An observational study is retrospective if it considers only...

An observational study is retrospective if it considers only existing data. It is prospective if the study design calls for data to be collected as time goes on. Tell which of the following observational studies are retrospective and which are prospective. (a) A sample of moose in a national park are given ear tags so that naturalists can track their growth, movement, and physical condition during a ten-year study. (b) To see if crime rates are related to moon phases, a researcher looks at ten years of archived police blotter reports and compares them with moon charts from the same period. (c) Out of curiosity, Mimi looks up the ages of all the Best Actress winners in the years they won their Oscars, and then gathers the same data for the Best Actor winners to see whether male or female winners were, on the average, younger. (d) In a study of post-traumatic stress disorder, soldiers who have been in combat are given biannual physical and psychological tests for five years after they return from active duty. (e) Paxton devises a complicated formula based on game statistics for rating quarterbacks. He applies it to all NFL quarterbacks who played in the league between 1950 and 2000 and concludes that the quarterbacks from the 1970's were the best overall.

An observational study is retrospective if it considers only existing data. It is prospective if the study design calls for data to be collected as time goes on. Tell which of the following observational studies are retrospective and which are prospective.
(a) A sample of moose in a national park are given ear tags so that naturalists can track their growth, movement, and physical condition during a ten-year study.
(b) To see if crime rates are related to moon phases, a researcher looks at ten years of archived police blotter reports and compares them with moon charts from the same period.
(c) Out of curiosity, Mimi looks up the ages of all the Best Actress winners in the years they won their Oscars, and then gathers the same data for the Best Actor winners to see whether male or female winners were, on the average, younger.
(d) In a study of post-traumatic stress disorder, soldiers who have been in combat are given biannual physical and psychological tests for five years after they return from active duty.
(e) Paxton devises a complicated formula based on game statistics for rating quarterbacks. He applies it to all NFL quarterbacks who played in the league between 1950 and 2000 and concludes that the quarterbacks from the 1970's were the best overall.

Key Concepts

Prospective Study

A prospective study involves planning and following subjects forward in time from the point of initiating the study. Researchers actively collect data as events unfold, which can help establish temporal sequences and potentially stronger cause-and-effect relationships between risk factors and outcomes.

Observational Study

An observational study is a type of research in which the investigator observes subjects and measures variables of interest without assigning any interventions to the subjects. This design is used to identify associations between variables as they naturally occur without experimental manipulation.

Retrospective Study

A retrospective study looks backward in time by analyzing existing data or records that were collected in the past. This approach is useful for studying outcomes that have already occurred, allowing researchers to identify correlations based on archived or previously recorded data.

Transcript

00:02 Right, question four.

00:04 We're given a bunch of situations.

00:06 We're supposed to identify which of them are retrospective observational studies and which of them are prospective observational studies.

00:18 And basically the difference between these two, so a retrospective observation study is when you look at data that's already collected.

00:27 So maybe a researcher going through the medical records of, random 500 people looking for correlations between say diabetes and weight or something like that but now all the data's already been collected for that now perspective observational study is one that's designed to collect data as you go along so you identify some point that you're gonna observe as the study goes along okay all right so we're given i think five of these different choices so a is sample of moose in national park and they're given ear tags and they want to track growth and movement so since they don't already have the data they're actually just putting an ear tag on looking to collect data i would say that the a is going to be perspective now b b is to see if crime rates are laid the moon phases researcher looks at 10 years of archive least water blotter reports that you can tell just right now that that since looked at 10 years of already collected data this one's going to be retro okay out of curiosity mimi looks at the ages of all the best actress award winners in the year they won their data and then gathers the same data for the best actor winners and to see which ones are younger again looking at the past you know winners means that that data is already been collected and you're looking through data already collected so this is retro let me see d in a study of post -traumatic stress disorders soldiers who have been in combat are given by annual physical and psychological tests for five years so here they're given a test for five years after they return and so this is something that tests are designed to collect data as the study goes so this would be a perspective and and then finally e...

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