Hi, Tasha. Two questions seem relevant: (1) What in fact are you doing, or planning to do, in your study? Or (what may be easier to describe), what do you want to find out from the data? (2) Why do you [think you] need 'an "official" term' for the design, or the type, or whatever, of the study? (Why, for instance, does the name "case control" occur to you? Would you have controlled for something if you could?) And once you have a satisfactory term, what are you going to do with it? Will it help you to analyze the data? (I doubt it.) (3) You seem to imply that you cannot exert "case control", or perhaps any other kind of control. That no such control was exerted when the data were collected is one thing, and perhaps a weakness of sorts; but if you have access to the raw data (as your post sort of implies), can you not exert some limited control of your own? (For example, if it were desirable, you could select only female patients, or equal numbers of male and female patients, or only patients over 65 years old, ...)
On Fri, 23 Oct 2003, TBurwinkle wrote: > I have come across a dilemma with little consensus amongst colleagues. > So, I am throwing this issue out there for all of you, in hopes that > you might shed some light on the subject. > > I am doing a study where I am using a previously existing database in > which patients were assessed with a quality of life measure at > different time points (e.g., longitudinally). The study was originally > exploratory.. there were no variables that were controlled for... > just.. giving patients a questionnaire each time they presented to a > clinic. > > In reviewing various definitions of research designs, the one that > seems to "fit" most closely is that of a "case control" design.. but > as I mentioned, there were no variables that were controlled for. So > this definition seems grossly inadequate. Obviously it is a > retrospective design... but is there some kind of "official" term that > might be used for this type of study? > > I would be grateful for any feedback. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Donald F. Burrill [EMAIL PROTECTED] 56 Sebbins Pond Drive, Bedford, NH 03110 (603) 626-0816 . . ================================================================= Instructions for joining and leaving this list, remarks about the problem of INAPPROPRIATE MESSAGES, and archives are available at: . http://jse.stat.ncsu.edu/ . =================================================================
