Example Of Blind Study Essay

Sampling is the process of selecting a group of subjects to act as a representation of the entire target group. The selected representative portion of the population is called a sample, and it upon which generalizations of the research findings is done to apply to the whole target population. There is one principal way through which a sample might not be a representation of the entire population. This occurs when randomization is not done during the process of compiling the sample. It should be noted that randomization is the key to building an effective representative sample for the study. Randomization involves the selection of subjects randomly in a manner that gives every member of the population an equal chance of representing the entire population. This assertion gives insight to the fact that a sample compiled through randomization might at times not represent the entire target population if the subjects are randomly picked though not from the entire target population. It follows, therefore, that the randomization should be carried out on the entire population. As in the case of this new arthritis medication, the sample population should be randomly selected from the entire world if the pharmaceutical company targets to sell the medication to the entire world.
There are a number of concerns that I might have if the company paid for or conducted its own research. For instance, I will be concerned about the ethicality of the research. Usually, participants in a research should be assured of confidentiality, especially of their biographical and heath information. If the company paid for or carried out its own research, the company must be able to convince any regulatory body that confidentiality of the biographical and health information of the subjects is guaranteed. In the same light, noting that validity and reliability are among the most important facets that determine the objectivity and generalizability of research findings, it important that the company is able to provide proof of the validity and reliability of the findings of the study. In its basic form, validity implies to the ability of a study to investigate what it is intended to study, while reliability refers to the ability of research findings to be generalized on a bigger population.
For any study, particularly studies that relate to consumables and medications, there is an utmost need for the study findings not to be biased. There are instances when research findings can be influenced by the mere fact of awareness of the subjects and the researchers about the study. Usually a single blind experiment or a double blind experiment is carried out in a desperate bid to avoid the biases that might arise if the subjects or the researchers (or both) are aware that they are involved in a given study. Pointedly, I would recommend a single blind experiment where only the subjects are not aware of the study, rather than a double blind experiment where both the researchers are the subject are not aware of the study. This is because research findings are most commonly dependent on responses and activities of the respondents. Ideally, the validity of the study is greatly enhanced if the study is carried out as a blind study. I, therefore, will be concerned about validity of the company’s research findings if the study was not carried out as a blind study.