Table 2.

Effect of blinding on pairwise comparison judgments.

	Number*	Mean†	Std Dev	Lower 95%	Upper 95%	P value
Benefits
Unlabeled	122	0.47	2.33	0.05	0.89	p = 0.01
Labeled	114	−0.20	2.09	−0.59	0.19
Side effects
Unlabeled	122	0.47	2.55	0.01	0.92	p < 0.0001
Labeled	114	−1.12	2.10	−1.51	−0.73
Criteria priorities
Unlabeled	122	0.34	2.15	−0.04	0.73	p = 0.21
Labeled	114	−0.04	2.31	−0.47	0.38

^*Data only include study participants who used an AHP-based decision aid.

^†Judgments were made using a 9 point scale ranging from −4 to 4. For the comparisons between the alternatives benefits and side effects, −4 indicated that Medication A or aspirin was strongly preferred, 4 indicated that Medication B or Statins was strongly preferred and 0 indicated both options were equal. For the criteria priorities, negative numbers indicated that benefits were considered more important and positive numbers that avoiding side effects was more important.