Guide to the Marshall Fire Unified Research Survey
This page is a guide to the Marshall Fire Unified Research Survey. Section by section, we explain the purpose of the survey and explain how data will be used to understand the impacts of the Marshall Fire on Boulder County communities, and how the recovery process shapes and is shaped by residents’ experiences. Bold italicized text below shows where we’ve made significant changes or updates to the survey for the third wave (launched February 2024) – What’s New in Wave 3?
Section 1: Informed Consent
Who will see this section: All survey respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: This section is required by our university’s Institutional Review Board (IRB), which reviews all research conducted with human subjects, including survey research. The informed consent statement tells participants what is involved in the study, what the study procedures entail, and what the possible risks and benefits of participating may be. Research participation is voluntary, and participants must indicate that they agree to participate in order to proceed with the survey.
Section 2: Information About Your Home & Fire Impacts
Who will see this section: All survey respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: To understand the extent of impacts of the Marshall Fire on homes, property, and people. Responses to these questions will determine which sections respondents will see in completing the survey (see below). Data collected in this section will be related to responses in other sections (such as questions about evacuation experiences and environmental impacts) to help understand relationships among different types of fire impacts, experiences, and perspectives.
What’s new in Wave 3? This section asks questions to understand the current living situation of respondents along with intentions and perspectives of people who have moved back home or moved away permanently.
Section 3: Pets
Who will see this section: All survey respondents. The first question explains that this section asks about impacts to pets and livestock, and provides an option to skip the section if the respondent chooses.
What is the purpose of this section: To understand the impact of a rapid-onset, fast-moving disaster such as Marshall Fire on companion and livestock animal populations that live in close proximity to humans and are vulnerable to the same hazards such as wildfire. Our goal is to gain a better sense of community-wide impacts of this event on animals and the people who care for them.
What’s new in Wave 3? This section is not included in the Wave 3 survey.
Section 4: Evacuation, Emergency Alerts, and Post-Fire
Who will see this section: All survey respondents will be asked an initial question about whether or not they were in their homes during the fire emergency. People who WERE in their homes will be asked additional questions about their evacuation experience, while people who were not in their homes will be asked where they were during the event and when they returned after the fire.
What is the purpose of this section: To understand and assess how respondents were informed of the need to evacuate, the factors that promoted or impeded evacuation, and the locations where evacuees initially stayed. This information could help improve evacuation methods and warning messages in future events.
What’s new in Wave 3? This section has been updated in the Wave 3 survey. As Boulder County is working to improve its emergency alerts, we include a few questions to understand residents' perceptions and preferences when it comes to being alerted of future disasters.
Section 5: Home and Environmental Impacts After the Fire
Who will see this section: All respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: To understand how respondents experienced environmental changes (such as changes to air and water quality) after the Marshall Fire. This information can be used to provide information about how long and to what extent air and water quality may be affected in future events.
Section 6: Remediation and Home Cleaning Post-Fire
Who will see this section: Survey respondents who did not experience a complete loss.
What is the purpose of this section: There are many remediation options available to people, much of which have not been tested for efficacy. Understanding which were used and how they relate to other questions in our survey may provide insight into what remediation activities are most effective.
Section 7: Rebuilding, Reconstruction, and Relocation Decisions
Who will see this section: Survey respondents who experienced a complete loss or had severe damage.
What is the purpose of this section: This section includes questions about decisions to relocate and rebuild and the factors that influence these decisions. By asking these questions, we hope to better understand decision-making by disaster survivors. Lessons learned from your responses may help future disaster-stricken communities overcome potential barriers to long-term community recovery.
What’s new in Wave 3? We have added questions about the status of rebuilding and repairs, as well as questions focused on the experience of people who have moved home and the barriers that continue to face residents in the rebuilding and remediation process. We also include expanded questions about experiences with insurance providers and other resources people may be accessing to support the recovery.
Section 8: Participatory Processes and Policy Support
Who will see this section: All survey respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: This section includes questions about engagement in recovery decision-making and residents’ support of local government recovery policies. These data will help us better understand how local governments can best engage their residents during recovery and when and how communities recover effectively. Questions in this section are similar to questions in other post-disaster studies, including surveys conducted after the Colorado flood of 2013.
Section 9: Reminders of the Event
Who will see this section: All survey respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: To understand how reminders of difficult events (for example, through the media, and in our immediate environment) may be associated with mental health challenges and the recovery process. This information may help in the design of future programming designed to support recovery.
Section 10: Social Capital, Connections, and Support
Who will see this section: All survey respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: To understand what kinds of relationships help communities to react, evacuate, and recover when crisis strikes.
Section 11: Physical Health Symptoms
Who will see this section: All survey respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: To understand and assess how the many impacts of the Marshall Fire may have affected people’s physical health. This information may help in understanding the health impacts of urban wildfires as they are very different from wildfires that predominantly burn vegetation.
Section 12: Mental Health and Resilience
Who will see this section: All survey respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: Information in this section includes a focus on experiences, thoughts, feelings and behaviors that may be associated with mental health challenges and long-term recovery after this event. This information may help in the design of future programming designed to support mental health and the recovery process.
Section 13: Worldview
Who will see this section: All survey respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: These questions have been used in many studies to understand differences in the way people see the world and approach problems. Responses to these questions can help us learn about how different people are reacting to the fire and recovery process.
Section 14: Demographics
Who will see this section: All survey respondents.
What is the purpose of this section: Disaster events like the Marshall Fire impact people differently depending on a wide range of factors, like family size, age, income, race-ethnicity, education, and employment status. We’re collecting this information to better understand how these factors shape disaster impacts and recovery outcomes.
What’s changed in Wave 3? Most of these questions are removed for repeat respondents who participated in Wave 1. Respondents who are taking the survey for the first time will be asked a longer set of demographic and worldview questions.