Nursing Research Overall Midterm Study Guide

Front 1

What is the purpose of nursing research?

Back 1

One way to describe purpose is a description-explanation continuum. A basic distinction, especially relevant to quantitative studies, is wehther the study is cause probing, which means it seeks to illuminate the underlying causes of phenonmena.

The specific purposes of nursing research by the EBP framework are treatment/therapy/intervention, diagnosis/assessment, prognosis, harm and etiology, and meaning/process

Front 2

What are the outcomes of EBP questions?

Back 2

.What are the relevant outcomes? (eg morbidity, death, complications)

Front 3

What are the interventions of EBP questions?

Back 3

.What is the main intervention or therapy you wish to consider? Includes exposure to a disease, a diagnostic test, a prognostic factor, a treatment, a patient perception, a risk factor, etc

Front 4

What questions would you ask while appraising evidence?

Back 4

.What is the quality of the evidence?
What is the magnitude of effects?
How precise are estimates of effects?
Is there evidence of side effects?
What are the costs?
Is there relevance to my clinical situation?

Front 5

What are cost-benefits?

Back 5

.weighing the total expected costs against the total expected benefits of one or more actions in order to choose the best or most profitable option.

Front 6

What is an independant variable?

Back 6

The presumed cause (of an dependant variable)

Front 7

What is a dependant variable?

Back 7

The presumed effect (of an independant variable), often referred to as the outcome variable or just the outcome

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

Front 8

What is a construct?

Back 8

slightly more complex abstractions, such as self care

concepts are abstract ideas which have been defined according to particular characteristics or generaliztaions (constructs) about them. A construct is based on concepts, or can be thought of as a conceptual model that has measurable aspects. This will allow the researcher to 'measure' the concept and have a common acceptable platform when other researchers do a similar research

Front 9

How do researchers refer to people in the study?

Back 9

Quantitative: subject or participant
Qualitative: Study participant

Front 10

What is a primary source?
What is a secondary source?

Back 10

Primary- the actual research reports written by the researchers who conducted the study

Secondary- interprets and analyzes primary sources. these sources are one or more steps removed from the event. Secondary sources may have pictures, quotes, or graphics of primary soruces in them.

Front 11

How do you start a database search?

Back 11

Search for, identify, and retreive potential primary source materials.
From here, document search decisions and actions, and screen sources for relevance and apporpriateness

Front 12

What is meta-synthesis, and what are its components?

Back 12

Theoretical integration and interpretation of qualitative findings.
One definition: the bringing togteher and breaking down of findings, examing them, discovering essential features, and combining phenomena into a transformed whole.
It is integrations that are more than the sum of the parts- novel interpretations of integrated findings.


Steps:
1. Formulate Question
2. Decide selection criteria, search strategy
3. Search for and locate studies
4. Extract data or analysis
5. Formulate and implement an analysis approach
6. Integrate, interpret, and write up results

Hint 12

On Going Debates: whether to exclude low-quality studies, whether to integrate studies based in multiple qualitative traditions, various typologies and approaches with differing terminology

Front 13

What is meta-analysis and what are its components?

Back 13

Statistical integration of results.
Advantages: Objectivity- statistical integration eliminates bias in drawing conclusions when results in different studies are at odds. Increased power- it reduces the risk of type 2 errors compared to a single study. Increased Precision- it results in smaller confidence intervals than single studies

Criteria: the research question or hypothesis should be essentially identical accross studies. Remember the 'fruit problem' - don't combine apples and oranges. It also must be a sufficient knowledge base- must be enough studies of acceptable quality. Also, results can be varied but not totally at odds.

Major Steps:
1. Delineate research question or hypothesis to be tested
2. identify sampling criteria for studies to be included
3. Develop and implement a search strategy
4. Locate and screen sample of studies meeting the criteria
5. Appraise the quality of the study evidence
6. Extract and record data from reports
7. Formulate an anayltic plan (make analytic decisions)
8. Analyze data according to plan
9. Write a systematic review

Front 14

What is the difference between meta-synthesis and meta-analysis?

Back 14

.

Front 15

Where do nurses find research?

Back 15

Presentations at professional conferences (oral reports, poster sessions)
Journal articles (papers often subjeted to peer review, peer reviews are often blind- reviewers are not told the names of authors, and vice versa)

Front 16

What are the parts of a written research manuscript in a journal?

Back 16

IMRAD Format:
-Title and Abstract
-Introduction
-Method
-Results
-And Discussion
-References

Front 17

Know about a hypothesis

Back 17

The researcher's predictions about relationships among variables
A hypothesis:
-states an expectation, a predicted answer to the research question
-should almost always involve two or more variables
-suggests the predicted relationship between the independant variable and the dependant variable
-must contain terms that indicate a relationship (more than, different from, associated with)
-is articulated almost exclusively in quantitative (not qualititative) studies
-is tested through statistical procedures

Front 18

Where is a specific part of a research report found in a manuscript?

