The article by Kendzor et al. (2014) aims at establishing the relationship of anxiety and depression to behavior management and glycemic control among Mexican Americans residing close to the U. S.-Mexico border. The study adopted a cross-sectional approach, and certain confounding covariates were included to supplement the findings (p. 176). The results showed that depression and anxiety had a negative influence on the behavioral management of diabetes due to higher BMI and waist circumference, in addition to lower activity levels (p. 176). There were positive correlations between anxiety and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), and between depression and fasting glucose. The second article by Khattab, Khader, Al-Khawaldeh & Ajlouni (2010) is related to that by Kendzor et al.; it adopts a cross-sectional approach and seeks to identify factors associated with poor glycemic control among Jordanian type 2 diabetes patients. The study showed “poor adherence to self-care management practices and prolonged diabetes” were associated with poor glycemic controls” (Khattab, Khader, Al-Khawaldeh & Ajlouni, 2010, p. 84).
I checked for the accuracy and reliability of the articles by comparing tools used and preselected variables, to the objectives of the study. The variables are commensurate with what the study seeks to achieve, and the indicators are well defined. According to Kendzor et al. (2014, p. 176), “BMI, waist circumference and physical activity” are ideal indicators of behavioral management, while “fasting glucose and glycated hemoglobin” indicate glycemic control. The tools used to assess the pre-selected variables were used correctly. For example, the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression (CES-D) questionnaire was used to assess depressive symptoms while the Zung Self-rating Anxiety Scale was used to assess anxiety (Kendzor et al., 2014, p. 176). Also, well-trained nurses used standardized Sphygmomanometers EN 1060 to measure blood pressure (Khattab, Khader, Al-Khawaldeh & Ajlouni, 2010, p. 85).
Besides, sampling affects the reliability and accuracy of results. The samples used in both articles were heterogeneous about socioeconomic status and demographic characteristics. Also, the sample sizes used were large enough; hence, the chances of reproducibility are also high. I checked the manner of recruiting the samples, and these are scientifically accepted. However, there is a flaw in the second article by Khattab, Khader, Al-Khawaldeh & Ajlouni (2010); the sampling interval was three, not ten. Therefore, systematic random sampling should have involved numbers one to three, and not one to ten. Also, the study by Kendzor et al. (2014) did not specify the type of diabetes, and this could affect the reliability of results.
To ensure that the articles I downloaded were peer-reviewed, I refined the results within selected databases to refereed or peer-reviewed journals. I used the MEDLINE database to access the article by Kendzor et al. (2014) and later used the Ulrich web to verify this. I used this web to check if the article by Khattab, Khader, Al-Khawaldeh & Ajlouni (2010) was peer-reviewed. I entered the name of the journal containing the downloaded article into the search bar at Ulrich web, and a list of entries with similar names to the journal showed up, but the particular journal I was searching for was top on the list. I narrowed the results to peer-reviewed/refereed and a modified version of the initial list appeared. The journal I was searching for an appeared top on the list.
Peer-reviewed articles are written by experts in the respective fields and have gone through a subsequent – evaluation to check for validity and reliability of results. The re-evaluation is conducted by a panel of experts in the specific field of the research article to check for article quality. This panel does not know the authors of the article; hence, no bias. These articles provide scientific evidence that is credible and highly valued in the world of research; it is irrefutable unless by a similar peer-reviewed article. A peer-reviewed article contains factual information that can be integrated into actual practice, and it is the basis for evidence-based health care.
References
Kendzor, D. E., Chen, M., Reininger, B. M., Businelle, M.S., Stewart, D. W., Fisher- Hoch, S. P., … McCormick, J. B. (2014). The association of depression and anxiety with glycemic control among Mexican Americans with diabetes living near the U. S.-Mexico border. BMC Public Health, 14, 176. Web.
Khattab, M., Khader, Y. S., Al-Khawaldeh, A., & Ajlouni, K. (2010). Factors associated with poor glycemic control among patients with Type 2 diabetes. Journal of Diabetes and Its Complications, 24, 84-89.