Developing multicomponent interventions using fractional factorial designs
Multicomponent interventions composed of behavioral, delivery, or implementation factors in addition to medications are becoming increasingly common in health sciences. A natural experimental approach to developing and refining such multicomponent interventions is to start with a large number of potential components and screen out the least active ones. Factorial designs can be used efficiently in this endeavor. We address common criticisms and misconceptions regarding the use of factorial designs in these screening studies. We also provide an operationalization of screening studies. As an example, we consider the use of a screening study in the development of a multicomponent smoking cessation intervention. Simulation results are provided to support the discussions.
This article is the second of two parts. The first one was published in the issue no 2 of this same journal. The preseni study uses the dependency index and the youth ratio to describe the aging process both at regional and municipal levels. Our data show a yet moderate aging process in (he region. with an uneven distribution throughout the different municipalities.