Critical Appraisal: Overview of Critical Appraisal

Understanding the Basics of Critical Appraisal 

• What is critical appraisal?
• What is evidence?
• What is key to know about the process and tools? 

Laying the Foundation 

• Where do I start?
• How can I ask the right question? 

Managing your Literature

• How do I keep track of all my literature? 
• How do I screen the results of my literature searches? 

Appraising your Literature

•  Which appraisal tools should I use?

• Research & Publication Support
• KRS Orientation
• Grey Literature
• Self-Guided Tutorial: 
  How do I conduct a literature search?

What is Critical Appraisal? 

Critical appraisal involves a careful and systematic assessment of a study's trustworthiness, quality, and relevance in a particular context.  In order to be confident about conclusions you want to: assess the validity of results; assess for bias; and consider a study's relevance to your work before using the information. 

Why do Critical Appraisals Matter? 

Critical appraisals help to identify the best available evidence to inform decision-making and clinical practice by: 

• Distinguishing evidence from opinions, assumptions and reporting 
• Identifying current and evolving evidence and gaps in the research 
• Determining value, relevance, applicability, and usefulness 

What is Evidence? 

• Evidence is information and data that is observed, tested, recorded, and analyzed using scientific methods 
• Evidence seeks to support, challenge or claim a theory which is observable and measurable 
• As you begin appraising literature, it is important to understand that the quality of evidence varies between sources and studies. 

Visit Identifying Appropriate Sources of Evidence to learn more about recognizing the quality of evidence and the hierarchy of evidence in evidence-based medicine (EBM). 

What am I Appraising? 

You are appraising literature for trustworthiness, quality, and relevance.  These elements are independent of the issue being explored or study type.  The critical appraisal process considers the strengths and weaknesses of the evidence by considering the following questions: 

• Is the research question or hypothesis clearly stated? 
• Is the research relevant to your area, population, and outcome of interest? 
• Is the study design appropriate for the research question or hypothesis posed? 
• What are the potential sources of bias? 
• How well are potential biases acknowledged and addressed?
• Is the statistical analysis conducted appropriate and correct? 
• Do study conclusions align with findings? 

What are key things to know about... the Critical Appraisal PROCESS? 

• The critical appraisal process is iterative in nature and requires time 
• Your SEARCH STRATEGY is central to the critical appraisal process
   

What are key things to know about... Critical Appraisal TOOLS? 

• It is important to select critical appraisal tools that align with WHY you are appraising literature (i.e. your purpose) 
• There are critical appraisal tools that are VALIDATED and others that are NOT VALIDATED
• Ensure you are using the most up-to-date version of the tool specific to your discipline
• Critical appraisal tools most often use a CHECKLIST or DESCRIPTIVE format.