Critical appraisal

The Library has a number of print and e-books on critical appraisal:

• Search for books held in the Library​
• Search our complete ebook collection

Introduction to Critical Appraisal: How to read a paper

Covers: the evidence hierarchy; study types; peer review; and basic statistics.

Useful for: anyone who makes decisions based on research papers.

​If you're doing research, auditing or just interested in learning how to read and understand journal articles better, contact the library today by email or phone!

• Centre for Evidence Based Medicine: lots of information and critical appraisal tools, including on Levels of Evidence.
• Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP): provides various tools and checklists for appraising different types of research.
• Cochrane: Evidence Essentials (free online course)

• Advanced evaluation information provided by The Open University.
• BestBETs: includes a database of critical appraisals undertaken by other people. It includes a variety of different critical appraisal checklists.
• CONSORT - transparent reporting of trials.
• CRAAP Test - for assessing websites, books, articles and a range of resources.
• Critical thinking and Appraisal Resource Library (CARL)
• HealthKnowledge: an online course on finding and appraising the evidence.
• How to spot fake news
• Making sense of statistics
• Students4BestEvidence: critical appraisal checklists.
• Testing Treatments: key concepts for critical thinking about treatment claims.
• Understanding health research: a toolkit guiding you through a series of questions to help you to review and interpret a published health research paper.

• Introduction to Critical Appraisal
• Critical Appraisal of a qualitative study
• Critical Appraisal of a quantitative study

Library & Knowledge Service
Facilitating evidence-based decision making

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Page last updated: 8/6/2020