Question development is an integral part of an effective search. On this page, you'll find information on the different types of questions you might ask, along with templates and tools for question formation.
These questions are general in nature and provide foundational information on a single concept. Background questions cover:
Examples
What is the pathology of asthma?
What drugs are used to treat hypertension?
How do I perform a psychological assessment?
What education resources exist for patients with gestational diabetes?
How is hepatitis B diagnosed?
What does a normal heartbeat sound like?
These questions bring together multiple concepts related to a specific clinical situation or research topic. They are typically divided into two categories:
These questions are best answered using the resources found in the 6S Pyramid page of this guide.
Building an effective foreground question can be challenging. The following models will help:
P - Patient / Population
S - Situation
How do / does ____[P]____ experience ____[S]____?
Example: How do caregivers / spouses of Alzheimer patients experience placing their spouse in a nursing home?
A quantitative approach can answer many different types of questions, but all can be formatted by following the PICO(T) Model outlined below:
|
Therapy |
Etiology |
Diagnosis |
Prevention |
Prognosis |
P- Population / Disease |
Characteristics of a population (age, gender, ethnicity, etc.) with a specific condition or set of circumstances. |
||||
I/E – Intervention OR |
Specific drug or procedural intervention |
Exposure to certain conditions or risk behavior |
Specific diagnostic tool or procedure |
Specific drug or procedural intervention |
Specific drug or procedural intervention |
C – Comparator |
Alternative drug or procedural intervention |
Absence of certain conditions or risk behavior |
Alternative diagnostic tool or procedure |
Alternative drug or procedural intervention |
Alterative drug or procedural intervention |
O – Outcome |
Management of disease / condition |
Development of disease / condition |
Effective diagnosis of condition |
Prevention of disease / condition |
Occurrence or absence of new condition |
T – Time Frame |
The time it takes to demonstrate an outcome OR the period in which patients are observed. |
In ____[P]____, do / does ____[I]____ result in ____[O]____ when compared with ____[C]____ over ____[T]____?
Example) In nursing home residents with osteoporosis, do hip protectors result in fewer injuries from slips, trips, and falls when compared with standard osteoporosis drug therapy over the course of their stay?
Are ____[P]____ with ____[I]____ over ____[T]____ more likely to ____[O]____ when compared with ____[C]____?
Example: Are female non-smokers with daily exposure to second-hand smoke over a period of ten years or greater more likely to develop breast cancer when compared with female non-smokers without daily exposure to second-hand smoke?
Is / are ____[I]____ performed on ____[P]____ more effective than ____[C]____ over ____[T]____ in ____[O]____?
Example: Are self-reporting interviews and parent reports performed on children aged 5-10 more effective than parent reports alone over a four-week consultation process in diagnosing depression?
In ____[P]____, do / does ____[I]____ result in ____[O]____ when compared with ____[C]____ over ____[T]____?
Example: In emergency room visitors, do hand sanitizing stations result in fewer in-hospital infections when compared with no hand sanitizing stations over a year-long pilot period?
Do / does ____[I]____ performed on ____[P]____ lead to ____[O]____ over ____[T]____ compared with ____[C]____?
Example: Do regular text message reminders performed on patients recently diagnosed with diabetes lead to a lower occurrence of forgotten insulin doses over the first six months of treatment compared with no reminders?
PIE (Population, Intervention, Effect / Outcome)
PEO (Population / Problem, Exposure, Outcomes / Themes)
FINER (Feasibility, Interesting, Novel, Ethical, Relevant)
SPICE (Setting, Perspective, Intervention, Comparison, Evaluation)
SPIDER (Sample, Phenomena of Interest, Design, Evaluation, Research type)