EPIB 703. Principles of Study Design.

Introduction to inferential objectives in epidemiologic research (description, prediction, causal inference), study designs for addressing those questions, and study design approaches to synthesizing research findings. The advantages, limitations, and assumptions of various designs. Common epidemiologic study designs, including trials, cohort studies, and various designs with oversampling of cases (collectively called case-control designs). Introduction to designs for other types of inference, including those for descriptive epidemiology and surveillance; impact evaluation; mathematical models; prediction algorithms and machine learning; and measurement studies.