Library of risk of bias tools

MASTER (MethodologicAl STandards for Epidemiological Research)

Study design(s) targeted by the tool
Additional details on designs Unified framework for assessing methodological quality across analytic study designs
Tool area Health
Link to the tool Get the MASTER tool

Details

Website
Primary publication Stone J, Glass K, Clark J, et al. The MethodologicAl STandards for Epidemiological Research (MASTER) scale demonstrated a unified framework for bias assessment. J Clin Epidemiol. 2021;134:52-64. doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2021.01.012.
DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2021.01.012
Guidance document Get MASTER guidance in Appendix A
Training

None known – please contact us if you are aware of any training that should be listed here.

Language English
Translations

None known – please contact us if you are aware of any translations that should be listed here.

Record last updated 20/05/2025

Related tools and Publications

Previous versions

None

Updated versions

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Related tools

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Evaluations

None known – please contact us if you are aware of any evaluations that should be listed here.

Other publications

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Key Criteria

Focuses on risk of bias, or makes a distinction between items that assess risk of bias and other aspects of study quality Yes
Offers a method to reach either a domain specific or overall assessment of risk of bias No
Tool developed for use across topic areas (i.e. not developed for specific clinical area such as physiotherapy or dentistry) Yes
Avoids recommending use of summary numerical quality scores No