What is known in the scientific literature about the effects of unconscious bias training?)

Step 1. Background: What is the context of the CAT
question
The background should clearly state what the rationale for the CAT was and explain why the question
being asked is important. You may also indicate how it might relate to a wider understanding of a
general problem. Most CATs occur in the context of a specific organization. You should address
this context (e.g. sector, history, characteristics), help specify the rationale for the CAT, and explain
why the question is important for the organization, its members or its clients. In formulating the CAT
question, it is important to reflect on the potential stakeholders relevant to the general problem being
addressed in order to tap deeper insight into the issues involved (e.g., internal stakeholders such as
employees at different organizational levels or external stakeholders like clients or the community).
EXAMPLE 1
As a change consultant, I am expected to contribute to the realization of organizational
change. The outcomes of change can be both positive and negative, depending on
the type of change and the specific individual or group affected. Particularly when the
change has predominantly negative outcomes (e.g., lay-offs), I think it is of utmost
importance that the change process is fair and just. I am curious about the impact
procedural justice has on the way people perceive the outcomes of organizational
change.
EXAMPLE 2
Interviewing and who got what job how are the most talked about subject on campus.
Most students are getting ready to either get internships or full time jobs this summer.
It is widely believed that smiling during a job interview may increase your chances of
getting hired. This CAT was conducted to understand whether this claim is supported
by scientific evidence.
EXAMPLE 3
Hoping to imitate the innovative and flexible work environments found at start-ups
and companies like Google, my organization’s Executive Director is considering
implementing a bullpen style, open-plan layout. Currently, our office is divided into
individual workspaces with half walls. The Executive Director and Controller both have
private offices. With 15 employees working in a relatively small space, I worry that the
distractions created by a new, open layout may undermine our ability to focus and to
be productive at work. To draw a more informed conclusion on the effect that such a
layout might have at our office, I have gathered and assessed the quality of available
scientific evidence, outlined key findings, and summarized their practical implications.
CEBMa center for
Evidence-Based Management

Guideline for Critically Appraised Topics in Management and Organizations
6 
Step 2. Formulating the CAT question: What does the
CAT answer?
You can use a CAT to answer many different types of questions. For the purposes of this guideline,
we split these into ‘impact’ and ‘non-impact’ questions. This distinction is not ideal but reflects the
fact that the most common CAT question are about
• the effect an intervention, factor, or independent variable.
• the drivers (antecedents) of a certain outcome.
EXAMPLE 1
What is known in the scientific literature about the impact of goal setting on the task
performance of sales agents?
EXAMPLE 2
What is known in scientific literature about the impact of smiling during job interviews:
Do people who smile more have better chances of getting hired?
EXAMPLE 3
What is known in the scientific literature about the impact of flexible work schedules on
task performance?
EXAMPLE 4
What is known in the scientific literature about the effect of open-office layouts on
workers’ task performance?
CEBMa center for
Evidence-Based Management

Guideline for Critically Appraised Topics in Management and Organizations
7 
Non-impact questions
You can, however, use CATs to answer a range of other questions, which can be grouped as:
• Needs: What do people want or need?
• Attitude: What do people think or feel?
• Experience: What are peoples’ experiences?
• Prevalence: How many / often do people / organizations …?
• Procedure: How can we implement …?
• Process: How does it work?
• Exploration: Why does it work?
EXAMPLE
Main question
What is known in the scientific literature about the prevalence of burnout among
nurses in the US?
Supplementary questions
• What is burnout?
• What are the symptoms of burnout more widely and for nurses more specifically?
• Are there reliable and valid instruments available to measure burnout?
PICOC
A PICOC is a mnemonic used to assist reviewers to search for studies that are relevant to the
professional context described in Step 1 (Background). The PICOC acronym stands for:
Population Who?
Type of employee, subgroup,
people who may be affected by the
outcome
Intervention What or How? Management technique/method,
factor, independent variable
Comparison Compared to what? Alternative intervention, factor,
variable
Outcome What are you trying to accomplish /
improve / change?
Purpose, objective, dependent
variable
Context In what kind of organization /
circumstances?
Type of organization, sector, relevant
contextual factors
CEBMa center for
Evidence-Based Management

Guideline for Critically Appraised Topics in Management and Organizations
8 
Each element of the PICOC is vital in focusing the question and searching effectively for the most
relevant evidence.
EXAMPLE 1
P: physicians
I: 360-degree feedback
C: coaching
O: increased task performance
C: university hospital that has recently undergone significant organizational
restructuring
EXAMPLE 2
P: software developers
I: agile working
C: business as usual / status quo
O: reduced software development costs
C: large international IT firm in a highly competitive market
In addition, your PICOC will help you to determine whether the findings of a study will be generalizable
and applicable to your organizational context. More specifically, your PICOC helps answer the
question of whether your population, outcome of interest, and organizational characteristics are so
different from those in the study that its results may be difficult to apply. After all, some psychological
principles are generalizable to all human beings, but sometimes what works in one narrowly defined
setting might not work in another.