Chapter 1. Introduction to Epidemiologic Research Methods

  1. Ming T. Tsuang3,4,
  2. Mauricio Tohen5,6
  1. Jerome A. Fleming1,
  2. Chung-Cheng Hsieh2

Published Online: 22 APR 2003

DOI: 10.1002/0471234311.ch1

Book Title

Textbook in Psychiatric Epidemiology, Second Edition

Textbook in Psychiatric Epidemiology, Second Edition

Additional Information

How to Cite

Fleming, J. A. and Hsieh, C.-C. (2003) Introduction to Epidemiologic Research Methods, in Textbook in Psychiatric Epidemiology, Second Edition (eds M. T. Tsuang and M. Tohen), John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ, USA. doi: 10.1002/0471234311.ch1

Editor Information

  1. 3

    Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA

  2. 4

    Pediatric Psychopharmacology Unit, Psychiatry Service, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA

  3. 5

    Lilly Research Laboratories, Indianapolis, IN, USA

  4. 6

    Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02184, USA

Author Information

  1. 1

    Harvard Medical School, Department of Psychiatry at Massachusetts Mental Health Center, Harvard Institute of Psychiatric Epidemiology and Genetics, and Brockton/West Roxbury Veterans Administration Medical Center, Psychiatry Service, Brockton, MA 02301, USA

  2. 2

    Division of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Massachusetts Cancer Center, Worcester, MA 01605, USA

Publication History

  1. Published Online: 22 APR 2003
  2. Published Print: 23 AUG 2002

ISBN Information

Print ISBN: 9780471409748

Online ISBN: 9780471234319

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Keywords:

  • epidemiologic research methods;
  • epidemiologic measures of outcome;
  • occurrence in population groups;
  • overview of study designs;
  • valid group comparisons in observational studies;
  • confounding bias

Summary

The authors review some of the common approaches to quantifying the occurrence of psychiatric outcomes in a population and present basic epidemiologic research designs used to identify the determinants of psychiatric conditions. Biases associated with observational epidemiologic study designs, and factors to consider in interpreting findings from these studies, are discussed. Attention is also given to the special problems faced in the application of these methods to the study of psychiatric conditions.

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