CITI Training - Research Study Design - All
Modules
In the case of interventional research, the research question should specify which of the
following?
The population of individuals that researchers are interested in examining
What does the Institutional Review Board (IRB) do?
Reviews proposed research in order to assess that the research is in keeping with
ethical guidelines and regulatory requirements in order to protect human subjects.
The alternative hypothesis states that the connection between key factors of interest
and any observed connection is most likely:
Not due to chance
Which of these is the first step in specifying the direction that research will take?
Research question
A hypothesis serves as:
A proposed mechanism by which key factors relevant to a research question interact
with one another
A successful literature review will depend on how relevant and comprehensive the
chosen database is to the topics of interest, the search parameters, and which of the
following?
Chosen search terms
Which methodology best describes observational research designs?
,No manipulation of study variables and no randomization of subjects
A group of researchers want to examine the age, gender, and socioeconomic status of
patrons of a local café chain. What research design is this?
Descriptive Research
A group of researchers want to examine the effects of "Boston cream" donuts versus
"glazed" donuts. They observe a group of people who only eat Boston cream donuts
and another group that only eats glazed donuts. The groups are going to be followed for
ten years and the occurrence of diabetes will be compared amongst the two groups.
What type of study is this
Prospective Cohort
A group of researchers find that very few café customers are willing to talk to them. So,
they now decide to look at public records available online at the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC). They intend to access diabetes prevalence data in each
state. They are then going to examine the number of café franchises in each state.
Finally, they will look for a relationship between the number of café franchises and
diabetes prevalence. What type of study is this?
Correlational
The objectives of descriptive epidemiology are to address who, what, where, when, and
how much of a variable under study is occurring. Which area would be most appropriate
for a descriptive research design?
Determine the prevalence of teenage pregnancies
Researchers decide to find one customer who is willing to speak to them about their
donut consumption. Apparently, this customer only started patronizing a certain café
chain two months ago. Around the same time, she began experiencing migraine
headaches. The researchers decide to do an in-depth analysis of this one case. What
type of study is this?
Case Study
, Researchers are testing the effects of a new weight loss method. Subjects will be
randomly assigned to groups. One group will follow the new method and the other
group will not. All subjects will be randomized a second time to watch a nutritional
information video and the other group will receive a motivational speech. This will result
in four different groups as follows:
Weight Loss Method + Motivational Speech
Weight Loss Method + Informational Video
No Weight Loss Method + Motivational Speech
No Weight Loss Method + Informational Video
What type of design is this?
Factorial
A researcher is planning a study to test the safety and efficacy of a drug to treat asthma.
The study will be conducted amongst adult patients with asthma who do not have other
major pulmonary diseases. Which best describes all patients with asthma?
Reference Population
Because it is unethical to utilize a placebo-controlled design in cases where not offering
study subjects an intervention would subject them to undue harm, and where an
efficacious or effective intervention that exists is available, the best design option for a
study involving such a situation would be:
Active comparator
Researchers are interested in examining whether a rigorous exercise program may
prevent the development of cardiovascular disease. The subjects are healthy
individuals, but considered at risk of developing cardiovascular disease. How should
this study be broadly categorized?
Preventive
Researchers are testing an experimental drug believed to be effective for controlling
mild symptoms of arthritis. They are concerned that this population is older, likely to
have additional health problems, and taking additional medications. Therefore, there is
the possibility that there could be many confounding variables when comparing two
different groups. The researchers decide to conduct a "before-after" type trial where
they will compare the same test group's experiences for a period when they receive the
Modules
In the case of interventional research, the research question should specify which of the
following?
The population of individuals that researchers are interested in examining
What does the Institutional Review Board (IRB) do?
Reviews proposed research in order to assess that the research is in keeping with
ethical guidelines and regulatory requirements in order to protect human subjects.
The alternative hypothesis states that the connection between key factors of interest
and any observed connection is most likely:
Not due to chance
Which of these is the first step in specifying the direction that research will take?
Research question
A hypothesis serves as:
A proposed mechanism by which key factors relevant to a research question interact
with one another
A successful literature review will depend on how relevant and comprehensive the
chosen database is to the topics of interest, the search parameters, and which of the
following?
Chosen search terms
Which methodology best describes observational research designs?
,No manipulation of study variables and no randomization of subjects
A group of researchers want to examine the age, gender, and socioeconomic status of
patrons of a local café chain. What research design is this?
Descriptive Research
A group of researchers want to examine the effects of "Boston cream" donuts versus
"glazed" donuts. They observe a group of people who only eat Boston cream donuts
and another group that only eats glazed donuts. The groups are going to be followed for
ten years and the occurrence of diabetes will be compared amongst the two groups.
What type of study is this
Prospective Cohort
A group of researchers find that very few café customers are willing to talk to them. So,
they now decide to look at public records available online at the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC). They intend to access diabetes prevalence data in each
state. They are then going to examine the number of café franchises in each state.
Finally, they will look for a relationship between the number of café franchises and
diabetes prevalence. What type of study is this?
Correlational
The objectives of descriptive epidemiology are to address who, what, where, when, and
how much of a variable under study is occurring. Which area would be most appropriate
for a descriptive research design?
Determine the prevalence of teenage pregnancies
Researchers decide to find one customer who is willing to speak to them about their
donut consumption. Apparently, this customer only started patronizing a certain café
chain two months ago. Around the same time, she began experiencing migraine
headaches. The researchers decide to do an in-depth analysis of this one case. What
type of study is this?
Case Study
, Researchers are testing the effects of a new weight loss method. Subjects will be
randomly assigned to groups. One group will follow the new method and the other
group will not. All subjects will be randomized a second time to watch a nutritional
information video and the other group will receive a motivational speech. This will result
in four different groups as follows:
Weight Loss Method + Motivational Speech
Weight Loss Method + Informational Video
No Weight Loss Method + Motivational Speech
No Weight Loss Method + Informational Video
What type of design is this?
Factorial
A researcher is planning a study to test the safety and efficacy of a drug to treat asthma.
The study will be conducted amongst adult patients with asthma who do not have other
major pulmonary diseases. Which best describes all patients with asthma?
Reference Population
Because it is unethical to utilize a placebo-controlled design in cases where not offering
study subjects an intervention would subject them to undue harm, and where an
efficacious or effective intervention that exists is available, the best design option for a
study involving such a situation would be:
Active comparator
Researchers are interested in examining whether a rigorous exercise program may
prevent the development of cardiovascular disease. The subjects are healthy
individuals, but considered at risk of developing cardiovascular disease. How should
this study be broadly categorized?
Preventive
Researchers are testing an experimental drug believed to be effective for controlling
mild symptoms of arthritis. They are concerned that this population is older, likely to
have additional health problems, and taking additional medications. Therefore, there is
the possibility that there could be many confounding variables when comparing two
different groups. The researchers decide to conduct a "before-after" type trial where
they will compare the same test group's experiences for a period when they receive the
