CFS Research Methods & Evidence-Based Practice 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which type of study design is most appropriate when a floodplain surveyor needs to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of a levee setback project over 20 years?
- Cross-sectional study
- Longitudinal cohort study (Correct answer)
- Case-control study
- Randomized controlled trial
Correct answer: Longitudinal cohort study
A longitudinal cohort study tracks the same subject (the levee area) over time, making it ideal for evaluating long-term infrastructure outcomes.
Question 2: A floodplain manager wants to determine if a community's NFIP participation rate is correlated with flood insurance claim frequency. Which statistical measure is most appropriate?
- Chi-square test
- Pearson correlation coefficient (Correct answer)
- Analysis of variance (ANOVA)
- T-test for independent samples
Correct answer: Pearson correlation coefficient
The Pearson correlation coefficient measures the strength and direction of the linear relationship between two continuous variables.
Question 3: When conducting a literature review for evidence-based floodplain management, which source hierarchy is generally considered most reliable?
- News articles, then agency reports, then peer-reviewed journals
- Peer-reviewed journals, then government technical reports, then gray literature (Correct answer)
- Gray literature, then peer-reviewed journals, then government data
- Agency websites, then textbooks, then peer-reviewed journals
Correct answer: Peer-reviewed journals, then government technical reports, then gray literature
Peer-reviewed journals undergo rigorous expert evaluation, followed by government technical reports, then gray literature in terms of reliability.
Question 4: A CFS professional is using LiDAR-derived elevation data to assess flood risk but discovers the dataset is 8 years old. Which research principle is most relevant?
- Construct validity
- Data currency and temporal relevance (Correct answer)
- Inter-rater reliability
- Ecological fallacy
Correct answer: Data currency and temporal relevance
Data currency refers to how current the data is; outdated elevation data may not reflect changes from development, subsidence, or channel migration.
Question 5: In floodplain research, what is the primary purpose of a sensitivity analysis?
- To identify sensitive personal data in flood records
- To assess how model outputs change when input parameters are varied (Correct answer)
- To measure the emotional impact of flood events on communities
- To detect outliers in historical stage-discharge data
Correct answer: To assess how model outputs change when input parameters are varied
Sensitivity analysis tests how much the model output (e.g., flood extent) changes when individual input variables are adjusted, revealing which parameters most influence results.
Question 6: Which sampling method would be most appropriate for gathering community flood perception data when the population is geographically clustered in distinct neighborhoods?
- Simple random sampling
- Cluster sampling (Correct answer)
- Systematic sampling
- Convenience sampling
Correct answer: Cluster sampling
Cluster sampling divides the population into natural geographic groups (clusters) and randomly selects entire clusters to survey, making it efficient for geographically dispersed populations.
Question 7: A floodplain surveyor encounters conflicting results between two peer-reviewed studies on flood damage functions. What is the best evidence-based approach?
- Accept the more recent study and discard the older one
- Conduct a meta-analysis or systematic review to reconcile findings (Correct answer)
- Choose the study with the larger sample size only
- Default to FEMA guidance regardless of research findings
Correct answer: Conduct a meta-analysis or systematic review to reconcile findings
A systematic review or meta-analysis synthesizes findings across multiple studies using rigorous methodology to resolve conflicts and produce stronger evidence.
CFS Research Methods & Evidence-Based Practice 2
Which type of study design is most appropriate when a floodplain surveyor needs to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of a levee setback project over 20 years?