A cancer researcher finds that more people drop out of his study if they are assigned to a condition with severe side effects. Data collection is now complete. What can he do to address the extent to which attrition affected his results?
A) Determine whether the people who completed the study differ from those who did not on characteristics relevant to the study.
B) Follow up with the people who dropped out to encourage them to participate in a separate study.
C) Analyze only the data collected after the attrition occurred.
D) do any of the above

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Determining whether the people who completed the study differ from those who did not on characteristics relevant to the study can help the researcher understand the extent to which attrition may have biased the results. This approach allows for an assessment of whether the attrition was systematic (related to certain characteristics) or random, which can significantly impact the interpretation of the study's findings.

A Cancer Researcher Finds That More People Drop Out of His