What are the most effective ways to identify strengths and weaknesses in scientific studies?

The research question must be concise, measurable, and specific in order to provide the backbone to a research study. It should be clear and to the point, addressing an hypothesis on the matter, and being specific on what factors are involved in the study. The research question needs to be reliable as the methodology, design, result, and analysis will heavily rely on the question as it is the basis of the entire study. Without having a solid question, the information gathered from the study would become irrelevant as it may not pertain to the topic at hand and may only address some of the relevant questions asked.

Examine the research topic closely for clarity and relevance, read the literature carefully and objectively, assess the techniques and data for appropriateness, sample size, and bias, study the findings and discussion for significance, validity, and generalizability, and compare the results to those of other studies. Be discerning and, if necessary, seek the advice of specialists.

Research question is a product of critical thinking aimed at resolving a problem. It should be able to address a problem imminently or in the future. It may give a kind of foundation for other researchers to build on.

- Define your problem statement - Objective and goals of the research - Consider how to represent data collected from the study - Discussion of outcomes

To enhance the robustness of the research question, it's imperative to delve into its alignment with existing literature, ensuring it not only fills a gap in knowledge but also contributes to the advancement of the field. Additionally, emphasizing the feasibility of testing and measuring the question with well-suited methodologies adds a practical dimension, fostering methodological rigor in the study design

One thing I have found helpful is to write an outline of relevant questions and subheadings. That keeps the literature review crisp yet understandable.

The literature review should be the background and justification for the experiment being conducted. The previous studies should be the foundation for the research question and the intent is for the experiment to build, expand or contradict the results from the literature review.

In a scientific study with a successful infrastructure, it is important to understand the extent to which the problem solution or approach put forward by literature review has been addressed before and to fill the gap in the literature. I think that the most recent studies are very important rather than constantly referenced publications when trying to put a scientific study. Because this is a journey together from the past to future.

Read the paper several times, make coherent notes, then check the references and examine the abstracts of their citations. Pick out the more important papers and read them. Do they fit in with the present paper's story. Create a points list containing pluses & minuses. Create your own opinion.

It preempts the outcome of a research, whether the research would be worthwhile or not most times. Because a good literature review gives in-depth knowledge of the researcher and the expectations of subsequent chapters.

Pour une meilleure étude scientifique, il est évident de mettre en place des meilleurs pratiques fiables et justifiables, afin d'obtenir des données incontestables. Pour ce faire, il convient de mettre en place des méthodes avec des procédures claires et confirmées. Les méthodes doivent être donc accompagnées des matériaux de référence( déjà bien définis), qui permettront de bien illustrer les résultats obtenus. Toutes la qualité des résultats se joue avec les références analytiques. Il est aussi fondamentale de mettre en place des cartes de contrôle et bien d'autres moyens de contrôle de la qualité des résultats.

You should assess whether the methods are appropriate for the research question. You should examine the results to see if they are accurate, and consistent, or analyzed and visualized with suitable techniques and tools.

A study is a record for current and future scientists to rely on in order to draw conclusions about said topics or related subjects. As such, methods should be as detailed as possible in order to reduce inconsistencies in data between researchers. Methods should detail all possible factors that may influence the outcome, including the the type of equipment (model and make), environmental conditions, test subjects and their background, other components and materials used, etc. This allows anyone who refers to the study to understand if they were to replicate the study with everything being consistent, the data should resemble closely to the original. If not, there could be signs of data tampering or missing information.

Es necesario repetir el método utilizado varias veces para comprobar si los datos que obtenemos son similares. Si la utilización de dicho método cada vez nos ofrece datos muy diferentes entre sí, lo mejor es cambiar de método a uno más consistente. Siempre hay varios caminos para el mismo destino.

This emphasizes the crucial role of robust methods and reliable data in scientific research. Ensuring appropriateness, clarity, and accuracy not only strengthens the study's credibility but also facilitates future replication and advances in knowledge.

For me here is where is shown the ability of the author to understand and explain what is going on in their experiments. A good scientist, more than execute good experiments, is who plans the experimental and understands the outputs well.

