Nursing Research Chapter Three

Front 1

What is a study site?

Back 1

The overall location for a study (eg Philadelphia or Portland)

Front 2

What does a multisite study include?

Back 2

they tend to yield more diverse groups of study participants, potentially enhancing generalizability of findings

Front 3

What is a setting?

Back 3

The specific location where information is gathered (eg in an urban community clinic)

Front 4

What settings do qualitative studies typically take place?

Back 4

naturalistic settings by researchers who engage in fieldwork

Front 5

What settings to quantitative studies typically take place?

Back 5

quantitative researchers often work in more controlled settings

Front 6

What are concepts?

Back 6

Abstractions of particular aspects of human behavior or characteristics (eg. pain, weight)

Front 7

What are constructs?

Back 7

Slightly more complex abstractions (such as self-care)

Front 8

How do theories and conceptual models come together?

Back 8

They knit concepts into a coherent system that purports to explain phenomena

Front 9

What is a variable?

Back 9

A characteristic or quality that takes on different values, for exmaple that varies from one person to the next (blood type, weight, length of stay in hospital)

The term variable is used almost exlcusively in quantitative research

Front 10

What is an independant variable?

Back 10

the presumed cause of a dependent variable

Front 11

What is a dependent variable?

Back 11

the presumed effect of an indpedant variable (often referred to as the outcome variable or the outcome).

Smoking (IV) ----> Lung Cancer (DV)

Front 12

What are continuous variables versus categorical variables?

Back 12

Continuous = height, weight
Categorical = marital status, gender

Front 13

What is a Conceptual definition?

Back 13

the abstract or theoretical meaning of a concept being studied

Front 14

What is an operational definition?

Back 14

The operations (measurements) a researcher must preform to collect the desired information

Front 15

What is data?

Back 15

the peices of information researchers collect in a study

Quantitative researchers collect numeric (quantitative) data
Qualitative researchers collect narrative (verbal) data

Front 16

What is a data set?

Back 16

The entirety of data gathered for all study participants

Front 17

What is a relationship?

Back 17

a bond or connection between variables

Front 18

What is a cause-and-effect (casual) relationship?

Back 18

for example smoking and lung cancer

Front 19

What is a functional (associative) relationship?

Back 19

gender and life expectancy

Front 20

What are the major classes of quantitative research?

Back 20

Experimental research, nonexperimental research, grounded theory research, phenonmenological research, ethnographic research

Front 21

What is experimental research?

Back 21

researchers actively introduce an intervention or treatment. These are called clinical trials in medical research

Front 22

What is nonexperimental research?

Back 22

Researchers collect data without intervening or introducing treatments. This is called observational research in medical research

Front 23

What is grounded theory research?

Back 23

Seeks to understand key social psychological processes

Front 24

What is phenomological research?

Back 24

Focuses on the lived experiences of humans

Front 25

What is ethnographic research?

Back 25

focuses on the patterns and lifeways of a cultural group

Front 26

What are the five phases in a quantitative study?

Back 26

Phase 1: Conceptual Stage
Phase 2: Design and planning phase
Phase 3: Empirical Phase
Phase 4: Analytic Phase
Phase 5: Dissemination Phase

Front 27

What is involved in Phase One (Conceptual Phase) of a Quantitative Study?

Back 27

Formulating/delimiting the problem, reviewing related literature, undertaking clinical fieldwork, defining the framework and developing conceptual definitions, and formulationg hypotheses

Front 28

What is involved in Phase Two (Design and Planning Phase) of a quantitative study?

Back 28

formulating a research design, developing intervention protocols, identifying the population, designing the sampling plan, specifying methods to measure variables and collect data, developing methods to protect human/animal rights, finalizing the research plan

Front 29

What is involved in Phase Three (Empirical Phase) in a quantitative study?

Back 29

collecting the data, preparing the data for analysis (coding the data)

Front 30

What is involved in Phase Four (the analytic phase) of a quantitative study?

Back 30

analyzing the data (through statistical analysis) and interpreting results

Front 31

What is involved in phase five (dissemination phase) in a quantitative study?

Back 31

communicating the findings in a research report ( journal article), and utilizing the findings in practice

Front 32

What are activities in a qualitiative study?

Back 32

Conceptualizing and planning the study, conducting the study, and disseminating the findings

Front 33

What is involved in conceptualizing and planning the study of a qualitative study?

Back 33

identifying the research problem, doing a literature review, selecting sites and gaining entree, making broad design decisions, planning to go into the field, and addressing ethical issues

Front 34

What is involved in conducting the study in a qualitiative study?

Back 34

Undertaking iterative activites through emergent design.
This includes: making sampling decions, deciding what questions to ask, collecting data, evaluating integrity and quality, analyzing and interpreting data, and making new decisions

Front 35

What is involved in disseminating findings in a qualitative study?

Back 35

Seeking publication outlets and providing rich descriptions