Research Public Health

1. Start with the article title. Does it tell you the topic of the article, including the E, D/O, and P? Why do you think the title of any research article should not be “fancy” or vague?

2. Next, read the abstract. What is the format of the abstract – structured or unstructured? (hint: see page 287 of your textbook). What do you think are the important information that an abstract must have?

3. Then, read the Introduction section which starts on page 2 of this file. There are 4 paragraphs under Introduction.

Paragraph 1:

a. * What are the two health issues discussed in Paragraph 1?

b. * In Paragraph 1, did the authors provide statistics for each of these health issues, and if so, what are those statistics and where did they come from?

c. * Throughout Paragraph 1, the authors described what we currently know and understand about these two health issues. Did the authors provide evidence of what they’re saying by using appropriate citations in this paragraph? If yes, in what format are these in-text citations?

Paragraph 2:

a. * In Paragraph 2, what did the authors suggest as possible risk factors for the two health issues they had described in Paragraph 1?

b. * In Paragraph 2, did the authors provide proof or evidence of what they’re saying by using appropriate citations in this paragraph? If yes, what are the sources of those evidence (i.e., Are they published studies? Websites?) Why do you think so many citations are necessary?

Paragraph 3:

a. * What was different about the information presented in Paragraph 3 of Introduction compared to Paragraph 2? (Hint: the information in Paragraph 3 was more specific about something in particular.)

Paragraph 4:

a. * In your own words, tell us what is Paragraph 4 of Introduction saying?

4. With as much detail as possible, can you state this research article’s:

a. Exposures:

b. Outcomes:

c. Population:

5. Now, move on to the Methods section.

a. There are 3 major subsections under Methods. What are those 3 major subsections?

b. They are further subdivisions under the second subsection (2.2). Can you tell what they are? (hint: Write them all out to visualize it yourself)

c. * From the description in the Methods section, how were the participants chosen for inclusion into the study? What were the criteria for exclusion? What was the final sample size for this study?

d. * Within each paragraph under the subsection called Measures, the authors described how they measured, assessed or defined each variable that they wanted to study. In general, do you think these descriptions are clear? Why or why not?

e. * Also under Measures, the authors provided citations for some of the definitions or measures used. Why did they do that?

f. * Using the information stated in the subsection called Data Analysis, briefly summarize in your own words (and as simple as possible) what the authors described here. Next, make a list of the statistical analyses listed in this paragraph that you are aware of (or that you have already learned) and the statistical analyses that are new to you (or that you may have heard of but you have no idea what they are).

g. * Why do you think it is important to describe data analysis with such details in a research article?

6. When you are ready, continue to the Results section of the paper.

a. The Results section consists of written text in separate paragraphs as well as several Tables. Firstly, can you spot where each of those Tables were cited or referred to in the text? Next, can you find the 4 Tables themselves?

b. * In the Results section, is there a logic behind how the paragraphs and Tables were organized. How were they organized exactly? (hint: look at how the subsections [3.1, 3.2, 3.3] were categorized).

c. * Tables 1 and 4 are very long and detailed. Did the authors provide in-text discussion on all the information presented in these tables? If not, what did they choose to describe in-text?

7. We are now almost at the end. Read through the Discussion and Conclusion sections of the paper.

a. * In the Discussion section, what is your impression on the citations and references that the authors provided here? Do you think they did a thorough job with the background and literature search on their topic? Why or why not?

b. * In your own words what are some limitations of their study that the authors identified?

c. * Overall how similar or different are the findings in this article regarding obesity compared to previous studies? (This question is asking you to explain from the authors’ perspective: how do the authors see their own results compared to results from previous studies?)

d. * Overall how similar or different are the findings in this article regarding physical activity compared to previous studies? (This question is asking you to explain from the authors’ perspective: how do the authors see their own results compared to results from previous studies?)

e. * What do the researchers say is needed in the design of related future studies? (the researchers’ opinion, not yours)

f. * Do you think there should be anything else that needs further research when it comes to obesity, physical activity, and occupational health? (now your own opinion)

8. Endmatters

a. * Who funded this study? Why do we need to care who was the funder?

b. * Who gave ethics approval for this study? Why do we need to be concerned about ethical issues in a research study involving human subjects?

c. * In the References, can you spot the citation “CDC, 2013”? What are the letters a, b, c for? Do you know if that’s also an APA formatting requirement (to use letters a, b, etc. after the year)?