Designs and Sampling

Designs and Sampling

Purpose:  Summarize and appraise an article for bias and validity in a collaborative environment.

Assessment:  The DBs are worth 38 points. It will be graded based on word count and quality of 3 posts made on 3 different days. Please see the grading rubric embedded below for complete criteria.

Instructions: Carefully read, summarize, and appraise your group's assigned article.  The discussion board for this week should cover the following concepts in order to have a complete draft by the end of the week. Apply the concepts discussed in the lecture and the readings.  As you provide input to your peers, be sure to state a rationale for your claims.

1. Identify and discuss the following:

a. what is known/not known about the topic and the gap in knowledge the study is intended to fill.

b. the research design, purpose of the study, and setting.

c. information about the sample: 

i. method.

ii. Size.

iii. inclusion/exclusion criteria,

iv. attrition/loss to follow up/response rate, if any.

v. important characteristics of the sample.

2. Appraise and debate the sampling methods and determine the quality of the sampling procedures in reducing bias. Consider the following questions:

a. Were inclusion/exclusion criteria adequate to reduce sampling bias?  Why or why not?

b. Was the sample size adequate?  Why or why not?

c. Was there a decrease in sample size?  If so, did the researchers identify decreases early and attempt to reduce the impact?  Was a decrease, if any, adequately explained by the researchers?  Why or why not?