Library of risk of bias tools

SQAC

Study design(s) targeted by the tool Qualitativequalitative-study Observational studies (mixed designs)observational-studies Randomized controlled trials (RCT)randomized-controlled-trial-rct
Additional details on designs Qualitative studies and quantitative studies of mixed designs including RCTs
Tool area Health
Link to the tool Get the QualSyst tool

Details

Website
Primary publication Kmet LM, Cook LS, Lee RC. Standard quality assessment criteria for evaluating primary research papers from a variety of fields. https://ualberta.scholaris.ca/items/b8ff8755-6efb-4fb2-941a-def0d418fd07
DOI https://doi.org/10.7939/R37M04F16
Guidance document
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 08/06/2026

Related tools and Publications

Previous versions

None

Updated versions

None

Related tools

None

Evaluations

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

Other publications

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

Key Criteria

Focuses on risk of bias, or makes a distinction between items that assess risk of bias and other aspects of study quality No
Offers a method to reach either a domain specific or overall assessment of risk of bias Yes
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