Evidence-Based Practice for Social Work

Three questions to ask yourself when reading the research –

1.  What was the research question and why was the study needed?
2.  What was the research design?
3.  Was the research design appropriate for the question?

Here are some other things to think about when reading research articles:

1. Author

   1. Does the author note any conflict of interest?

   2. Does the author acknowledge their own limitations?

   3. Does the author acknowledge biases they may have?

2.   Introduction

   1. Is the problem being studied clearly stated?

   2. Is there a review of previous literature related to this study?

   3.  Did the author identify a gap in the literature?

   4. Is there a hypothesis stated?

   5. Is the purpose of the study stated?

3.  Method

   1. Are the subjects well described?

   2. How was the sample selected?

   3. How large was the sample?

   4. Was a control group used?

   5. Is the procedure laid out in detail?

   6. Could someone replicate the study from this description?

   7. Are the measures used valid & reliable?

   8. Is the data analysis well described?

4.  Results

   1. Are the measured data summarized?

5. Discussion

   1. Was the hypothesis accepted or rejected?

   2.  Were there weaknesses in the study discussed?

   3.  Are other articles or studies cited which address the findings?

   4. Were any suggestions made for further study on this topic?

   5. Are alternative interpretations addressed if appropriate?

6. Conclusion

   1. Are the results briefly restated?

   2. Do conclusions make sense based on the results and discussion?

7. References 

   1. Are references included?

   2. Do they support the content of the article?