SSW Research & Evidence-Based Practice 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A school social worker reviews evidence and selects an intervention. According to the EBP process, after finding the best evidence the NEXT step is to:
- Formulate the clinical question
- Search for evidence in databases
- Appraise the quality of evidence
- Integrate evidence with clinical expertise and client values (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Integrate evidence with clinical expertise and client values
The EBP process steps are: ask, search, appraise, then integrate evidence with clinical expertise and client/family values before applying the intervention.
Question 2: Which type of reliability measures consistency of scores across different raters scoring the same observation?
- Test-retest reliability
- Internal consistency
- Inter-rater reliability (Correct answer)
- Parallel forms reliability
Correct answer: Inter-rater reliability
Inter-rater reliability assesses the degree to which two or more raters give consistent scores when evaluating the same behavior or response.
Question 3: A school social worker wants to study the long-term outcomes of students who received early intervention services. The BEST research design would be:
- Cross-sectional survey
- Longitudinal cohort study (Correct answer)
- Case-control study
- Single-session focus group
Correct answer: Longitudinal cohort study
A longitudinal cohort study follows the same participants over time, making it ideal for examining long-term outcomes of early intervention.
Question 4: What is 'publication bias' and why is it important for school social workers reviewing evidence?
- Studies published by prestigious journals are always accurate
- Journals tend to publish positive results, so the evidence base may overestimate intervention effectiveness (Correct answer)
- Researchers are biased toward certain publication formats
- Only published studies should be used in practice decisions
Correct answer: Journals tend to publish positive results, so the evidence base may overestimate intervention effectiveness
Publication bias occurs because journals favor positive results, meaning the literature may not reflect the full picture of an intervention's effectiveness including null findings.
Question 5: When a school social worker uses the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) to assess student functioning, this instrument demonstrates validity because it:
- Is free and widely available online
- Has been shown to accurately measure what it claims to measure across diverse populations (Correct answer)
- Contains many items covering multiple domains
- Is commonly used in school settings
Correct answer: Has been shown to accurately measure what it claims to measure across diverse populations
Validity means the instrument accurately measures the construct it is intended to measure, supported by empirical evidence across populations.
Question 6: A school social worker conducting participatory action research (PAR) would MOST likely:
- Maintain strict objectivity by keeping participants uninvolved in the research process
- Partner with community members and students as co-researchers (Correct answer)
- Focus solely on quantitative outcome measures
- Withhold findings from participants until publication
Correct answer: Partner with community members and students as co-researchers
PAR is a collaborative approach where researchers and community members work as equal partners throughout the research process, from design to dissemination.
Question 7: A school social worker notes that a study has high statistical significance but a very small effect size. The BEST interpretation is:
- The study findings are clinically meaningful and should change practice
- The study had a large sample where even trivial differences reach significance (Correct answer)
- The small effect size invalidates the statistical findings
- Statistical significance always equals practical importance
Correct answer: The study had a large sample where even trivial differences reach significance
Large samples can produce statistically significant results even for trivially small effects; statistical significance does not equal practical or clinical significance.
SSW Research & Evidence-Based Practice 4
A school social worker reviews evidence and selects an intervention.
According to the EBP process, after finding the best evidence the NEXT step is to: