A methodological approach to enhance external validity in simulation based research

Simulation methodology, as exemplified by use of vignettes, has many advantages, such as standardization of data collection procedure, control of extraneous variables, and manipulation of variables of interest. The main shortcoming is its artificiality and therefore its limited external validity. To determine the degree to which findings from simulation research are transferable to the real world, a comparison can be made using the same measure on artificial and real situations, or the researcher can determine the degree to which a score on the simulation compares with a score in the field. The predictive validity approach was used in a study that used an artificial method to study patient assault. In this study, the intent was to determine the degree of accuracy that the subjects' causal attribution scores on an assault vignette were predictive of causal attribution scores in the actual assault situation.