Missed course content

Introductory Research Methods

Density plot

a 'smoothed' histogram

Box plot

Displays the median, interquartile range, and the range of the data from one factor/variable. Can also detect outliers

Violin plot

Similar to a box plot but they also display the density of data for one variable/factor

Absolute risk gives us information about overall risk of an event occurring

while relative risk allows us to compare groups

Three main types of reviews

Narrative, systematic, scoping

Narrative reviews

Literature is selected by authors. Typically written by experts in the field. Can use on a relatively broad area. No expectation that all relevant literature is included. Authors can essentially cherry pick the literature they include

Narrative reviews pros

Can use on a relatively broad area. No expectation that all relevant literature is included. Authors can essentially cherry pick the literature they include

Systematic reviews

Written relative to a very specific research aim. Literature is systematically identified using criteria

Systematic reviews process

The first stage (identification) often involves 1000s of articles. All relevant literature must be included (that meets criteria). Very methodical, very time consuming. The final product represents all published studies relative to the specific research aim

Scoping reviews

Sits somewhere in-between a narrative and systemic review. Can vary, some use a more systematic approach than others

Scoping reviews pros

Has larger scope than a systematic review, so the research aim can be broader and criteria for inclusion not as tight. Good for identifying knowledge gaps, scoping a body of literature, and clarifying concepts. Good approach if there isn’t a huge amount of work in a specific area, and you want to include related work

Meta-analysis

evidence synthesis using inferential statistics to assess evidence across published studies