Introduction
Research Questions
- Which studies are eligible for review by the Clearinghouse?
- What are common reasons that studies are not eligible for review?
The Prevention Services Clearinghouse conducts objective, independent, and transparent reviews of research on programs and services intended to provide enhanced support to children and families and prevent foster care placements. This Fact Sheet overviews how the Clearinghouse determines whether a study of a particular program or service is eligible for review.
Purpose
This Fact Sheet describes how the Clearinghouse determines whether a study of a particular program or service is eligible for review and identifies common reasons that studies are not eligible for review.
Citation
Jackson, C., Wilson, S. J., & Glenn, M. (2022). How Does the Prevention Services Clearinghouse Determine Which Studies Are Reviewed?, OPRE Report 2022-104, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Glossary
- Intervention Condition:
- The intervention condition is the program or service relevant to the work of the Prevention Services Clearinghouse that is intended to provide enhanced support to children and families and prevent foster care placements. Studies may have more than one intervention condition.
- Minimal Intervention Comparison Condition:
- Minimal intervention conditions are those in which participants are offered minimal or limited services. These individuals may receive handouts, referrals to available services, or similar nominal interventions.
- No Intervention Comparison Condition:
- No intervention comparison conditions are those in which the participants are offered no services. Participants may be placed on a waiting list for future services or be offered no services as part of the study.
- Quasi-Experimental Design (QED):
- A study in which units are assigned to intervention and control conditions via a non-random process.
- Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT):
- A study in which units are assigned to intervention and control conditions via a random process (e.g., a lottery).
- Study:
- One research investigation of a defined subject sample, and the interventions, measures, and statistical analyses applied to that sample. Sometimes study results are reported in more than one document, or a single document reports results from separate studies.
- Treatment as Usual Comparison Condition:
- Treatment as usual comparison conditions are those in which the participants are offered or are free to seek out the usual or typical services available for the population in the study.