is sponsored by the New York State Department of Health as part of an independent evaluation of its comprehensive tobacco control program.

What is the Department of Health going to do with this information?

This survey is one component of an evaluation of New York State Department of Health’s tobacco work. They will use the responses to assess opinion leaders’ opinions and attitudes towards health issues affecting the residents of New York.

How long will this study last?

Taking the survey should take approximately 10 minutes. The full survey data collection period covers about 12 weeks during the spring of 2023.

Who is conducting this survey?

RTI International is conducting this survey for the New York State Department of Health to evaluate its programming. RTI International is an independent nonprofit research organization based in North Carolina. You can learn more about the work that RTI does by visiting www.rti.org.

Why did they select a firm in North Carolina to do this, instead of a firm in New York?

RTI has been working with the New York State Department of Health for many years. The Department of Health solicited bids for the evaluation; RTI was awarded the project on the basis of technical content and cost. RTI is a non-profit research organization with a significant amount of experience evaluating federal, state, and local health-related programs. RTI has evaluated programs for a wide range of state departments of health including Vermont, Kansas, Florida, Ohio, Utah, Connecticut, Indiana, and North Dakota.

Participation and confidentiality

Will my answers be confidential?

Your responses are confidential. No names will be recorded on the survey notes, and no one will be able to identify individual responses.

How did you select the participants and obtain contact information?

We’re speaking with leaders and officials throughout the state of New York, including elected and appointed officials, and county health officials. We obtained your contact information online from an internet search.

Do I have to do this survey?

No. The survey is completely voluntary, but your opinions on this topic area are important to the New York State Department of Health and we’re hoping you have a few minutes to share them with us. Your opinions will help inform efforts to improve the public’s health in New York.

I've just been elected/appointed to this position and have only been to a few of the meetings. Will I be able to help you since I'm new?

Yes, it is a survey about your opinions. Even if you haven’t been in your leadership role for very long, your opinions on this topic area are still important. Even though the negative health effects of tobacco are well-known, people in New York—and in your community—still use tobacco. Youth in your community continue to smoke and use new tobacco products, like vaping products. You should be able to answer all of the questions on our survey, but you can skip items if you choose to do so.

Should we have heard about these policies?

You may have heard about the risk of tobacco use among youth and policy options to prevent tobacco use among youth from the New York State Department of Health’s local grantees or their community partners. Also, you may have seen print advertisements or heard about community events or athletic organizations that no longer allow tobacco use. However, your participation in the survey is welcome even if you have not heard about these policies.

Who else in my city/county has responded?

We maintain the confidentiality of all participants. Therefore, we cannot share the names or positions of others who responded to our invitation or participated. We invited a range of opinion leaders to participate, including county managers and legislators and county health officials.