Making Sense of Research
Table of Contents
FOREWORD vi
INTRODUCTION 1
CHAPTER ONE: A Brief Overview of the Scientific Method 7
Science as a Way of Thinking 8 Falsification and Accumulation of Knowledge 10
Reproducibility of Results 11 Ethics in Health Care Research 12
Quantitative and Qualitative Methods 16 Weighing the Evidence 19
Evidence-Based Medicine 22 Evidence-Based Practice for Complementary Practitioners 27
CHAPTER TWO: Locating Journal Articles 31
Using PubMed 34 Performing a Search 36 Saving Search Strategies 42
Ordering Articles from PubMed 42 Other PubMed Features 44
BioMed Central (BMC) and the Open Access Movement 45 Other Resources 48
CHAPTER THREE: Basic Concepts Involved in Evaluating Research 53
Threats to Internal Validity 56 Statistical Validity 60
Other Design Considerations in Evaluating Research 61
CHAPTER FOUR: Types of Journal Articles and Study Designs 75
Letters to the Editor 76 Literature Reviews 77 Clinically Related Health Care Research 80
Classification of Studies 82 Descriptive Studies 84 Explanatory Studies 87
Characteristics of Clinical Trials 94
CHAPTER FIVE: The Anatomy of an Original Research Article 103
The Abstract 105 Author and Article Information 106 The Introduction 108
Methods and Procedures 110 Results 115 Discussion of Results or Conclusion 122
References 125
CHAPTER SIX: Making Sense of Statistics 133
Probability 134 Levels of Variables 137 Types of Statistics 137
P-Values and Effect Sizes 142 Statistical Power 143
Parametric and Nonparametric Statistics 145 Correlation 149
Nonparametric Tests 151
CHAPTER SEVEN: How to Read a Quantitative Article 155
General Considerations 156 The Abstract 157 The Introduction 157
Methods and Procedures 158 Results 163 Discussion or Conclusions 166
References 167 Study Example #1: Massage and Cancer Pain 169
Study Example #2: Massage and Acupuncture for Postoperative Symptom Management 188
CHAPTER EIGHT: How to Read a Qualitative Article 213
Qualitative Inquiry 214 Types of Qualitative Approaches 215
Data Analysis in Qualitative Research 218 Trustworthiness in Qualitative Research 219
Evaluating Qualitative Research 221
Study Example #1: Mastectomy, Body Image and Therapeutic Massage 224
Study Example #2: Massage During Chemotherapy 245
Mixed Methods: Combining Quantitative and Qualitative Methods 263
Study Example #3: Body-Oriented Therapy and Child Sexual Abuse 264
CHAPTER NINE: Writing a Case Report 303
The Uses of Case Reports 304
Case Report Example #1: Pneumocystis Pneumonia – Los Angeles 305
Case Report Example #2: Internal Jugular Vein Thrombosis Associated with Shiatsu Massage of
the Neck 312 Case Report and Case Study Design 317
Case Report Example #3: Long-Term Survival of a Patient with Widespread Metastases 317
Prospective Case Report Designs 327 The N of 1 Trial 329 Planning and Preparation 330
Case Report Example #4: A Case Report of the Treatment of Piriformis Syndrome 332
Writing a Case Report 344 Preparing an Article for Submission 345
Venues for Publication 345
GLOSSARY 349
INDEX 361
