Becoming a Critical Reader: Bias, Bias Everywhere!

by Andrea Lythgoe, LCCE (Originally published on Science and Sensibility for Lamaze International)

Pretty much everyone would agree that there is bias in research. Most people would say that bias is inherently bad. While it absolutely can be a bad thing, it can’t be completely eliminated. So what can be done about bias in research?

There are many kinds of bias:

• Researcher bias: researcher sets out wanting to the study to prove something, and intentionally or unintentionally manipulates the study to make sure that happens
• Sponsor bias: The organization that sponsors the study either encourages researcher bias or manipulates the publication of the data. Some studies might be completely suppressed, some might have overly inflated press releases touting minimal results.
• Publication bias: Journals must be selective in what they publish due to space limitations, but I think it is fair to say that some journals may choose not to publish a study that might anger its audience.

But today I want to focus on READER bias:

Your first job in the critical reading of an article is to check your bias. We are all human, and so we all have bias. Sometimes it is hard to see your own biases. Take a look at the pictures below. In the first picture, we can tell that there is something there, but it is difficult to see. In this case, the letters are lined up with our angle of vision.

In this second picture, the letters are running the opposite way as our line of vision, and as you can see, suddenly that bias is crystal clear!

The same is true with our reading of the research. The biases that we have act as a filter that alters our reactions to the research. If we already have our minds made up that induction of labor = bad, then any research on labor induction is going to be seen through that filter. Any research that seems to place induction in a favorable light will be seen has highly suspicious. Any minor flaws will be exaggerated. Any research showing bad outcomes from inductions will likely get a “free pass” and flaws may be overlooked.

Murray Enkin, author of “A Guide to Effective Care in Pregnancy and Childbirth”, said this:

Perhaps the most important bias of all resides in the (potential) reader, who determines how (or if) the results will be read and interpreted.

I would agree with him. I have, over the years, seen the best and worst of research used to back up various points, ignoring the quality (of lack of it!) as long as it agrees with them. This is a normal human tendency, and one that is at the heart of many discussions about the available research.

But the good news is that reader bias isn’t impossible to overcome.

The solutions? Awareness of bias and a change of perspective! As you read, consider how this research might be read and understood by someone with a completely different perspective. When you read a study that really resonates as a great study with you, play “devil’s advocate” and pick it apart. Be merciless in looking for flaws, weaknesses and the other types of bias listed above. The same is true of seeing an article you disagree with. Look for strengths and solid evidence. Have an open mind to other possibilities. Sometimes when doing this, you’ll be able to see some aspects you would never have noticed otherwise.

So, here’s an exercise for you. Take a few minutes, and write down what your biases are when it comes to research. Which kinds of research, which methods, which topics do you particularly feel drawn to? Which ones seem silly or useless? For inspiration, you may want to read a personal commentary article written by Murray Enkin (2008) where he goes through his own personal biases. The things he feels a bias for or against may not be the same for you. I know I have a disagreement with one of his stated preferences. But taking the time to carefully think through your own personal biases, to clearly acknowledge the filters through which you view the research, can only help you as you try to step back and make a critical analysis of the research.

Reference: Enkin, M. W. (2008) Biases in evaluating research: Are they all bad? Birth: Issues in Perinatal Care. 35(1). 31-32.

Are consumers at the bottom of the evidence pyramid?

by Amy Romano, CNM (Originally published on Science and Sensibility for Lamaze International)

I have argued (here, here, and here) that strategies that involve increased participation by women and families in maternity care hold major potential for improving our rather dismal maternal and infant health outcomes.

A study reported in the current issue of The International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics highlights a major obstacle to implementing consumer-led health strategies: lack of comparative effectiveness research supporting their use.

The researchers analyzed all Cochrane Systematic Reviews addressing pregnancy, childbirth, newborns, or children up to age five. They categorized each systematic review by the level of consumer involvement versus health care system involvement the intervention required. They found that 62% of Pregnancy and Childbirth reviews, 94% of Neonatal reviews, and 71% of Children’s Health reviews addressed interventions that involved no consumer participation, such as cesarean surgical techniques, or intensive care treatments. Interventions that could be implemented within the community (such as nutritional programs) or that involved woman- or family-centered health care (e.g., labor support techniques, family-centered pediatric approaches) were far less likely to be studied. The researchers concluded:

The vast majority of research is performed on interventions that are solely in the realm of the providers. Maternal and child health research needs to be directed toward innovative interventions involving consumer participation, particularly those that can be implemented in middle- and low-income countries where the accessibility and quality of the health systems are poor.

This study highlights one of the major systemic biases we see in research. When so much of our research comes from academic medical institutions, what happens outside of those institutions – even if it has a far greater potential impact on the health and wellbeing of the institution’s beneficiaries – doesn’t get studied much. Nor do interventions that can happen within institutions (e.g. doula support in labor) but challenge the institutional hierarchy, which too often puts patients and families at the bottom.

One area in which we need far more research is perinatal education. Few studies evaluate strategies to educate, engage, and inform women. In addition, according to a review in the current issue of The Journal of Perinatal Education, even when researchers do evaluate perinatal information giving and education, they tend to evaluate approaches that accommodate medical concepts of efficiency (e.g. leaflets or DVDs) rather than meet women’s own stated needs and preferences (e.g. opportunities to discuss options in depth with their care providers or in small peer groups facilitated by knowledgeable professionals).

Pregnant women and new mothers are avid seekers of health information – online, in childbirth education classes, from health care providers, and in their communities. This natural impulse to take responsibility for their health, connect with other women, and engage in their care is currently being overwhelmed by the application of one-size-fits-all maternity care policies, including mandated cesarean surgery for women with risk factors or more subtle threats to autonomy like restricting mobility, denying access to food and drink, and excluding family members and other support people from care settings.

Empowered, informed, engaged consumers, individually or collectively, can be effective at overcoming these barriers to safe, effective care. In fact, it sometimes seems to be the only force driving meaningful change. Fifty years ago, the American Society for Psychoprophylaxis in Obstetrics (now Lamaze International) helped lead a charge to let fathers into the delivery room and challenged the harmful, demeaning childbirth routines that prevailed as standard practice. Just last month, CNN reported the happy outcome for a woman who avoided cesarean surgery she did not need or want. In advocating for her own care, she has inspired a generation of other women facing vaginal birth bans in their own communities.

Consumers are the least powerful contingent in the health care system, even though our knowledge, attitudes and actions could be the most important influence on our own health and safety. It’s time for major paradigm shifts in research, policy, and practice.

References:

Belizán, J. M., Belizán, M., Mazzoni, A., Cafferata, M. L., Wale, J., Jeffrey, C., et al. (2010). Maternal and child health research focusing on interventions that involve consumer participation. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics, 108(2), 154-155.

Nolan, M. L. (2009). Education and information giving in pregnancy: A review of qualitative research, The Journal of Perinatal Education, 18(4), 21-30.