1. Participants, Measurement & Study Design
The Methods Section
Participants, Measurement & Study Design

2. What you need to know to start:
Hypothesis
Subjects
Independent variable
Dependent variable
Research design
Clients with post CVA < 1 month who participate in occupation-based mCIT will have improved scores on the FIM pre to post test.

3. Worksheets and Outlines
Method and Data Analysis Sections Worksheet Page 1
To guide your thinking
Course assignment instructions for Part A
To guide your writing

4. Participants See example on the wiki: Example of a Proposal
Answer the questions on the Worksheet
Write up a summary according to the outline in instructions

5. Recruitment (a few tips)
Need to know if participants meet your criteria- use a screen or have MD refer
Recruit through flyers, asking for referrals, letters home to parents, etc. State where you will do this (clinics in Shreveport, Caddo Parish elementary schools etc.)
Mention you will get IRB approval prior to recruitment

6. Dependent Variable = Measurement Instrument
Reliability: Internal Consistency, Test-Retest, Inter-rater Validity: Content, Construct, Concurrent, Discriminant, Predictive See OT assessment Wiki for this May use Asher’s but don’t stop there! Use primary sources!
May need to pick assessment for the sake of this assignment- may not match completely and then you need to let me know this in the paper

7. Justification for test measure
Why is this the best test for your study? ease of use, quick level of data it returns used in research so can compare results psychometric properties cost objective or self report? dynamic & interactional vs. static

8. Study Design
a one group pre to post test design (aka one group repeated measures)
O X O
How will you control for threats to INTERNAL validity?
Strict inclusion criteria (homogeneity)
Blind testing
Correct statistical method (explain)
Measure of protocol fidelity
Exclude extraneous variables (other treatments)

9. Justification for study design
Pilot, if so future plans? Why?
Ethical
Resources are limited
Basically, why aren’t you using a control group? And no, not because I said so. : P
Acknowledge and explain limitations to internal and external validity

10. Part B: Procedures and Data Analysis
The Methods Section
Part B: Procedures and Data Analysis

11. Worksheets and Outlines
Method and Data Analysis Sections Worksheet Page 2 &3
To guide your thinking
Course assignment instructions for Part B
To guide your writing

12. How to get started Read the example
Answer the questions on the Methods and Data Analysis Worksheet
Write a chronological outline of what you plan to do
Your audience is your advisor and the IRB – write in the future tense everything you will do

13. Hints Refer to example for how to word things Future tense
Refer to another study for details
APA
Who, when & where
Avoid vague descriptions
If possible state that you will implement the intervention as outline by Author’s last name (year) but give detailed summary

14. Threats to validity
In order to address threats to validity the researchers will . . .
Efforts to ensure that threats to validity are addressed include . . .
In much more detail than in Methods section A

15. Protecting Human Subjects
Full disclosure: risks, benefits, commitment, procedures
Confidentiality: privacy and anonymity
Voluntary participation
See chapter 3 for details

16. Obtaining informed consent
Must be done prior to starting study- and after IRB approval
Inform
Waiting period
Sign consent form

17. Match it up
Make sure that your hypothesis is tested by the study design and the procedures reflect that!