General Findings and Observations Module Eight General Findings and Observations In this module we will walk through discussion points to help you sort through the research evidence that you found.

General Findings Overall, does the research address our question of interest? If so, is there a great deal of research that addresses our question of interest? Which types of research are missing (syntheses, our population of interest, etc.)? Before beginning this module you should have read through all of the research evidence that you identified and used some of the tools that we provided in the last module to assess the quality of the evidence. If you are working in a group you will want to gather all of your team members together to discuss what each of your searchers have found. You’ll first want to have a general conversation with group about how the search went. Overall, were you able to find research that addresses the question that you identified? If not, you may have to search for research on similar, or more general type questions, or seek guidance from someone who is more knowledgeable about the area of research to help. How much research was identified. If only a few studies were found, your question may have little research that has accumulated, or constitute a new area of study. Also, take a look at what types of research you could not find. Many research questions do no yet have meta-analyses or systematic reviews. This will tell you something about the maturity of the research in your area. If most of the research is exploratory in nature, the area of study is probably only beginning to develop.

Group Discussion Start with research syntheses found Individual research articles Other evidence Reflect on these questions and discuss the nature of your findings with the group at this time. Start with the top of the pyramid, the research syntheses (systematic reviews and meta-analyses) and move forward through individual studies. Some of the individual studies that you found may be included in these syntheses. Be sure to pay attention to which studies are addressed in the syntheses in order to avoid repeating work that has already been done for you. You’ll want to discuss all of the evidence that you have identified.

Discussion Points General overview of the research question or hypothesis How recent is the evidence? Main findings What is the general quality of the evidence? How well does it fit? Talk with your team or think about the general overview of the research findings. Things to discuss are how recent the evidence is- if it is too old then findings may not apply to current practice contexts. Talk about the principle findings. Are the results consistent or do findings seem to conflict? Can you notice any other patterns. For example, one intervention may work better for boys while another is more successful with girls. Think about your population characteristics and needs and how similar or dissimilar they are to the study samples. Talk with your group about the general quality of the evidence and it’s fit with your question or problem.