Research and sources
Prepare questions about a paper's methods
Read the methods section alongside the paper's research question. Note who or what was studied, how observations were collected and what the authors compared. Separate the limitations they state from questions you want to investigate. Mark information absent from the excerpt before judging what the findings support.
A text to start with
I am reading a paper on [topic] for [purpose]. Here are the abstract and methods section: [pasted text]. Help me write questions about it. State the research question, sample, method, comparison, outcome measure and any limitation the authors name. Then list what I should ask, and say which abstract claims the methods may not support.
Example request. Change the details to fit your situation.Methods question worksheet
Paper citation: [ ] Research question as stated: [ ] Sample (who, how many, how chosen): [ ] Method: [ ] Comparison or control: [ ] Outcome measure: [ ] Limitations the authors state: [ ] My own questions, labeled as mine: [ ] Abstract claims the methods may not support: [ ] Where an answer might be found (paper, supplement, authors): [ ] How I will treat the main conclusion (supported, tentative, not used): [ ]
Keep the authors' limits apart from yours
Keep the authors' statements separate from your interpretation. Label your own questions as yours so they are not credited to the paper. Check that the sample in the methods matches the group the conclusions describe. Check whether the comparison group was actually studied or only assumed. Confirm the outcome measured is the one the abstract names. If a question depends on a detail the text does not give, mark it as unanswerable from this document.
Ask another agent to check the result
Compare my list against the paper text. For each limitation, say whether the authors stated it or I raised it, and flag any I attributed to the wrong side. Then name any question the methods section already answers.
Send the open questions to the right place
Look for answers in the full paper, supplements or linked data before treating an omission from the excerpt as a flaw in the study. Identify remaining questions you could ask the authors or investigate through related studies. Record which conclusions the available text supports and which need further evidence.