Definition
The primary objective of an experimental or nonexperimental research study is to obtain a valid estimate of the treatment effect of interest. Validity can be divided into considerations of internal validity and external validity (Rothman, Greenland, & Lash, 2008).
Both experimental and nonexperimental studies require consideration to be paid to study design, data acquisition, data management, and analysis. If all of these are of optimum quality and there are no imperfections in the study, the study is deemed valid and the correct result is provided. Any imperfections lead to bias of various types.
Internal validity addresses the validity of inferences concerning the source population, and external validity addresses the validity of inferences to the general population, an issue also known as generalizability.
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References and Readings
Kleinbaum, D. G., Sullivan, K. M., & Barker, N. D. (2007). A pocket guide to epidemiology. New York: Springer.
Rothman, K. J., Greenland, S., & Lash, T. L. (2008). Validity in epidemiologic studies. In K. J. Rothman, S. Greenland, & T. L. Lash (Eds.), Modern epidemiology (3rd ed., pp. 128–147). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
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Turner, J.R. (2013). Validity. In: Gellman, M.D., Turner, J.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1005-9_1080
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1005-9_1080
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