CRITICAL THINKING : understanding and evaluating dental research.

Critical Thinking: Understanding and Evaluating Dental Research, Third Edition
	Table of contents
	Frontmatter
		Table of contents
		Dedication
		Preface
	Chapter 1: Reasons for Studying Critical Thinking
		Critical Thinking
		The Road to Publication
		References
	Chapter 2: Scientific Method and the Behavior of Scientists
		The Behavior of Scientists
		The Storybook Version of Scientific Method
		Reproducibility and Openness
		Positivism Versus Conventionalism
		References
	Chapter 3: The Components of a Scientific Paper
		Active Reading and the Scientific Paper
		Components and Their Functions
		References
	Chapter 4: Rhetoric
		Classical Rhetoric
		Audience
		Abelsonʼs “MAGIC” Criteria for Persuasive Force
		The Persuasion Palette
		Summary
		References
	Chapter 5: Searching the Dental Literature
		When to Seek Help
		Information Sources
		Open access, open science, and open data
		Citation Analysis and Research Impact
		Conducting a Search
		Final Search Tips
		Acknowledgment
		References
	Chapter 6: Logic: The Basics
		Some Basic Standards and Ground Rules
		The Assertability Question
		Types of Logic
		An Introduction to Deductive Logic
		The Value of a Formal Analysis of Arguments
		References
	Chapter 7: Introduction to Abductive and Inductive Logic: Analogy, Models, and Authority
		Abduction and Scientific Discovery
		Induction
		Implications
		Summary of the Logic of Criticism of Inductive Arguments
		References
	Chapter 8: Causation
		Hypotheses of Cause and Effect
		Practical Assessment of Causation
		A Threat to Establishing Causation via Association: Confounding Variables
		Application of Criteria for Causality in Different Fields
		Practical Suggestions for Assessing Causation in Scientific Papers
		Ends and Means
		References
	Chapter 9: Quacks, Cranks, and Abuses of Logic
		Three Approaches to Medical Treatment
		Scientific Cranks
		Quacks
		Abuses of Logic
		References
	Chapter 10: Elements of Probability and Statistics, Part 1: Discrete Variables
		Probability and Distributions
		Statistical Inference
		Goodness of Fit
		Contingency Tables: An Especially Useful Tool in Evaluating Clinical Reports
		Resources for Statistics
		References
	Chapter 11: Elements of Probability andStatistics, Part 2: Continuous Variables
		The Normal Distribution
		Confidence Intervals
		Relationships Between the Normal, Poisson, and Binomial Distributions
		Concluding Remarks
		References
	Chapter 12: The Importance of Measurement in Dentistry
		Operational Definitions
		Types of Scales
		Units
		References
	Chapter 13: Errors of Measurement
		Precision Versus Accuracy
		Types of Error
		References
	Chapter 14: Presentation of Results
		Ideals and Objectives
		The Selection and Manipulation of Data
		Significant Digits: Conventions in Reporting Statistical Data
		Tables
		Illustrations
		References
	Chapter 15: Diagnostic Tools and Testing
		Clinical Practice
		Principle of Diagnosis
		The Process of Coming to a Diagnosis
		Diagnosing, Screening, Surveillance
		The Diagnostic Tool Versus the Gold Standard Diagnostic Tool
		Reliability of Measurements
		Diagnostic Tool Properties: Sensitivity and Specificity
		Positive Predictive Value, Negative Predictive Value, and Diagnostic Error Rates
		Calculating Postive Predictive Value and Negative Predictive Value
		Receiver Operating Characteristic Analysis
		SpIN and SnOUT
		Returning to Clinical Decision Making
		Conclusion
		Acknowledgments
		References
	Chapter 16: Research Strategies and Threats to Validity
		Constraints, Purposes, and Objectives
		The Concept of Validity
		Categories and Prevalence of Problems
		References
	Chapter 17: Observation
		Observation-Description Strategy
		The Value of Qualitative Methods in Dental Research
		Observation-Description Strategyin Clinical Interventions
		References
	Chapter 18: Correlation and Association
		Cross-sectional Survey
		Ecologic Study
		Case-Control Design
		Follow-up (Cohort) Design
		Scientific Standards in Correlational Experiments Involving Humans
		Some Potentially Serious Problems in Determining Causation from Observational Data
		References
	Chapter 19: Experimentation
		Independent and Dependent Variables
		Uncontrolled
		Requirements for a Good Experiment
		Types of Research
		Tactics of Experimentation
		Tactical Considerations in Clinical Experiments
		Typical Variables to Control or Consider in Biologic Research
		References
	Chapter 20: Experiment Design
		Managing Error
		Some Common Experiment Designs
		References
	Chapter 21: Statistics As an Inductive Argument and Other Statistical Concepts
		Statistics ≠ Scientific Method
		Statistical Inference Considered As an Inductive Argument
		The Fallacy of Biased Statistics
		Other Statistical Concepts
		A Final Warning and a Set of Rules
		Now, Something Completely Different: The Bayesian Approach to Induction
		References
	Chapter 22: Judgment
		Clinical Versus Scientific Judgment
		Critical Thinking As Applied to Scientific Publications
		Putting It All Together: Argumentation Maps
		Balanced Judgments
		Judgments Under Uncertainty, Heuristics, and Cognitive Biases
		Forming Scientific Judgments: The Problem of Contradictory Evidence
		Using Othersʼ Judgments: Citation Analysis As a Means of Literature Evaluation
		Influencing Judgment: Lower Forms of Rhetorical Life
		References
	Chapter 23: Introduction to Clinical Decision Making
		Critical Thinking and Decision Making
		Decision Making in the Context of Patient Care
		Supplementation of Decision Tree Analysis with Other Approaches to Decision Making
		References
	Chapter 24: Exercises in Critical Thinking
		Problems
		Comments on Problems
	Appendices
		Appendix 1
		Appendix 2
		Appendix 3
		Appendix 4
		Appendix 5
		Appendix 6
		Appendix 7
		Appendix 8
		Appendix 9
	Index