Select an article: This may seem challenging considering how many options are before you! Consider articles
on topics of interest to you that will generate conversation. Also consider topics discussed earlier in the year…
variety is a good thing! Articles presenting straightforward methods might be better depending on your topic. Of
particular importance to this course is the clear application or testing of one or more health behavior theories.
Articles should generally be published in the last 8 – 10 years in order to maintain relevance to contemporary
health promotion/education.
Once you’ve narrowed down the pool of options to a few articles, you might ask yourself: Was a new
association (positive or negative) or novel method presented? Did the results contradict previous knowledge?
Did the study make a major public health impact? Were many critical letters written to the editor in response to
it?
Read the article: Based on what you are currently learning and what you already know, read the article with a
critical eye. Consider hypothesis, study design, bias, methods of analyses used, etc. How can readers make
sense of the numbers in the tables? Are the results reproducible? Does the discussion accurately interpret
results, specifically in the context of existing knowledge? Are limitations and advantages discussed? How did
peer reviewers respond? What would you have done differently? It’s a good idea to keep the Guidelines to
Reviewing Journal Articles (Symons/McClellan) on hand while you go through the article.
http://www.jhsph.edu/research/centers-and-institutes/welch-center-for-prevention-epidemiology-and-clinicalresearch/_pdf/Journal_Club_Aids/How-to_art_rev.pdf
Sample Solution