--- title: 'EGAP Learning Days Research Design Form' output: html_document: default pdf_document: default --- +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | **Section 1: | | | Introduction** | | +===================+==================================================+ | 1. **Researcher | | | name** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 2. **Research | | | project | | | title** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 3. **One | | | sentence | | | summary of | | | your specific | | | research | | | question** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 4. **General | i. Why should someone who is not an academic care| | motivation** | care about the results of this research? [1 | | | paragraph] | | | ii. What policy decision(s) will your research | | | help inform? [1 paragraph] | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 5. **Theoretical | i. What theoretical questions can this research | | motivation** | shed light on? [1 paragraph] | | | ii. Key debate(s)/literature(s) that will be | | | informed by the answer to your research question | | | [1 paragraph] | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 6. **Primary | i. What are the key parameter/estimands the | | hypotheses** | research design seeks to estimate? What sign | | | and/or magnitude is predicted by primary | | | hypotheses for each parameter/estimand? [1-2 | | | paragraphs] | | | ii. What is the logic or theory of change behind | | | the primary hypotheses [1-2 paragraphs] | | | iii. What are the key pieces in the relevant | | | academic literature that inform your hypotheses? | | | [2-3 pieces] | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 7. **Secondary | i. What are the secondary paramater/estimands the| | hypotheses** | research design seeks to estimate? What sign | | | and/or magnitude is predicted by the secondary | | | hypotheses for each parameter/estimand [These may| | | be conditional effects for subgroups or | | | hypotheses about additional outcomes or cross- | | | randomized treatments.] | | | ii. What is the logic or theory of change behind | | | each secondary hypothesis? [Explain what effects | | | we should expect if the theory behind your | | | primary hypothesis is correct.] | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 8. **Alternative | i. What alternative theories could explain the | | explanations | results? | | if results are| ii. Hypothesis for an alternative outcome | | consistent | (or other subgroups) that would be consistent | | with | only with the alternative explanation and not the| | hypotheses** | logic behind your primary hypothesis. | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 9. **Alternative | i. What alternative theories could explain the | | explanations | results? | | if results are| | | *inconsistent*| | | with | | | hypotheses** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | **Section 2: | | | Population and | | | Sample** | | +===================+==================================================+ | 10. **Population | | | of interest** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 11. **Where and | i. Does this match up to your population of | | when will your| interest, or are there conditions that make this | | study take | study context different? | | place?** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 12. **Sample | i. How is this sample selected? Be specific about| | size** | the procedure. | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 13. **Consent** | i. How will you obtain informed consent? If you | | | will not, what is the justification? | | | ii. Is this population vulnerable to being | | | coerced into participating in the study? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 14. **Ethics** | i. Is the sample size large enough that you have | | | sufficient power for your research conclusions to| | | be credible and useful? | | | ii. Is the sample size no larger than necessary | | | for the research? | | | iii. Can the research (results) be used to target| | | people or make people more vulnerable? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | **Section 3: | | | Intervention** | | +===================+==================================================+ | 15. **Status Quo**| i. Describe the status quo--what are the current | | | conditions in terms of the outcomes you hope to | | | change? What aspects of the intervention already | | | exist, if any? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 16. | i. Describe your intervention(s) | | **Intervention**| ii. What is already known about the effect of the| | | proposed intervention relative to the status quo?| | | Is there credible evidence on the question? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 17. **Control** | i. Describe the control condition | | | ii. Is the control condition a pure control (no | | | intervention at all) or a placebo? What is the | | | placebo contition designed to control for? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 18. **Units** | i. To what units (level) will the intervention be| | | applied? Individual, classroom, school, village, | | | municipality, etc. | | | ii. Is this the same level at which outcomes will| | | be measured? If not, how will you address the | | | different levels if they do not perfectly | | | overlap? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 19. **Compliance**| i. What does it mean to "take" (comply with) the | | | the intervention? | | | ii. If the intervention is a prgram, how much | | | someone need to attend (showing up once? | | | finishing the program?) in order to count as | | | having attended? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 20. **Non- | i. Is there any concern with non-compliance | | Compliance** | (either taking the intervention if assigned to | | | control/placebo or failing to take the | | | intervention if assigned to treatment)? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 21. **Ethics** | i. Is the control condition no worse than the | | | status quo, according to the best evidence | | | available? | | | ii. Are there concerns that participants may be | | | forced to comply wiht the intervention? | | | iii. What are the risks and magnitude of | | | potentially negative effects of the treatment? | | | Are such risks concentrated on a particular | | | subset of your population? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | **Section 4: | | | Outcome and | | | Covariates** | | +===================+==================================================+ | 22. **Primary | i. What is your primary outcome? | | Outcome** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 23. | i. How will it be measured? (Give the actual text| | **Measurement** | of the survey question and response options, if | | | using a survey measure. Is the outcome | | | continuous, binary, etc.?) | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 24. **Priors** | i. What is the expected distribution of the | | | primary outcome? (This may come from a prior | | | study on a similar population or you may have to | | | make an educated guess). +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 25. **Validity | i. Is there any concern with untruthful | | and measurement | reporting? If so, how will you address it? | | error** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 26. **Stages** | i. Will you collect a baseline? | | | ii. Will you collect a midline? | | | iii. Will you collect multiple waves of endline | | | measurement? | | | iv. If you will collect a baseline or midline, | | | how will you find the same respondents (minimize | | | attrition?) | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 27. **Covariates**| i. What covariate data do you need, including for| | | subgroup analysis? How will covariates be | | | measured? | | | ii. What addtional covariates (if any) will you | | | measure? | | | iii. What additional outcomes or covariates will | | | you collect to distinguish between your | | | explanation and alternatives if your findings are| | | consistent with your hypothesis? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 28. **Ethics** | i. Will data collection be onerous (time, effort)| | | or painful (physically, emotionally) for any | | | respondents? | | | ii. Are these costs necessary? Have they been | | | minimized? | | | iii. Are they outweighed by the potential | | | benefits of the research to society? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | **Section 5: | | | Randomization** | | +===================+==================================================+ | 29. | i. Complete/simple, block, cluster, factorial | | **Randomization | etc. | | strategy** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 30. **Blocks** | i. What are they, how many blocks, how many units| | | per block? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 31. **Clusters** | i. What are they, how many clusters, how many | | | units per cluster? | | | ii. If you have clusters, what is the intra-class| | | correlation (ICC)? | | | iii. Is clustering strictly necessary, or could | | | you randomize at the individual level? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | **Section 6: | | | Analysis** | | +===================+==================================================+ | 32. | i. What is your estimator? | | **Estimator** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 33. **Standard | i. What kind of standard errors will you use? | | Errors** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 34. **Test** | i. If you plan to report a p-value, what kind of | | | test will you use? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 35. **Missing | i. How will you handle missing data? | | Data** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 36. **Effect | i. What is the expected effect size? What is the | | size** | minimum effect size that would make the study | | | worth running? what effect sizes have similar | | | studies found? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 37. **What is your| | | power?** | | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | **Section 7: | | | Implementation** | | +===================+==================================================+ | 38. | i. How will you conduct the randomization? (on a | | **Randomization** | computer in advance, drawing from an urn in | | | public, etc.) | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 39. | i. Who will implement the intervention? | | **Implementation**| ii. Are there any dangers to your research team, | | | including enumerators? How will you minimize | | | them? | | | iii. How will you track the quality of the | | | implementation of the intervention? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 40. **Compliance**| i. Who will measure compliance? | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+ | 41. **Data | i. How will you manage the data? (security, | | management** | anonymity, etc.) | +-------------------+--------------------------------------------------+