Back 18

Abstract- brief description of major features of a study at the beginning of a journal article
Introduction- description of central phenomena, concepts, or variables; the study purpose, research questions, or hypotheses, review of literature (background); theoretical/conceptual framework; study significance, need for study
Method Section (different for quantitative and qualitative studies)
Results section- findings
Discussion- interpretation of the results, implications for nursing practice and for further research, study limitations

Front 19

What are the differences between a true and quasi-experiment?

Back 19

.

Front 20

Which are strong and weak research designs?

Back 20

.

Front 21

How are subjects assigned to groups in a study?

Back 21

Randomization: also called random assignment, the researcher assigns subjects to groups at random. A typical assignment is to an experimental group or to a control group. The purpose is to make all of the groups equal with regard to all other factors except receipt of the intervention.

Front 22

What are sampling plans?

Back 22

W

Front 23

What are sampling plans that are rigorous and what are those that are not?

Back 23

Strong:
Stratified Sampling

Weak: convenience sampling

Front 24

What is existing data from a prospective data collection?

Back 24

Existing data- records (patient charts), historical data, existing data set (secondary analysis)
Prospective data collection- sometimes you need to collect patient care data that is not already available and cannot be obtained from existing records or through a survery. In this case, you need to create your own data collection form that can be used. You must train individuals to use these tools and make it feasible to use without interfering with other important work. For example if you need detailed info on the daily vital signs of patients in the ICU, then you need to train nurses to capture this information each day, and include this information as a special form on the patients chart.

Front 25

Why do we use questionaires and other types of visual scales?

Back 25

Lower costs, possibility of anonymity, greater privacy, lack of interviewer bias

Front 26

What are the three primary ethical principles?

Back 26

1. Autonomy- the obligation on the part of the investigator to respect each participant as a person capable of making an informed decision regarding participation in the research study.
2. Beneficence- the investigator must maximzie the benefits for the individual participant and/or society while minimizing the risk of harm to the individual
3. Justice- this demands equitable selection of participants- i.e. avoiding participant populations that may be unfairly coerced into participating, such as prisoners and institutionalized children.

Front 27

How do you safeguard study participants?

Back 27

W

Front 28

What is misconduct in a study?

Back 28

/

Front 29

Why do we use theories?

Back 29

Students learn that a "theory" is an orderly, integrated set of statements that describes and predicts behavior. Theories are influenced directly by cultural values and belief systems of their times. Theories are vital: They guide and give meaning to what we see. When a researcher investigates and collects information through observation, the investigator needs a clear idea of what information is important to collect. Thus, valid theories are validated by research and are a sound basis for practical action.

Front 30

What is the basic structure of a theory?

Back 30

-use concepts as building blocks
-require conceptual definitions of key concepts
-can be represented in a schematic model
-are created by humans
-are developed inductively
-cannot be proven, they are supported to greater or lesser degrees
-can be used to generate hypotheses
-can serve as a stimulus to research

Front 31

What are the parts of a nursing theory?

Back 31

human beings
environment
health
nursing

Front 32

What is a simple hypothesis?

Back 32

Expresses a predicted relationhip between one indpendant variable and one dependant variable.

Front 33

What is a complex hypothesis?

Back 33

States a predicted relationship between two or more independant variables and/or two or more dependant variables.

Front 34

What is a directional hypothesis?

Back 34

predicts the direction of a relationship

Front 35

What is a nondirectional hypothesis?

Back 35

Predicts the existance of a relationship, not its direction

Front 36

What is a research hypothesis?

Back 36

states the actual prediction of a relationship

Front 37

What is a statistical or null hypothesis?

Back 37

expresses the absence of a relationship (used only in statistical testing)

Front 38

What are characteristics of a true experiment?

Back 38

manipulation: the researcher does something to some subjects- introduces an intervention (or treatment)

control: the researcher introduces controls, including the use of a control group counerfactual.
randomization: also called random assignment, the researcher assigns subjects to groups at random. A typical assignment is to an experimental group or a control group. The purpose is to make the groups equal with regard to all other factors except receipt of the intervention.

Front 39

What are quasi-experiments?

Back 39

They involve an intervention but lack either randomization or a control group. The two main categories of quasi-experimental designs are: nonequivalent control group designs (those getting the intervention are compared with a nonrandomized comparison group), and within-subject designs (one group is studied before and after the intervention)

Front 40

How do you evaluate quasi-experiments?

Back 40

it may be easier and more practical than true experiments but they make it more difficult to infer causality, and usually there are several alternative rival hypotheses for results.