Understanding the problem
Types of research
- Epidemiology and demography
- Biomedical
- Descriptive
- Etiological
- Social behavioural and organisational research
- Measurement
- Systematic reviews
Action: Describe the nature and scope of the problem and develop solutions.
Testing for efficacy
Types of research
Action: Assess causal relationships between exposure to an intervention and an outcome.
Testing for replicability
Types of research
Action: Assess practicality of implementing efficacious interventions in new populations or settings under real world conditions.
Testing for dissemination
Types of research
- Intervention dissemination studies
Action: Assess widespread intervention roll-out in communities and across systems.
Note: Impact and outcome assessment and process evaluation (collectively known as intervention research) spans from the testing for efficacy stage to the testing for dissemination stage.
Source: Milat AJ, Bauman A, Redman S, Curac N. Public health research outputs from efficacy to dissemination: a bibliometric analysis. BMC Public Health 2011; 11: 934.
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