The nurse is preparing a research study on the number of heart attacks in the community and the number of individuals who are actively involved in exercise programs following a heart attack

Question

Using knowledge of research study design, which gold standard for a research design should be considered?
A) Randomized, control group
B) Quasi-experimental
C) Experimental
D) Descriptive epidemiologic

Answer 1

Ans: A
Feedback:
The "gold standard" for experimental studies is the prospective, double-blind, placebo-control group design, also referred to as clinical trials or therapeutic trials. In double-blind experimental studies, neither the researchers nor the subjects are aware to which group they are randomly assigned. Quasi-experimental and experimental designs are used to examine causality. Many studies, although experimental in design, are not able to either randomize selection of subjects or exert the same degree of control of the study variables that would be found in true experimental studies. Descriptive epidemiologic studies, which are frequently used in public health, are designed to acquire more information about characteristics of health (or disease) as they pertain to person, place, and time. Findings from descriptive epidemiologic studies lead to hypotheses for future research.