Seeing through the double blind

Lewis Killin, Sergio Della Sala

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle

Abstract / Description of output

Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are an inescapable means of figuring out whether an intervention is efficacious or not. The main tenet behind RCTs is that they should be double-blind, meaning that neither the participants nor the experimenters know who is assuming the real compound and who the placebo. This is certainly the case for drugs supposed to alleviate the symptoms of dementia. These drugs stand on years of development, research, phases of trials, assessment and analysis. The final phase of this research is based on the outcome of cognitive tests. If a treatment proves effective, it finds a place on the shelves. But how can even the ‘gold standard’ of research become tainted, and what role does psychology have to play?
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)288-291
JournalThe Psychologist
Volume28
Issue number4
Publication statusPublished - Apr 2015

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Seeing through the double blind'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this