U.S. Practices of Paying Research Participants, Article Critique Example

Purpose

The purpose of the research is to document the practice of researchers in the US paying people to participate in medical or some such related research.
Main Points or Supporting Evidence

Nearly 500 separate research methods were investigated. Of them, nearly 2/3 included patients as participants. About ¼ included healthy participants and more than 1/8 included both.
Credibility of the Author and Source

The authors were employees of the National Institutes of Health, Emmes Corporation, Harvard Medical School, and Yale Law School. The periodical Contemporary Clinical Trials is a peer-reviewed professional journal.
Author’s Conclusion

The author could not account for variation in pay rates between similar studies.
Limitations of the Paper

The paper did not include demographic data on participants. It could only confirm that payments were usually not very much.
Critical analysis

Where or how does the article fit into the literature?

This article is noteworthy because it sought to quantify the practice of paying research participants in the US. It is a good starting point for future research even though some important questions went unaddressed.

What is the contribution to the literature?

The contribution of this article to the literature may best be described as a pilot study – a jumping off point to deeper stuffy.

How you may use it in the future?

I will be aware of two main points.

1. People who get paid to participate in research do not usually get paid too well.
2. In the event that I conduct some such research, I will be aware that the range of payment could exceed $2000 per person.