What is a meta-analysis? How to use a systematic review

Format: Texts

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Language/s: English

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Resource Link: View the Text

Target Audience: Further education

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Short Description:

Oxford University’s Centre for Evidence-Based Intervention guide on how to use evidence from systematic reviews.

Key Concepts addressed:

• 2-1 Comparisons are needed to identify treatment effects
• 2-2 Comparison groups should be similar
• 2-5 People should not know which treatment they get
• 2-7 All should be followed up

Details

Using systematic reviews: an example

Let’s say you want to know if taking young people who live in at-risk neighbourhoods to visit prisons can help to prevent those young people from committing crimes later in life. Here is how to find out:

1. Find good evidence (if it exists)
2. Do a search
3. Dig deeper
4. Read the forest plot
5. Apply the evidence to your question or context

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