Intervention research: Appraising study designs, interpreting findings and creating research in clinical practice

Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are increasingly required to read, interpret and create evidence regarding the effectiveness of interventions. This requires a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of different intervention study designs. This paper aims to take readers through a range of designs commonly used in speech-language pathology, working from those with the least to most experimental control, with a particular focus on how the more robust designs avoid some of the limitations of weaker designs. It then discusses the factors other than research design which need to be considered when deciding whether or not to implement an intervention in clinical practice. The final section offers some tips and advice on carrying out research in clinical practice, with the hope that more SLPs will become actively involved in creating intervention research.