{"id":1448,"date":"2018-11-28T16:39:08","date_gmt":"2018-11-29T00:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/research\/?page_id=1448"},"modified":"2021-01-07T13:48:13","modified_gmt":"2021-01-07T21:48:13","slug":"transparency","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/research\/projects\/report-reader\/checklist\/transparency\/","title":{"rendered":"Report Reader Checklist: Transparency"},"content":{"rendered":"

It is important for research reports to be as transparent as possible, not only so you understand the study, but also so you can adequately evaluate the quality of a research study. Further, it is an ethical research practice to provide as much detail about a study so that others could easily replicate the study or perform their own data analysis and\/or coding of the data. Reports that are fully transparent include data tables and research instruments (surveys, interview protocols, where possible). If these elements are missing, your ability to fully verify results and evaluate the study is diminished.<\/p>

 <\/div>\n

If any of the following are missing, you will not be able to evaluate the authors\u2019 results and recommendations.<\/p>\n

a. Raw quantitative data (i.e., tables of frequency counts) for the entire study are included somewhere in the report, or in an appendix, for you to reference.<\/p>\n

If a report includes quantitative analysis, it is a best practice to include the frequency tables for you to reference. This allows you to verify the study findings or to refer to the original data if they have questions about how a particular result was calculated. Providing the data tables also allows other researchers to build off of the original dataset. If data tables are not provided, they should provide an explanation as to why they are not included.

[see examples<\/a>]<\/div><\/div>\n
b. The instrument and\/or study protocol are provided in the report or as an appendix.<\/p>\n

In order to fully understand the scope of a research design, it can be helpful to view any instruments, such as surveys, interview protocols or focus group questions. By providing the instrument and\/or study protocols, the report authors allow you to see the full picture of what was asked of research participants, as well as how the questions were worded and in what order they were asked. This level of transparency also allows you to see if any data gathered for particular questions are not being reported on in the study findings (if this happens, the rationale should be explained by the report authors).

[see examples<\/a>]<\/div><\/div>\n
c. The authors are clear about any conflicts of interest or other motivations for their role in the study.<\/p>\n

Sometimes studies are conducted in whole, or in part, by vendors or companies, or as part of market research campaigns. When this is the case, and the vendor or company may be perceived as having a conflict of interest<\/span><\/span> regarding the study results, it should be made clear in the study report what role the vendor and\/or company played in funding the study, the study design, implementation, data analysis, report writing and dissemination.

[see examples<\/a>]<\/div><\/div>\n
d. Any commentary or discussion is rooted in data results or study findings shared within the report.<\/p>\n

In the discussion of the findings, authors should not make claims that are beyond the scope of the data presented in the report. For example, the authors should not make inferences from the data that are not supported by the study results.

[see examples<\/a>]<\/div><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

Examples<\/h2>\n

a. Raw quantitative data (i.e., tables of frequency counts) for the entire study are included somewhere in the report, or in an appendix, for you to reference.<\/h3>\n
\nLinder, K. (2016). Student uses and perceptions of closed captions and transcripts: Results from a national study<\/em>. Oregon State University Ecampus Research Unit. [link<\/a>]\n