Exploratory Research Design
Order Instructions:
You have now learned the foundation of both observational research and experimental design methods.
Each contributes significantly to the study and practice of public health. read The Effect of Disseminating
Evidence-Based Interventions That Promote Physical Activity to Health Departments, and answer the
following questions.
response to the following:
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the research methodology presented in Brownson et al.
(2007)?
What value did using a quasi-experimental design add to the research study?
How does this impact the validity of the research project?
What do you believe is the best strategy for disseminating research results? Support your position.
Additional Requirements
EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESIGN 2
Exploratory Research Design
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the research methodology presented in
Brownson et al. (2007)?
The researchers were able to adopt the dissemination approach to the evaluation of evidence-
based approaches and to measure the changes in awareness as well as in the adoption of
interventions to physical activity. The study was also effective in enhancing the understanding of
the topic of study. The integration of the quasi-experimental design enhanced the capability of
the study. In addition, the study was helpful in directing the direction of further and subsequent
research, especially one that adopts better measures to determine the success of the dissemination
approaches.
The major weakness is that the conclusion drawn from the findings cannot be used as definite
conclusions since it lacks statistical reinforcement. The use a modest sample of 154 participants
is not very representative. Other limitations included difficulty in determining attribution and
assessing the effects of the other events in the 2-year period between baseline and follow-up and
the lack of a comprehensive process to evaluate data.
EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESIGN 3
What value did using a quasi-experimental design add to the research study?
The quasi-experimental design was an effective method to conduct the outcome-oriented
evaluation of the research. By using the pre-existing groups from the baseline study, the
researchers avoided additional steps and ethical concerns.
How does this impact the validity of the research project?
As a practical option for the evaluation, the design helped to further analyze the changes in
dissemination of guidelines, hence, enhancing the validity of the project. By avoiding potential
ethical concerns in substituting a less effective health program for the participants the researchers
enhanced the validity of the study.
What do you believe is the best strategy for disseminating research results? Support your
position.
The best strategy for disseminating research results is the use of an online journal. This is
because it is accessible to a large number of the target audience with the current advancement in
IT and shift from the use of the traditional forms such as newsletters to internet channels of
acquiring information.
EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESIGN 4
Reference
Brownson, R. C., Ballew, P., Brown, K. L., Elliott, M. B., Haire-Joshu, D., Heath, G. W., &
Kreuter, M. W. (2007). The Effect of Disseminating Evidence-Based Interventions That
Promote Physical Activity to Health Departments. American Journal of Public
Health, 97(10), 1900-1907.
