Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26514644›Full record

ReviewSystematic reviews2015

Intervention Component Analysis (ICA): a pragmatic approach for identifying the critical features of complex interventions.

Katy Sutcliffe, James Thomas, Gillian Stokes, Kate Hinds, Mukdarut Bangpan

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Systematic reviews, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 63 papers, 23 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
63citing papers in PubMed, 23 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

63 citing papers in PubMed, 23 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Interventions for preventing falls in older people in care facilities.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2025
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  5. School-based healthy eating interventions for adolescents aged 10-19 years: an umbrella review.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2024
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  12. A systematic review and narrative synthesis of physical activity referral schemes' components.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2023
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3 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Katy SutcliffeEPPI-Centre, Social Science Research Unit, Institute of Education, University College London (UCL), 18 Woburn Square, London, WC1H 0NS, UK. k.sutcliffe@ioe.ac.uk.
James ThomasEPPI-Centre, Social Science Research Unit, Institute of Education, University College London (UCL), 18 Woburn Square, London, WC1H 0NS, UK. j.thomas@ioe.ac.uk.
Gillian StokesEPPI-Centre, Social Science Research Unit, Institute of Education, University College London (UCL), 18 Woburn Square, London, WC1H 0NS, UK. g.stokes@ioe.ac.uk.
Kate HindsEPPI-Centre, Social Science Research Unit, Institute of Education, University College London (UCL), 18 Woburn Square, London, WC1H 0NS, UK. k.hinds@ioe.ac.uk.
Mukdarut BangpanEPPI-Centre, Social Science Research Unit, Institute of Education, University College London (UCL), 18 Woburn Square, London, WC1H 0NS, UK. m.bangpan@ioe.ac.uk.

Funding

Department of Health
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIn order to enable replication of effective complex interventions, systematic reviews need to provide evidence about their critical features and clear procedural details for their implementation. Currently, few systematic reviews provide sufficient guidance of this sort.

methodsThrough a worked example, this paper reports on a methodological approach, Intervention Component Analysis (ICA), specifically developed to bridge the gap between evidence of effectiveness and practical implementation of interventions. By (a) using an inductive approach to explore the nature of intervention features and (b) making use of trialists' informally reported experience-based evidence, the approach is designed to overcome the deficiencies of poor reporting which often hinders knowledge translation work whilst also avoiding the need to invest significant amounts of time and resources in following up details with authors.

resultsA key strength of the approach is its ability to reveal hidden or overlooked intervention features and barriers and facilitators only identified in practical application of interventions. It is thus especially useful where hypothesised mechanisms in an existing programme theory have failed. A further benefit of the approach is its ability to identify potentially new configurations of components that have not yet been evaluated.

conclusionsICA is a formal and rigorous yet relatively streamlined approach to identify key intervention content and implementation processes. ICA addresses a critical need for knowledge translation around complex interventions to support policy decisions and evidence implementation.

Indexed as

Electronic PrescribingProgram DevelopmentResearch DesignReview Literature as TopicTranslational Research, BiomedicalEvidence-Based MedicineHumansMedication ErrorsPediatrics

Identifiers

PMID26514644
PMCPMC4627414

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.