Question

An article in the Boston Globe : Are you at least 40 years old? Did you play soccer? BU researchers launched a study to find out whether head impacts, such as heading a soccer ball, increases the risk for later life mood and behavioral changes. They will enroll 4800 participants. At the beginning of the study, they create groups of participants based on whether they had high, medium or low level of head impacts. Then over the next five years they assess memory, cognition, behavior and mood. Assume the participants are healthy at the beginning of the study. 1. What type of study is this? 3. Name at least one source of bias in this type of study

Answer 1

The study described is a prospective cohort study that assesses the effects of head impacts on memory, cognition, behavior, and mood over a five-year period. One source of bias in this type of study is selection bias, and another potential source of bias is confounding.

Step-by-step explanation:

The type of study described in this question is an observational study, specifically a prospective cohort study. The researchers are enrolling participants and observing them over a period of five years to assess the effects of head impacts on memory, cognition, behavior, and mood. Participants are grouped based on their level of head impacts at the beginning of the study.

One source of bias in this type of study is selection bias. The researchers are enrolling participants based on certain criteria, which could introduce bias if the selected participants differ in important ways from the general population. Another potential source of bias is confounding, where other factors besides head impacts could be responsible for the observed changes in mood and behavior.