For me, analyzing the results and discussion section always help me to find out the strengths and weaknesses of a scientific research. Because these two are the most important sections and where author has most focus while writing a scientific paper. He/she uses his/her full energy in these section to address and compare their results with already published researches. So by targeting these sections one can easily find strength or weakness of a study.

Resultados y discusión deben ir de la mano. No pueden hablar de cosas diferentes. Si los resultados no son los esperados o no se obtienen, se discute sobre lo que se ha obtenido en el estudio. Aunque un estudio no haya llegado a buen puerto, dar a conocer el trabajo realizado le será muy útil a otros investigadores, pues quizás otros encuentren el problema o una vía alternativa.

Analyze the results and conclusions driven from them. Also, check whether statistical analysis that was used is correct and whether it makes any sense. Wrong statistics will lead to wrong conclusions.

This section provides the reportage, analysis and interpretation of the findings of the research. A good analysis and discussion of the results must have these qualities ie. Coherent, Comprehensive or Objective. A coherent discussion is logically structured. It reflects a clear and understanding progression of thoughts leading to a unified and sensible narrative. A comprehensive discussion is thorough in coverage. It includes a broad and detailed exploration of the subject. An objective discussion is impartial and based on factual evidence and data analysis. It avoid personal opinions or emotional language. These qualities contribute to the overall quality and reliability of research findings and discussions.

In evaluating the conclusion and abstract, it's crucial to assess their alignment with the study's results and discussion. The conclusion should seamlessly reflect the outcomes and address the research question, ensuring a harmonious connection with the preceding sections. It's paramount that the key contributions and takeaways are effectively highlighted. Similarly, the abstract serves as a succinct representation of the study, demanding clarity and accuracy. It should encapsulate the essence and significance of the research, providing a concise overview. A meticulous evaluation is warranted to ensure that the abstract not only informs but also entices the reader to delve deeper into the study.

Aunque aquí aparece al final de este proceso, lo ideal es realizar este paso al principio, pues podemos apoyarnos en estudios similares ya realizados para utilizarlos como punto de partida para el nuestro. Este paso también nos permitirá conocer si el estudio que hemos realizado o queremos realizar, ya ha sido realizado con anterioridad y, por tanto, quizás no tenga sentido repetirlo.

Cross examination is easily the best way to make sure a study is legitimate and has the proper steps and protocols or tests in place. You will still need to research knowledge from academic resources, tech notes, application notes, webinars etc, and use this to go along with the cross examination to ensure legitimacy of results and processes.

Despite some literature being published, not all studies are the best representation of how the world works. Over time, techniques can change, understanding how minor differences can affect the results, and that inconsistencies can drive misconceptions. To understand the whole picture whether or not a certain area has significant contributions and understanding of the subject, we must gather existing data and compare what they did. There are always missing pieces where some phenomena cannot be fully explained, and where some studies can improve their methods and design to provide better insight in replicating the results as well as having accurate information.

La qualité du journal où la publication est publiée. Le facteur d'impact du journal scientifique est très important pour vérifier la qualité de la recherche scientifique.

When looking into a specific area of study, consider the following: 1. how many authors have published articles on the specified subject? 2. are there many recurring or highly referenced articles from certain authors among the studies? 3. look at the time of publications, are they within the context of your area of interest? 4. are these studies accurate and useful for your purposes? Some areas can have an overabundance of information which can mislead and create further misunderstanding of the subject matter, other areas are underrepresented and will not have sufficient evidence and data to support a claim. Be aware that there are limitations and flaws that exist in the literature, and to responsibly address these shortcomings as needed.

View from different perspectives of related but distinct fields, can point out holes in the study or broaden the the potential application

A mon avis, l'échantillonnage et le choix des matériaux et outils scientifiques pour réaliser l'étude, est très important pour avoir des résultats qui mènent à des interprétations et à des conclusions, qui nous aident à bien répondre à des questions liées à un sujet bien déterminé,ou encore pour détecter les causes d'un problème quelquonque.