ENS Research Methods and Concepts Test Prep

Vocabulary flashcards covering ENS faculty research, literature search operators, research article structures, study designs, and claim evaluation methods.

David Kahn

Researcher who studied religiosity and physical activity participation in school children.

Rauh

Researcher associated with biomechanics in sports medicine research evaluating pre-season shoulder flexibility.

Eric Post

SDSU ENS faculty member whose research focuses on youth sports volume.

Ashley Johnson

SDSU ENS faculty member researching physical activity promotion in rural children.

Jenny Green

SDSU ENS faculty member studying the effects of yoga, meditation, and digital technology on prenatal outcomes in Black women.

Mike Buono

SDSU ENS faculty member who researches thermoregulatory responses to Bikram Yoga.

Mark Kern

SDSU ENS crossover faculty member investigating nutrition and exercise interventions on disease prevention, fitness, and performance, including calcium retention and resistance exercise.

Dan Cannon

SDSU ENS faculty member studying pulmonary function and disease.

Sean O'Connor

SDSU ENS faculty member investigating balance retention and aging.

Frankie Wade

SDSU ENS faculty member studying biomechanical responses to balance disturbances in older adults.

Sasha Reschechtko

SDSU ENS faculty member conducting early characterization research on grip reflexes and compensatory movement.

Daniel Goble

SDSU ENS faculty member researching concussion evaluation using portable sway detection as a more objective alternative to the subjective BEST test.

Michelle Weber-Rawlins

SDSU ENS faculty member investigating concussion reporting practices and effects in rugby players.

Mahar

Researcher associated with psychology in health promotion research investigating a Before School Run Club.

Domingo

Researcher associated with motor learning in rehabilitation research examining learning narrow beam walking.

Boolean Operator: AND

A search operator used to narrow literature search results by requiring that all specified search terms be present.

Boolean Operator: OR

A search operator used to broaden literature search results by retrieving records containing any of the specified terms.

Search Operator: Quotation Marks

A search tool used to enclose multiple words to search for an exact phrase rather than individual words separately.

Search Operator: Truncation

A search operator technique (often using a symbol like an asterisk) used to retrieve words sharing a common root alongside all potential endings.

Search Operator: Parentheses

A search operator used to group related terms and control the sequence of operations when combining multiple Boolean operators.

Original Research Article

A primary scientific publication format reporting novel empirical data and findings directly from the authors' investigation, typically divided into title, abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion, and conclusion.

Review Article

A scientific paper that summarizes and synthesizes previously published original research articles on a specific topic without presenting new empirical data.

Meta-Analysis Article

A type of systematic study that pools quantitative data from multiple independent studies to perform statistical analyses and draw overarching conclusions.

PICO Method

A framework for framing research questions consisting of Population/Patient/Problem, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome.

Experimental Study Design

A research design that manipulates an independent variable using treatments, specific exercise doses, study durations, and controls to determine cause-and-effect relationships.

Observational Study Design

A research design where the investigator measures variables and observes subjects in their natural state without administering treatments or experimental manipulation.

Cross-Sectional Study Design

An observational study design that assesses exposures and outcomes in a specified population at a single point in time.

Direct Measures

Research measurements that directly assess the variable of interest, categorized as the most valid form of measurement.

Indirect Measures

Research measurements that use validated proxy variables or indicators to estimate an outcome rather than assessing it directly.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

The federal agency responsible for evaluating and authorizing nutrition claims on food packaging and labeling.

Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

The regulatory body that enforces consumer protection by taking action against deceptive advertising and false product claims.

Puffery

Subjective, exaggerated marketing statements or commercial praise that cannot be objectively verified or proven, generally not regulated as false claims.

Performance Claims

Commercial product claims describing measurable functional or physiological outcomes that require scientific substantiation.

Sensory Claims

Product claims describing subjective properties perceived through the senses, such as flavor, fragrance, appearance, or texture.

Claim Evaluation Criteria

The critical review factors used to analyze research cited in marketing claims: subject characteristics, dosing, magnitude of effect, and potential conflict of interest.

Author Submission Guidelines

The specific set of formatting and structural rules provided by an academic journal to prepare and submit a manuscript for peer review.

SDSU Library Subject Guide Databases

Specialized academic databases recommended for ENS literature searches, specifically including SPORTDiscus, CINAHL, and PEDro.

Experimental Studies

A type of scientific research that involves manipulating one or more variables to determine the effect on an outcome or dependent variable.

Controlled Trials

The exercise science research are experimental studies designed to investigate the effects of specific exercise interventions or interventions combined with other treatments.

Randomized Controlled Trials

Considered gold standard in research design. Randomly assign participants to either an experimental group that receives an intervention or control group that does not.

Observational Studies

Examines participants in their natural environment without manipulating any variables. Researchers observe and record significant behaviors, events, to describe, quantify, and determine the relationship among variables.

Case-Control Studies

Similar to case studies, but compare a group of individuals with a specific condition to a group of individuals without that condition to a group of individuals without that condition.

Cross Sectional Studies

Observational research involving the analysis of data collected from a population or a sample at a specific point in time.

Operator “AND”

joins treatments and outcomes (columns)

Operator “NOT”

excludes treatments and outcomes (columns)

Operator “OR”

groups synonyms (rows) EXPANDS search

Operator “TRUNCATE”

synonym root (rows) EXPANDS search

Operator “QUOTATION MARKS”

phrases words, NARROWS search

Operator “PARENTHESIS”

separate synonym groups, ORGANIZES SEARCH