ZACH / Free learning tool 04

Does this study actually
support the claim?

Seven questions to bring a research headline back to the people, methods and results behind it. Read a paper alongside the tool—or start with a teaching example.

Start with your own claim ↓

Your entries stay in this page. No account is needed. The tool does not fetch or automatically assess a paper. Download your notes before leaving; entries are not saved.

The claim What is being promised?
The study What was actually tested?
The conclusion What can be said carefully?

Step 1 of 7 · The claim

Start with the exact claim.

A paper can support a narrow conclusion while a headline makes a much larger promise. Write down the promise before reading the results.

Why there is no score.

A sum of ticks can hide a decisive weakness. A study may be carefully conducted and still answer a different question. This worksheet makes the reasoning visible, with room for “I do not know”.

It is an original ZACH learning aid, not a substitute for formal risk-of-bias assessment or a systematic review. GRADE evaluates certainty across a body of evidence for a particular outcome; this worksheet does not assign a GRADE rating.

Go to the methods.

The questions draw on established principles of transparent reporting and evidence interpretation. These sources have different purposes; none endorses this tool.

Reporting checklists improve transparency; they are not automatic study-quality scores. Reviewed 4 October 2026.