Evidence, hierarchies, and typologies: horses for courses.

Full Abstract

Debate is ongoing about the nature and use of evidence in public health decision making, and there seems to be an emerging consensus that the "hierarchy of evidence" may be difficult to apply in other settings. It may be unhelpful however to simply abandon the hierarchy without having a framework or guide to replace it. One such framework is discussed. This is based around a matrix, and emphasises the need to match research questions to specific types of research. This emphasis on methodological appropriateness, and on typologies rather than hierarchies of evidence may be helpful in organising and appraising public health evidence.

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Author information

Author/s: Petticrew, M (M); Roberts, H (H);

Affiliation: MRC Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow, UK. mark@msoc.mrc.gla.ac.uk

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Journal of epidemiology and community health (J Epidemiol Community Health), published in England. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2003-Jul; vol 57 (issue 7) : pp 527-9

Dates: Created 2003/06/24; Completed 2003/09/11; Revised 2007/11/15;

PMID: 12821702, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Practice Guidelines as Topic
Public Health
Public Policy

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