Scientific research and generalisability (wk4)

Question 1

What is conflict of interest?

Answer 1

A situation in which a person is (or persons are) in a position to derive personal benefit and unfair advantage from actions or decisions made in their official capacity

Question 2

What is researcher bias?

Answer 2

Any factor, such as investment in the product being studied or gifts from the product manufacturer, that might influence the researcher to favour certain results

Question 3

Describe how conflict/bias can impact research:

Answer 3

-Industry may influence the design, analyses, and results of studies for financial gain (e.g. due to increased sales of the product due to favourable findings) -> may lead to a positive outcome which leads to financial gain for the industry’s product
-It can compromise the ability of researchers to conduct research and analyse and report the results in an accurate and impartial matter
-Research and industry -> Researchers and the industry can still work together as lots of high-quality research is funded by the industry in partnership with academics and conducted in an impartial matter. Researchers are required to be transparent about funding sources and any potential conflicts of interest.

Question 4

What is selection bias?

Answer 4

Individuals or groups recruited, or the data used in analyses, are selected in a way that is not random

Question 5

What is self report bias?

Answer 5

Error introduced with self-report data

Question 6

What is recall bias

Answer 6

Differences in the ability of participants to accurately recall the variable being measured

Question 7

What is reporting bias?

Answer 7

Differences between reported and unreported results

Question 8

What is publication bias?

Answer 8

Tendency for journals to publish studies with positive results

Question 9

What is confounding bias?

Answer 9

Error or inaccuracy in the effect of an exposure on an outcome due to the influence of another factor

Question 10

What is residual confounding bias?

Answer 10

The error or inaccuracy that remains after controlling for confounding in the design and/or analysis of a study

Question 11

What are the approaches to minimise the conflict/bias on research? (6)

Answer 11

-Journals enforce disclosure requirements and penalize anyone who does not disclose
-Prevent industry influencing research design, data analysis, and interpretation of findings
-Develop more accurate measurements to reduce self-report and recall bias
-More funding for well-designed, large scale, long-term RCTs that examine cause and effect
-Require journals to publish studies with negative findings
-Avoid using language implying causation when the results are indicative of associations

Question 12

Describe health inequalities:

Answer 12

-‘The preventable, unfair and unjust differences in health status between groups, populations or individuals that arise from the unequal distribution of social, environmental and economic conditions within societies, which determine the risk of people getting ill, their ability to prevent sickness, or opportunities to take action and access treatment when ill health occurs (NHS England, 2019)
-Health inequalities can arise from complex interactions between; housing, education, gender etc
-Health inequalities refer to systematic differences in the health status of different population groups

Question 13

Describe health inequalities and the 2010 Marmot review:

Answer 13

‘Fair society, Health lives’ – an evidence-based strategy to address social determinants of health. Includes conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age which can lead to health inequalities. The lower a person’s social and economic status, the poorer their health and their life expectancy

Question 14

How does deprivation contribute towards health inequalities?

Answer 14

-Deprivation -> The damaging lack of material benefits considered to be basic necessities in a society (such as clean drinking water) (Oxford dictionary)
-In research a common index (correlation) is the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) -> It is used as an overall relative measure of deprivation in England
-There are 7 domains of deprivation, which combine to create the Index of Multiple Deprivation -> income, employment, education, health, crime, barriers to housing and services and living environment
-Deprivation has a negative impact on healthy life expectancy and it increases the risks for chronic diseases, such as; obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some cancers. It makes it more difficult to access health options and to adopt and sustain healthy lifestyle behaviours.

Question 15

Describe associations between health and deprivation, race, ethnicity, sex:

Answer 15

-More than 6 out of 10 men are overweight or obese (68%)
-6 out of 10 women are overweight or obese (60%) -> adult = aged 16+, with Overweight/obesity of BMI > 25KG/M2
-Increased obesity rates in those with lowest household income -> Obesity and overweight are associated with increased risks for various chronic diseases. Type 2 diabetes – over 4.9 million people in the UK, CV diseases – roughly 7.6 million people in the UK
-CV diseases -> Most common in males and older adults, people with severe mental illnesses and the most deprived communities
- CV diseases - Bias and biology in the UK -> Coronary heart disease kills twice as many women in the UK as breast cancer. Women delay seeking medical help as they don’t recognise the symptoms. A woman is 50% more likely to receive the wrong initial diagnosis for a heart attack.
-People who are more active are less likely to develop chronic diseases including; type 2 diabetes, CV diseases and some cancers

Question 16

Identify implications of research that does not represent population diversity:

Answer 16

-Research findings may not be applicable to those who are under-represented
-Those who are not represented may be deprived from the benefits resulting from the research
-Policies created from research could be harmful to those not represented

Question 17

Other scientific considerations:

Answer 17

Timing – Diurnal rhythm, circadian patterns, seasonally:
-Circadian -> Patterns in inflammatory and immunological measurements. Measurements taken in the morning may not replicate or be similar to a measurement made in the evening.
-Seasonal -> Patterns in inflammatory and immunological measurements. More vasodilation and sweating is common in the summer, but there is more vasoconstriction and shivering in the winter. Physiology has to be considered in research.

Behaviour – pre-study or pre-measurement controls:
-Exercise in the 1 hour before a metabolic challenge influences results and exercise in the 5 days before a metabolic challenge influences results

Measurement – techniques and equipment:

Animal research – reporting standards and housing conditions: