Communication in research final exam

CMD is both

• an academic discipline

• a clinical profession

Why has research in CMD been limited?

• Historical focus on clinical service
• Reliance on other disciplines
• Limited time/resources for clinicians

Reasons to strengthen the scientific basis of CMD

• Accountability for outcomes
• Funding/reimbursement
• Professional credibility
• Evidence-based practice
• Critical consumer of research

In-house CMD knowledge

Research produced within CMD for CMD-specific problems

Why is research by clinicians limited?

Lack of time due to heavy caseloads
• Limited research training
• Limited funding/resources
• Clinical settings focus on service delivery, not research

What is science?

• Philosophy about nature
• Set of methods
• Uses objective procedures

Produces description, understanding & explanation, prediction, control
of natural events (= outcomes of science)

What is research?

Systematic investigation that produces generalizable knowledge

Why do scientists do research?

• Curiosity

• Explain effects/events

• Solve practical problems

• Demonstrate effects

HOW IS RESEARCH DONE?

Two broad views of how research is done

Formal research-Structured, controlled, preplanned, hypothesis-driven

Formative research-Flexible, develops as knowledge grows, exploratory

HOW IS NEW KNOWLEDGE GENERATED?

Two ways new knowledge is generated

Serendipity-Accidental discovery that leads to new knowledge

Proper planning-Systematic, organized research designed to answer a question and test a hypothesis

When was ASHA founded and why was it important?

ASHA was founded in 1925 to organize the speech-language pathology and audiology professions, establish standards, support research, and provide certification/ethics guidelines.

Variable

Something that can change or be measured

Dependent variable

• Outcome measured
• Must be operationally defined
• Function of the IV

Must be operationalized

Independent variable

Variable that influences the DV

Active (controlled) IV

Manipulated by the researcher

Assigned IV

Participants placed into groups; not manipulated

Monitored IV

Observed and measured but not controlled

Intervening variable

A variable that explains the relationship between the IV and DV

Causation

Explaining an effect by identifying its causes

Instigating cause

The original cause of a disorder/behavior

Maintaining cause

The factor that keeps the disorder/behavior going

Experiment

Manipulation of variables

Hypothesis

Testable prediction about the relationship between variables

Null hypothesis

Statement of no relationship between variables

Theory

Systematic body of evidence explaining why events occur

Inductive reasoning

Specific observations → general theory

Deductive reasoning

General theory → specific prediction/test

Scientific law

Consistent, universal relationship describing a natural phenomenon

Data

Measurable observations collected in a study

Evidence

Data used to support or refute a hypothesis or theory

treatment research

Clinical research that establishes the effects of treatment to support evidence-based practice (EBP)

Evidence-based practice (EBP)

Integration of clinical expertise, best current evidence, and client values

Main goal of treatment research

Establish effects of specific treatment procedures

Improvement

Positive change in routine clinical settings (not controlled)

Effectiveness

Treatment works in real clinical settings

Treatment effectiveness (treatment effects)

Positive change under controlled experimental conditions showing cause–effect

Statistical significance

Change is unlikely due to chance

Clinical significance

Change is meaningful in real life for the client

Generalization

Treatment gains transfer to new settings or behaviors

Maintenance

Treatment gains continue over time

Treatment outcomes

Consequences of treatment (improvement, effectiveness, efficiency)

Efficacy

Treatment works under ideal, controlled conditions

Elimination of extraneous variables

Controlling outside factors to show true treatment effects

Group treatment research

Compares groups to evaluate treatment effects

Randomized clinical trial (RCT)

Participants randomly assigned to treatment or control groups

Random selection

How participants are chosen from the population

Probability sampling

Everyone has an equal chance of being selected

Non-probability sampling

Not everyone has an equal chance

Random assignment

Participants randomly placed into groups

Matching

Participants grouped based on similar characteristics

Pre-test

Measurement before treatment

Blinding

Participants and/or researchers don’t know who gets the treatment

Placebo treatment

Inactive treatment used for comparison

Group Design Strengths

• Strong statistical evidence

• Good for averages/general trends

Single-Subject Strengths

• Focuses on individual performance

• Strong clinical relevance

experimental control

The ability to show that the independent variable (treatment) caused the change in the dependent variable.

Validity

How accurate or trustworthy the study/results are.

Statistical generality

Results apply to populations (group research)

Clinical significance

Results meaningful for an individual

Logical generality

Applying single-subject results to similar clinical cases

Self-selection in RCTs

Participants volunteer → may not represent the population

Ethical issue with control groups

Some participants do not receive treatment

How does treatment research in medicine differ from treatment research in CMD?

Medical treatment research often tests medications or medical procedures to cure or reduce disease, while CMD treatment research studies behavioral or therapeutic interventions that improve communication, speech, language, hearing, or swallowing abilitie

Causality

Controlled vs uncontrolled studies

Generality

unreplicated, directly replicated, systematically replicated

Ex-post facto research

Studies variables after they occur; no manipulation

Ex-post facto — strength

Can study variables that cannot be manipulated

Ex-post facto — weakness

No experimental control; cannot show cause–effect

Normative research

Establishes norms by measuring performance across age groups

Normative research — strength

Norms are essential for clinical diagnosis

Normative research — weakness

Sampling and validity problems; individuals ≠ group average

Standard group comparison

Compares typical group vs clinical group

Standard group comparison — strength

Shows differences between typical and disordered groups

Standard group comparison — weakness

Cannot establish cause; not an experimental design

Experimental research

Manipulates variables under controlled conditions

Basic experimental research

Develops theory/knowledge

Applied experimental research

Solves clinical or practical problems

Clinical/applied research

Research conducted in real clinical settings

Experimental research

Manipulates variables under controlled conditions

Epidemiological research

Studies incidence and prevalence of disorders

Incidence

Number of new cases

Prevalence

Total number of existing cases

Qualitative research

Uses non-numerical data (interviews, observations)

quantitative

numbers/statistics

Mixed methods research

Combines qualitative and quantitative data

Translational research

Research that connects basic scientific findings to clinical applications and treatment practices.

Survey Research

A type of research that collects information from people using questionnaires or interviews.

Operationalization

Defining a variable in measurable terms

Frequency

Number of times behavior occurs

Duration

Length of time behavior lasts

Latency

Time between stimulus and response

Time sampling

Recording behavior during specific time intervals

Momentary time sampling

Recording if behavior occurs at a specific moment

Verbal interaction sampling

Measuring frequency of verbal exchanges

Reliability

Consistency of measurement

Research design

verall plan for methods & procedures of investigation

Good experimental designs support control of variables

o Rule out extraneous variables
o Manipulate independent variables
o Establish functional relationships (cause & effect)
o Observe & measure systematically

Intrinsic variability

Variability caused by internal or inherent factors within a person.

extrinsic variability

Variability caused by outside or environmental factors.

Group design

A research design that controls variability across individuals and compares groups