Refined Research Question

[salihakalender]

Research Question

"Among 25 countries with diverse socio-demographic profiles, does long-term exposure to PM2.5 between 2010 and 2019 lead to higher rates of cardiovascular and respiratory disease burden compared to countries with lower exposure levels?"

As PM2.5 is recognized as one of the most harmful air pollutants for human health, this study focuses on understanding its long-term impact on public health outcomes. While not the main objective, we also aim to briefly explore whether higher PM2.5 exposure may have contributed to increased COVID-19 mortality rates in certain countries—potentially due to weakened respiratory or cardiovascular systems before the pandemic.

[Adamx090]

I am of the opinion that the phrasing should be about the correlation between the data, and not the cause and effect itself. Because the cause and effect is well established in literature, but we are wondering how well does the available data reflects that cause and effect relationship. So the question can be phrased as:

To what extent can ambient PM2.5 pollution levels between 2010 and 2019 predict cardiovascular and respiratory health outcomes when analyzed at the country level?

Or maybe something similar to our original question, just tweaking it a little:

How do cardiovascular and respiratory health outcomes vary in relation to PM2.5 pollution levels across countries during the period 2010 to 2019?

The "25 countries" part just mentions the sample size used to do the analysis, I don't think it should be in the research question. Also later we aim to include all countries where data is available, so it's better to leave open.
The COVID point looks good.

[FalaqMajeed]

Don't you guys want to mention the COVID point in the research question? Can it be like something like this:
How do cardiovascular and respiratory health outcomes vary in relation to average PM2.5 pollution levels across countries with different socio-demographic development levels (SDI) during the period 2010 to 2019, while also exploring whether prior PM2.5 exposure might have influenced COVID-19 mortality patterns in 2020–2021?

[linahKhayri]

How have ambient PM₂.₅ air pollution concentrations from 2010 to 2019 influenced the health burdens of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases across 25 socio-demographically diverse countries, and how might pre-COVID long-term exposure to PM₂.₅ be associated with COVID-19 mortality outcomes?

[salihakalender]

Is this version fine?

To what extent have ambient PM₂.₅ concentrations (2010–2019) influenced the burden of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases across 25 countries with varying socio-demographic development levels, and how might this long-term exposure relate to COVID-19 mortality outcomes?

[salihakalender]

🔎 Research Question

Air pollution remains a major environmental health concern worldwide, with PM₂.₅ recognized as one of the most harmful pollutants due to its ability to penetrate deep into the lungs and bloodstream. Understanding the long-term effects of PM₂.₅ on human health is especially important for shaping effective public health responses. Based on this well-established evidence, we decided to focus our study primarily on PM2.5 and its long-term impacts.

This project seeks to answer the following research question:

To what extent have ambient PM₂.₅ concentrations (2010–2019) influenced the burden of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases across countries with varying socio-demographic development levels, and how might this long-term exposure relate to COVID-19 mortality outcomes?

By focusing on long-term exposure to PM₂.₅, rather than general air quality levels, our study aims to uncover pollutant-specific health impacts. We combine historical PM₂.₅ data with disease burden indicators and consider socioeconomic context (via the Socio-demographic Index, SDI) to provide a deeper understanding of environmental health disparities.

This focused research direction fits well within the scope of our project timeline and available data and is designed to produce actionable insights that can inform public health policy and raise awareness about the human cost of long-term air pollution exposure.

[Adamx090]

It looks good, but can you possibly remove "25" and just say "across countries". As you are aware, we intend to increase the number of countries later.