title: What is evidence?
abstract: The evidence-based practice movement rests on the premise that the scientific evidence regarding treatment should be used judiciously to inform treatment decisions. This article focuses on the most fundamental question regarding evidence-based practice: What is evidence? To address this question, the authors first review several of the definitions, criteria, and strategies that have been used to define scientific evidence. Second, a number of critical issues that have been raised regarding the nature of treatment evidence are discussed. Finally, suggestions for further consideration in the process of synthesizing evidence for clinicians are offered.
authors.affiliation: New Hampshire-Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center, Dartmouth Medical School, 2 Whipple Place, Suite 202, Lebanon, NH 03766, USA. robert.e.drake@dartmouth.edu
authors.forename: Robert E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Drake
authors.forename: Eric A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Latimer
authors.forename: H Stephen
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Leff
authors.forename: Gregory J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: McHugo
authors.forename: Barbara J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Burns
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000296:Adolescent Psychiatry; D002648:Child; D002665:Child Psychiatry; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012107:Research Design; D016896:Treatment Outcome