Enhancement of learning on sample size calculation with a smartphone application: a cluster-randomized controlled trial.
This study
compared levels of understanding of sample size calculations for research studies
between participants attending a lecture only versus lecture combined with using
a smartphone application to calculate sample sizes, to explore factors affecting
level of post-test score after training sample size calculation, and to investigate
participants’ attitude toward a sample size application. A cluster-randomized
controlled trial involving a number of health institutes in Thailand was carried
out from October 2014 to March 2015. A total of 673 professional participants
were enrolled and randomly allocated to one of two groups, namely, 341 participants
in 10 workshops to control group and 332 participants in 9 workshops to
intervention group. Lectures on sample size calculation were given in the control
group, while lectures using a smartphone application were supplied to the test
group. Participants in the intervention group had better learning of sample size
calculation (2.7 points out of maximnum 10 points, 95% CI: 24 - 2.9) than the
participants in the control group (1.6 points, 95% CI: 1.4 - 1.8). Participants doing
research projects had a higher post-test score than those who did not have a
plan to conduct research projects (0.9 point, 95% CI: 0.5 - 1.4). The majority of the
participants had a positive attitude towards the use of smartphone application
for learning sample size calculation.
PMID: 29645411 [PubMed - in process]
Source: Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health - Category: Tropical Medicine Tags: Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health Source Type: research
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