Analysis of South Australian Four-Year-Old Aboriginal Children by Spurrier - Article Example

Obesity Name Institution Reviewed Article: Spurrier et al., 2012. South Australian four-year-old Aboriginal children: residence and socioeconomic status influence weight. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 36, 285-90. Research Question and Design In the recent years, there has been an increase in obesity among the Australian children. By the 1970s, there was a steady rate of obesity among the Australian children. However, the rate of obesity has increased drastically from the 1970s, and by the year 2007 the rate of obesity was at 23 %. This paper is a critical analysis of the article ‘South Australian four-year-old Aboriginal children: residence and socioeconomic status influence weight’ by Spurrier et al. The main research question in the article is to determine the rate of obesity in Aboriginal children in Australia. This is due to the fact that most researches have concentrated in addressing the issue of obesity among the Australian children but have not focused on the rate of obesity among the aboriginal groups. This is because, the socioeconomic status of this group is different from the non-aboriginal groups. In fact, the authors are trying to establish the relationship between overweight and socioeconomic status among the aboriginal children in Australia. In this article, there is no clear hypothesis that have been stated by the author. The purpose of the study should be clearly stated, and its hypothesis follow. However, the author has included an introduction and a thesis statement which describes the purpose and what the study aims to achieve. The study aims to establish the prevalence of underweight, healthy weight, overweight and obesity among the study groups. In addition, the study aims at determining the differences in weight of the study group children in different settings such as rural and urban settings. Therefore, from the introduction of the article, the author wishes to imply different hypotheses. Null Hypotheses: there is no relationship between residence and socioeconomic status with weight of the aboriginal children in Australia. Alternative Hypothesis: the residence and socioeconomic status of the aboriginal children influences their weight The research question of any study guides the hypothesis and the research. Formulating a clear and well structure hypothesis is essential in the type of study design employed in the research. This is because, the study design is trying to establish the relevance of the research question and either prove or disapprove the hypothesis of the study. Failure to develop a clear and strong hypothesis may lead to poor research which will make it difficult for the research to be accepted. In addition, a clear hypothesis is essential so that the researchers may be able to know exactly what they are trying to establish. In addressing a research gap, it is of concern to determine the gap in the literature and develop the research question and hypothesis in a manner that its addresses the research gap. In the experimental study design, the authors used observation studies using the cross sectional study design by analysing anthropometric data of different children from different settings. This study design was crucial in obtain subsets from different settings in order to determine the prevalence of obesity in the study areas. In this study design, it is not possible to determine whether it is longitudinal study or experimental. However, the authors were keen in choosing the descriptive approach which was able to determine some prevalence risk in the subsets that were representing the entire population of the aboriginal children. The study involved aboriginal children who were four years old and n=11, 859. This population size was is enough to validate the results of the research. Despite the fact that the research employed a cross sectional study design, the initial data from the participants were obtained from longitudinal assessment of a certain weight variables from the participating schools. This creates a potential confounding in the study design since some of the data obtained from the original assessment was not available for analysis and differentiation. This means that, in choosing a study design, researchers should be careful in order to choose the best study design which has minimal errors. In any research study, there are some factors that may arise which are not expected. These secondary factors are solved in order to prevent them from interfering with the primary aim of the study. Therefore, there is the need to develop a secondary hypothesis which will solve the emerging issues or issues that are related to the study and will enhance the achievement of the objectives of the study. In this article, the secondary hypothesis can be implied to be factors that aim to determine the differences in with among the children of different socioeconomically status in the study groups. This is helpful in understanding the relationship between overweight and socioeconomic status among the aboriginal children. The Secondary Hypothesis: There is a difference in weight among the Aboriginal children in rural and urban settings. This is useful in establishing whether there is a difference in weight among g the children from urban centres and these from the rural areas. Although the main focus of the study was to establish the prevalence of obesity in aboriginal children, understanding the distribution of obesity in different settings is also important. Therefore, secondary hypothesis helps in solving issues that may interfere with the primary hypothesis. Understanding the differences in weight for the children in different settings will help to understand the prevalence of the condition in different settings among the aboriginal group. Statistical Review The research involved different types of variables which are either dependent of independent. The dependent variables in the study include weight and height. This is because the weight of an individual and heath has a relationship. For the purpose of this article, the height of all the children in the study was a measure in metres. The measurements were taken to the nearest 0.01m in order to minimize errors. In measuring the weight the scale of measurement that was used was kilograms. The children’s weight was taken to the nearest 0.01 kilogram. The variables were significant in answering the hypothesis in the study. Since the hypothesis seek to