The unit of analysis error in studies about physicians' patient care behavior
- PMID: 1453246
- DOI: 10.1007/BF02599201
The unit of analysis error in studies about physicians' patient care behavior
Abstract
Objective: To estimate the frequency with which patients are incorrectly used as the unit of analysis among statistical calculations in published studies of physicians' patient care behavior.
Design: Retrospective review of studies published during 1980-1990. ARTICLES: 54 articles retrieved by a computerized search using medical subject headings for physicians and study characteristics. Article selection criteria included the requirement that the physician should have been the correct unit of analysis.
Intervention: Presence of the error was determined by consensus using published criteria.
Main results: The error was present in 38 articles (70%). The number of study physicians was reported in 35 articles (65%). The error was found in 57% of articles that reported the number of study physicians and in 95% of those that did not. The error rate was not lower among articles published more recently nor among those published in journals with higher rates of article citations in the medical literature.
Conclusion: The unit of analysis error occurs frequently and can generate artificially low p values. Failure to report the number of study physicians can be a clue that this type of error has been made.
Similar articles
-
Research on the value of medical library services: does it make an impact in the health care literature?J Med Libr Assoc. 2004 Jan;92(1):34-45. J Med Libr Assoc. 2004. PMID: 14762461 Free PMC article.
-
Reported response rates to mailed physician questionnaires.Health Serv Res. 2001 Feb;35(6):1347-55. Health Serv Res. 2001. PMID: 11221823 Free PMC article.
-
Development of a search filter for identifying studies completed in primary care.Fam Pract. 2014 Dec;31(6):739-45. doi: 10.1093/fampra/cmu066. Epub 2014 Oct 18. Fam Pract. 2014. PMID: 25326923
-
Assessing Treatment-Related Toxicity Using Administrative Data, Patient-Reported Outcomes, or Physician-Graded Toxicity: Where Is the Truth?Semin Radiat Oncol. 2019 Oct;29(4):333-337. doi: 10.1016/j.semradonc.2019.05.007. Semin Radiat Oncol. 2019. PMID: 31472735 Review.
-
Facilitating and impeding factors for physicians' error disclosure: a structured literature review.Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf. 2006 Apr;32(4):188-98. doi: 10.1016/s1553-7250(06)32024-7. Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf. 2006. PMID: 16649649 Review.
Cited by
-
Maintenance treatment with antipsychotic drugs for schizophrenia.Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2020 Aug 11;8(8):CD008016. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD008016.pub3. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2020. PMID: 32840872 Free PMC article.
-
Cognitive behavioural therapy plus standard care versus standard care for people with schizophrenia.Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018 Dec 20;12(12):CD007964. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD007964.pub2. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018. PMID: 30572373 Free PMC article.
-
Clinical decision support improves blood culture collection before intravenous antibiotic administration in the emergency department.J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2022 Sep 12;29(10):1705-1714. doi: 10.1093/jamia/ocac115. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2022. PMID: 35877074 Free PMC article.
-
Interventions for obsessive compulsive symptoms in people with schizophrenia.Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2005;(2):CD005236. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD005236. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2005. PMID: 25267890 Free PMC article.
-
General physical health advice for people with serious mental illness.Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014 Mar 28;2014(3):CD008567. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD008567.pub3. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014. PMID: 24676557 Free PMC article.