Being reliable: Issues in determining the reliability and making sense of observations of adults with congenital deafblindness?

Abstract

Background Most research into interactions with people who are congenitally deafblind involves observational data. In order for practitioners and researchers to have confidence in the findings of observational studies, researchers need to demonstrate that the processes employed are replicable and trustworthy. This paper draws on data from an observational study of adults with congenital deafblindness to illustrate issues in determining inter-rater reliability, and interpreting observational data. Method Data from 34 10-min observations of adults with congenital deafblindness and their interactions with support staff were assessed for inter-rater reliability using percentage agreement calcula..