Reporting guidelines

Aim

To report your study (results) correctly according to international guidelines.

Requirements

International standards, guidelines or statements should be followed when reporting your study (results) in a scientific article.

Responsibilities
  • Executing researcher: To check if international reporting standards, guidelines or statements exist for your type of study and use them when reporting your study (results) in a scientific article.
  • Project leaders: To ensure that international standards, guidelines or statements are followed when reporting study results.
  • Research assistant: N.a.
How to

When you are going to report your study (results) in an article to submit to an international scientific journal, it is important to follow international guidelines. Below you find standards, guidelines, checklists, etc. for most common study types, among others:  RCTs, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, diagnostic studies, observational studies, qualitative research, quasi-experimental designs and economic evaluations. Also check if the scientific journal where you intend to publish your research demands the use of international reporting guidelines. The guidelines are 1) based on study type or 2) based on research field in alphabetic order.

  1. Based on study type

CONSORT

COREQ

  • Name: Consolidated criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research
  • Study type: Qualitative research (interviews and focus groups)
  • Link: Checklist and additional information.

GRISP

CARE

MOOSE

  • Name: Guidelines for Meta-Analyses and Systematic Reviews of Observational Studies
  • Study type: Meta-analyses of observational studies
  • Link: Checklist

PRISMA

  • Name: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses
  • Study type: Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (including extensions for example for developing the review protocol)
  • Link: http://www.prisma-statement.org/ 

QUOROM

  • Name: QUality Of Reporting Of Meta-analyses
  • Study type: Meta-analyses of RCT’s
  • Link: Checklist and additional information
  • Extra: Consist of a checklist and flow diagram.

STARD

STROBE

  • Name: Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology
  • Study type: Observational study (cohort, case-control, cross-sectional study designs)
  • Link: http://www.strobe-statement.org/ 

TREND

  • Name: Transparent Reporting of Evaluations with Nonrandomized Designs
  • Study type: Evaluation studies that use nonrandomized designs
  • Link: Checklist and additional information.

CHEERS

  • Name: Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards
  • Study type: Economic evaluations of health interventions
  • Link: website CHEERS, additional information, checklist check ISPOR - CHEERS
  • specific types of economic evaluations check http://www.equator-network.org 
  1. Based on research field

APA

  • Name of organisation: American Psychological Association
  • Research field: Psychology
  • Link: Manual (not free of charge) and additional information
  • Extra: The manual provides 1) standards for all journal articles, 2) more specific standards for reports of studies with experimental manipulations or evaluations of interventions using research designs involving random or non-random assignment and 3) standards for articles reporting meta-analyses.
  • The Journal Article Reporting Standards for quantitative research (JARS-Quant) reports guidelines for manuscripts that report primary quantitative research, experimental designs, non-experimental designs, special designs, analytic methods, and meta-analyses.

AERA

 

For more information please also see: The EQUATOR Network 

Please also check for yourself if there are any updates, extensions, etc. published.