Validation of an index of the quality of review articles

The objective of this study was to assess the validity of an index of the scientific quality of research overviews, the Overview Quality Assessment Questionnaire (OQAQ). Thirty-six published review articles were assessed by 9 judges using the OQAQ. Authors reports of what they had done were compared to OQAQ ratings. The sensibility of the OQAQ was assessed using a 13 item questionnaire. Seven a priori hypotheses were used to assess construct validity. The review articles were drawn from three sampling frames: articles highly rated by criteria external to the study, meta-analyses, and a broad spectrum of medical journals. Three categories of judges were used to assess the articles: research assistants, clinicians with research training and experts in research methodology, with 3 judges in each category. The sensibility of the index was assessed by 15 randomly selected faculty members of the Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at McMaster. Authors' reports of their methods related closely to ratings from corresponding OQAQ items: for each criterion, the mean score was significantly higher for articles for which the authors responses indicated that they had used more rigorous methods. For 10 of the 13 questions used to assess sensibility the mean rating was 5 or greater, indicating general satisfaction with the instrument. The primary shortcoming noted was the need for judgement in applying the index. Six of the 7 hypotheses used to test construct validity held true. The OQAQ is a valid measure of the quality of research overviews.