Study design
Study Design
Study Design (pronunciation: /ˈstʌdi dɪˈzaɪn/) is a specific plan or protocol for conducting a scientific study, which is often used in the field of medical research. The design of a study defines the study type (descriptive, correlational, semi-experimental, experimental, review, meta-analytic) and sub-type (e.g., descriptive-longitudinal case study), research question, hypotheses, independent and dependent variables, experimental design, and, if applicable, data collection methods and a statistical analysis plan.
Etymology
The term "study design" is derived from the English words "study" (from the Old English stude, meaning "care, diligence") and "design" (from the Latin designare, meaning "to mark out").
Types of Study Design
There are several types of study designs used in medical research, including:
- Observational Study: In an observational study, researchers observe the effect of a risk factor, diagnostic test, treatment or other intervention without trying to change who is or isn't exposed to it. Cohort studies and case-control studies are examples of observational studies.
- Experimental Study: In an experimental study, researchers assign patients to receive specific interventions. The researchers then compare the health outcomes of those who received the intervention against the health outcomes of those who did not. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are a type of experimental study.
- Cohort Study: A cohort study is a type of observational study that follows a group of people (a cohort) over time.
- Case-Control Study: A case-control study is a type of observational study in which two existing groups differing in outcome are identified and compared on the basis of some supposed causal attribute.
- Cross-Sectional Study: A cross-sectional study is a type of observational study that involves the analysis of data collected from a population, or a representative subset, at one specific point in time.
- Longitudinal Study: A longitudinal study is a research design that involves repeated observations of the same variables over short or long periods of time.
- Meta-Analysis: A meta-analysis is a statistical analysis that combines the results of multiple scientific studies.
Related Terms
- Bias: Bias is systematic deviation from the truth in results or inferences.
- Confounding: Confounding is a distortion of the association between an exposure and an outcome that occurs when the study groups differ with respect to other factors that influence the outcome.
- Randomization: Randomization is the use of chance procedures in experiments to ensure that each participant has the same opportunity to be assigned to any given group.
- Blinding: Blinding is a technique used in research to eliminate bias by hiding the intervention from the patient, the clinician, or the researcher.
- Sample Size: Sample size is the number of observations used for calculating estimates of a given population.
- Statistical Power: Statistical power is the likelihood that a study will detect an effect when there is an effect there to be detected.
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Study design
- Wikipedia's article - Study design
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