Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/72195
THE METHODS SECTION Of all the sections of a research article (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion), the Methods section is the most critically important to the validity of the study's outcome. In the previous column, we examined the null hypothesis—a technique used by researchers to determine what the evidence reveals about their own hypothesis, or research question. In the studies we're most interested in, the null hypothesis often states something to the effect that there is no difference in positive outcome between the treatment group who received massage and the control group who did not receive massage. If the evidence provides a reason to do so, then researchers reject the null hypothesis: they determine that it is indeed false to say that there is no difference between the two groups. That means we have a certain degree of confidence in provisionally and contingently accepting the research hypothesis that massage did make a difference—that is, in accepting it until and unless further evidence indicates that the question needs to be revisited. In this column, we'll talk more about what that means for us in reading the massage research literature, and we'll take some examples from sports massage literature to illustrate the main points. THE METHODS SECTION The Methods section (the M in the IMRaD mnemonic for the structure of a research article) is where the researchers lay out for the reader how they plan to test the research question they introduced in the Introduction section. There, you'll find not only the description of the massage treatment being tested, but also a section of how data will be collected and measured and what statistical and other tests will be used to evaluate the data. Of all the sections of a research article (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion), the Methods section is the most critically important to the validity of the study's outcome. Valid results can always be reinterpreted in light of further knowledge; discussions of the study's meaning for practice can always be expanded upon later—but if the study itself is flawed, then the results that come out of those flawed methods will themselves be less trustworthy. Since trust in the groundwork laid by the researchers who went before is crucial to any scientific endeavor, results of a study have to be as strong as possible to support the studies they in turn will lead to, and the practitioners who will rely on those results. The methods used are crucial to ensuring that the study results are as valid as possible. What this means in practical terms is that the researchers will discuss what steps massagetherapy.com—for you and your clients 137