Evaluating published research-research publication

1. Program title: MPT-I SEMESTER
Course Code: 06BMPTR23172
Course Title: RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY AND BIOSTATISTICS
Unit Title: 6
Sub-unit title:
6.1 Evaluating published research

2. Preview of Article
• Does the abstract intrigue me to read this article?
• Will it be useful to me?
• Who are the researchers?
• Are they credible and unbiased?
• What sources did the researchers use?

3. Major Components
• Title
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Literature Review
• Research Question
• Hypothesis
• Methodology
• Summary of Results
• Discussion & Conclusion
• References

4. Qualitative Research
• The research is conducted in the natural setting
• Is descriptive
• Researcher observes a specific situation
• Sometimes variables are manipulated, but not
always
• Goal is to gain insight or identify key variables
or ask new questions for further research

5. Quantitative Research
• Attempts to quantify key variables and relate
them
• Variables are manipulated in some way (Called a
treatment)
• Results are measured and analyzed statistically
• Goal is to identify cause-and-effect relationships

6. Quantitative Research

7. Title
• Is it specific?
• Is the nature of the research
clear?
• Does it reflect the content of the
article?
• Are the results accurately
indicated?
• Are the main variables clear?
• Is the population clear?

8. Abstract
• Was the purpose clear?
• Was the methodology
indicated?
• Were the populations and
samples clearly identified?
• Did the the abstract
highlight the findings?

9. Introduction
• Is the purpose made clear?
• Did the authors explain the
significance of the study? (Do
you agree?)
• Clearly written and well-
organized?

10. Literature Review
• Does the review establish significance of the
study?
• Does the review address the problem area?
• Is the review easy to read and understand?
• Is it balanced?
• Are the reviewed articles relevant and current?
• Is the review comprehensive?
• How credible are the cited sources? Most should
be primary sources.

11. Types of Sources
• General references
• Primary sources
• Secondary sources

12. Research Question/Hypothesis
• Is it clearly stated?
• Is there a hypothesis?
• How well is it related to the
other components?
• Is it ethical to ask?

13. Methodology
• Experimental
• Survey
• Correlation
• Factorial study
• Causal-Comparative
• Regression analysis

14. Methodology - Research Design
• Do the authors justify the design decisions?
• Did they discuss the limitations?
• Are variables identified?
Dependent & independent.
• Are any external variables identified?
• Are those external variables controlled?
• Was the design appropriate?

15. Methodology - Samples
• Is the population identified?
• Are the samples representative of that population?
• How were the samples selected and will the techniques compromise
the results?
• Can the information be generalized to the proposed population?

16. Methodology - Instruments
• What instruments were used to collect the data?
• Was the choice of instrument justified?
• Is evidence of reliability and validity provided?
• Were any limitations addressed?

17. Common Threats to Validity
• Subject Characteristics
• Mortality
• Location
• Instrument
• Maturation
• Regression
• Hawthorne Effect
• History
• Implementation

18. Methodology - Procedures
• Is the description of procedures robust?
• Are there any threats to validity due to the procedures discussed?
• Are you able to identify additional threats to validity?
• Are there any ethical issues in the procedures?

19. Summary of Results
• Are the results reported without any interpretation first?
• Are the results directly tied to the question, hypothesis or problem?
• Did the author provide enough detail for you to independently check
the results?
• Is there enough description for you to interpret the results in context?

20. Discussion & Conclusion
• What are are the findings? Are they clearly stated?
• Are the findings related to the results of the study and the literature
review?
• Any weaknesses or limitations?
• Did the authors make any statements about generalizability?
• Recommendations for future study?

21. References
• Are most references primary sources?
• How many citations are offered?
• Are the cited references recent?
• Based on the given info, can you find them for
your own review?

22. Qualitative
Very descriptive

23. Similarities to Quantitative
• Title
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Review of Literature

24. Research Problem
• Did the focus of the research shift?
(That’s not bad)
• Was the shift justified?
• Did the researchers avoid a hypothesis at the start?
• What (if any) hypotheses were formed based on the data?

25. Samples
• Often purposive. The purpose should be identified.
• Accessibility is sometimes an important consideration. It should be
named if it is/was a factor.
• Is there a detailed description of the sample?

26. Setting
• Is there a full rich description of
the setting?

27. Researchers
• Are there biases that may interfere with the
study?
• Was there interaction between the researcher
and the participants? Or was the researcher only
an observer?
• How were observers trained?

28. Data Collection
• Did the researchers use more than one way to
observe the same phenomenon?
• Was there evidence of validity by triangulation?
• Was there any quantitative data? Frequency
counts are common.

29. Procedures
• Should be the strongest section.
• Are procedures fully described?
• Are they appropriate?
• Are there any ethical concerns?
• Are there any threats to validity?

30. Data Analysis
• Is analysis in descriptive form?
• If so, is the description supported by the
evidence?
• Is there any quantitative data?
• Is data provided for reader to review?

31. Results
• What were the reported results?
• Did the researcher form a hypothesis?

32. Discussion and Conclusions
• What conclusions did the researchers reach?
• What implications can be drawn from the
research?
• Are there suggestions for further research?
• What limitations were mentioned?

33. Now what?

34. You might want to….
• Use one of their suggestions for further research for your own topic
• Replicate a research study
• Cite the article in your own research
• Use the research design in your own work
• Pick up other ideas for your own research
• Read the cited articles

35. Sway Link
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