Health Inquiry and Research Skills
What you must understand
Health inquiry uses systematic methods to gather and interpret evidence. Know the research process: define the question, review literature, choose a design, collect data, analyse, interpret and report ethically. Distinguish quantitative (numbers, measurement, statistics) from qualitative (meaning, experience, themes) and mixed methods. Understand study designs: cross-sectional, cohort, case-control, randomised controlled trial (RCT) and systematic review, and where each sits on the evidence hierarchy. Know sampling (random, stratified, convenience), validity, reliability, bias (selection, recall, publication) and confounding. Understand ethics: informed consent, confidentiality, voluntary participation, and approval by a human research ethics committee, with special care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander data sovereignty.
Traps in questions
- Confusing reliability (consistency) with validity (measuring what it claims).
- Claiming causation from cross-sectional or observational data - correlation is not causation.
- Ignoring sampling bias when generalising results to a population.
- Forgetting ethics approval and consent when describing a study.
Worked example
A researcher surveys 200 Year 12 students about sleep and stress using a convenience sample from one school. Identify the design (cross-sectional survey), the data type (quantitative), the likely bias (selection - single school, volunteers), and the limits on generalisation. Then propose a stronger design: random sampling across schools, validated sleep and stress scales, and ethics approval.
Rule of thumb
For every study, state design, sample, data type, bias and ethics - five sentences that secure analysis marks.