Adolescent obesity is a serious and growing problem in the U

Adolescent obesity is a serious and growing problem in the United States. You have a large grant to conduct study to determine whether participation in a peer group involved in a planned weight reduction program that includes nutrition education, weight monitoring and regular exercise would be an effective way to reduce obesity among adolescents. The grant provides funding for three years. You have the collaboration of Methodist Hospital for this study. Methodist runs a clinic for obese adolescents. The patients in the clinic are referred to the clinic when obesity is diagnosed as putting the youth at immediate risk of serious health problems (e.g., diabetes, cardio-vascular illness, etc.). The youth currently receive nutrition education and staff at the clinic work individually with youth to try to improve diet and increase exercise. The existing program runs for six weeks and participation is voluntary, based on permission of the youth’s parents. Design a study (hint: this would probably be a quasi-experiment) to determine which approach works best. What are a few of the likely threats to internal validity? (There is no “correct” answer to this---only “better” ways to design it). Type your answer in the space below.

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