Create a response to the following discussion What is the fundamental difference between the method

Create a response to the following discussion 

What is the fundamental difference between the method you have chosen (cohort method) and the randomized controlled trial?
            The fundamental difference between a cohort study and a randomized controlled trial is that a randomized controlled trial is in fact “random”, whereas a cohort study is intentional.  In a RCT, researchers assign participants to study groups to determine how an intervention may or may not affect them.  In a cohort study, participants who have been exposed to an intervention are followed to see how they progress. 
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the study method you chose (cohort study)?
            A cohort study can take a long time to complete and require a lot of labor, these factors can also make the study expensive (Curly Cupp, 2020).  That being said, a cohort study takes longer and requires more work because there is a lot that is being examined.  Curly Cupp (2020) lists strengths of the cohort study that include: studying multiple outcomes, calculating relative risk and incidence rates, controlling exposure, and identifying confounding variables. A cohort study can be either prospective or retrospective (Curly Cupp, 2020).  According to Bangdiwala (2019), it is important in a   cohort study that is intended to be prospective, that the participants have not yet met the anticipated end.   
What are the characteristics of a correlational study?
            Correlational studies are used to identify trends for populations, not individuals (Curly Cupp, 2020).  Correlational studies can only identify relationships between an event and an exposure, there can not be any causation assigned.  In layman’s terms, a correlational study can compare what happens to the same group (population) at two or more different times, or it can compare what happens to two or more different groups at the same time. 
Where does the method you chose (cohort study) fall on the research pyramid? What does where it is on the research pyramid mean?
            Cohort studies are level 4 on the evidence pyramid (Curly Cupp, 2020).  This placement on the evidence pyramid means that a cohort study provides the ability to determine prognosis, but not causation or assessment.  Level 4 is the direct middle of the evidence pyramid.  Cohort studies provide stronger evidence than expert opinion, single descriptive or qualitative studies, and systematic reviews of descriptive and qualitative studies (Curly Cupp, 2020).  Cohort studies provide weaker evidence than non-randomized controlled trials, one or more randomized controlled trials, and systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials (Curly Cupp, 2020). 
           
Reference
Bangdiwala, S.  (2019).  Basic epidemiology research designs III: cohort prospective design.  International Journal of Injury Control and Safety Promotion, 26(3), 322-325.
Curly Cupp, L. A. (2020). Population-based nursing: Concepts and competencies for advanced practice. (3rd ed.). Springer Publishing Company.