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Rutgers SHP Requirements for Graduation and Course Descriptions

Department of CLS&MIS

Diagnostic Cytopathology - Post Professional

IDST6200 - Research Methods for the Health Sciences

Course Description

A comprehensive exploration of research methods used in the health sciences, with an emphasis on selecting and applying appropriate research designs. The course includes an overview of the scientific method and the various research paradigms in current use; research ethics and the protection of human subjects; the role of theory in problem formulation; internal and external validity; variable measurement and reliability, and generalizability of findings. Specific approaches covered include experimental and quasi-experimental treatment designs, epidemiologic methods (cohort and case-control studies), survey research, evaluation and outcomes research, methodological studies and qualitative research.

Credits/Modes of Instruction

Credits: 3

This is a 3-credit graduate course delivered via the Internet. The mode of instruction is directed study. Directed study is an active learning method that emphasizes what the learner does, not the teacher. In this method, you engage the content via structured assignments and activities, i.e., you learn by doing. The instructor's role is to (1) design the assignments and activities to ensure active learning, (2) prepare you for and direct you in assignment completion, (3) provide you with feedback on your achievement and progress and (4) promote collaboration among all students via structured discussion. Directed study activities include online readings, regular unit quizzes, focused discussion activity and method analyses.

Prerequisites

This course presumes a sound prior foundation in basic concepts of data analysis. For that reason, IDST6121 – Data Analysis and Interpretation I or an approved, equivalent 3-credit graduate level statistics course is the basic prerequisite.

Course Goals and Outcomes:

Goals

After completion of this course, students will have a sound understanding of the origins and applications of the diverse research methods used in the health sciences and have demonstrated an ability to assess the quality of a variety of published studies representing different research designs.

Outcomes

After completion of this course, the student should be able to:
Compare and contrast the positivist and phenomenologic research paradigms in terms of ontology, epistemology and axiology
Articulate the role theory plays in the conceptualization and design of research
Identify where research ideas originate and what characterizes a "good' research question
Identify the key ethical and moral issues underlying human subjects research and demonstrate how to provide appropriate safeguards and protection to participants
Differentiate among the characteristics of the common interventional and observational quantitative research designs
Describe how research variables are classified, quantified and measured and how researchers establish the reliability and validity of their measures
Differentiate among the various sampling methods used in research designs and how group allocation can be used as a control mechanism
Differentiate among internal, external and statistical conclusion validity of a research study and the factors that can threaten each type
Identify the key design considerations associated with the validity of therapy, diagnostic test, prognosis and harm studies
Differentiate among and understand the common statistical approaches used in therapy, diagnostic test, prognosis and harm studies
Describe the general characteristics and appropriate use of mixed-method research