establish the relationship between socioeconomic status of children and their weight, there was the need to determine the weight and height of children from different settings. The independent variables are those variables that are not directly associated to the hypothesis but helps in understanding or evaluating the hypothesis. In this study, date of birth and post code only helped in the determination of location or setting of the children. This was crucial in establishing the differences in weigh among different people in different settings such as rural or urban areas. The best statistical test the authors should have chosen was the student t-test. This is because, the student t-test compares the differences in weight as well as the mean differences in height of the participants. In addition, this test does not have a lot of assumptions hence making it easier to evaluate the hypothesis. statistical tests that involve a lot of assumptions may not be the best test since the validation of the results will be difficult. This is because in all the data presentation, the assumptions should be tested with the sample population so that they do not have a negative impact in the research study. In this article, the authors used the Chi-square test to assess gender differences in rural and urban areas while the analysis of variance was used to measure the socioeconomic status of the aboriginal children. These tests are based on some assumptions which should be testes before the researchers can use them. However, in this article there is no clear indication as to whether the author’s assumptions of the tests were tested or not. However, from the data presented in the article, it is clear that the authors did not violate the assumption in the statistical tests despite the fact that they did not show how they employed the tests in their study. The authors were able to present the data in a manner that they offer brief explanations of the tests in the tables. This makes it possible for one to interpret the assumptions of the results and data presents. Additionally, it is possible to tell from the data if the assumptions of the test employed in the study is violated or not. This is through the variations and consistence of the data. The data in the article is consistent with the tests in cases where the test assumptions are not violated. This means that, although the authors did not indicate whether they testes the assumptions of the tests or not, it is evident from the data presented that they were aware of the assumptions of the tests. Moreover, the results were presented in a manner that its answers the questions in the hypothesis. Since the hypothesis were establishing the relationship between socioeconomic status and weight, the authors described the results and presented it in a different table that explains and answer the hypothesis. The age distribution of weight in different places and different gender was described in tables of different categories. Therefore, the authors adequately answered the hypotheses of the article through the results. The authors also presented the results of various categories such as those who are underweight, normal weight, overweight and obese. This was useful in establishing the prevalence of the obese children among the aboriginals and the distribution of obesity among g the aboriginals. This also makes the results trustworthy and easily acceptable in any setting for application. The presentation of data was up to standards since the authors included tables that have results of the various categories. These tables are well explained. For example, each table contains a heading which explains the contents of the table. This information is consistent with the hypothesis thus each tables contain information that answers the hypothesis in a different way. In addition, each table has data which is self-explanatory. From the table alone, one is able to understand the results of the article and determine whether the hypothesis is accepted or rejected. The tables indicate the test employs inn the study and the variables that were tested. In the tables, the authors included the values of the tests and the values of the variables and their implications. This is useful since the tables are able to offer a stand-alone explanation of the study. Moreover, the authors of the research study include a brief explanation of the tables in the results discussion. This is important in interpretation of the results and comparing the results in the table with the theoretical concepts that was included in the research. In addition, the authors discuss the values of the tables and the meaning or their implication in the field. Recommendations The research study concluded that the aboriginal children in Australia are having a high rate of being overweight as compared to their non-aboriginal counterparts at the age of four years old. Additionally, the aboriginal children were found to have higher BMIs scores due to their socioeconomic status as compared to the non-aboriginal children. The conclusion of this research was drawn from a well conducted research which was based on scientific based statistical approaches. Since the research study is scientific based and the results were based on a large sample, the results are valid, and no further validation is required in order to incorporate the results into practice. Therefore, the results of this article can be used to change the management practice of obesity children in a hospital setting. Moreover, the statistical presentation of the results meet the standard hence the results are trustworthy and can be adopted to implement changes in an institution where they can be applied. However, need to change the clinical practice in a hospital settings depends on the willingness of the administration to adopt new changes. In adopting the results of the article and its implication, the department should change its policy and practice in terms of managing obese children among the aboriginal communities. The new practices that should be introduced should be based on the fact that there is an increased rate of obesity among the aboriginal children hence new programs should be readily accessible to these children from aboriginal communities (Spurrier et al., 2012). Reference Spurrier, N., Volkmer, R., Abdallah, C., and Chong, A. (2012). South Australian four-year-old Aboriginal children: residence and socioeconomic status influence weight. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 36, 285-90. Read More