Google

A classic example of an interrupted time-series design is a study analyzing a factory's reduction of work shifts from 10 hours to 8 hours. Researchers took a time series of weekly worker productivity measurements over an extended period. The change in shift length served as the experimental 'interruption'. Because productivity increased rapidly following the shift reduction and remained consistently elevated for many months afterward, the researchers could confidently conclude that the shortened shifts were the direct cause of the increased productivity.

Example of an Interrupted Time-Series Design: Factory Shift Reduction

An example of an interrupted time-series design with nonequivalent groups involves evaluating the impact of reducing a factory's work shifts from $$10$$ to $$8$$ hours. Researchers might track the weekly productivity of the factory making the change (the treatment group) for a year before and after the reduction. To improve the study's validity, they could also track the productivity of a similar factory that maintains its original schedule (the nonequivalent control group). If the treatment factory shows a rapid and sustained increase in productivity following the shift change while the control factory's productivity remains stable, it provides compelling evidence that the shortened shifts caused the improvement.

Example of an Interrupted Time-Series Design with Nonequivalent Groups: Factory Shift Reduction

In a classic interrupted time-series study, researchers found that weekly worker productivity increased and remained consistently elevated after a factory reduced its work shifts from 10 hours to ____ hours.

Learn Before

Related