Key Concepts for Nursing Research – Flashcards
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What is the definition of researcher?
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person conducting or doing the research
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What is another name for researcher?
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investigator
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What is a study?
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use disciplined research to answer a question; address a problem
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What are two other names for a study?
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investigation or research project
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What is the name of the people being studied in a quantitative study?
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subjects or study participants
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What is the name of the people being studied in a qualitative study?
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study participants or informant
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What is being investigated in a quantitative study?
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concepts, constructs, or variables
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What is being investigated in a qualitative study?
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phenomena or concepts
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What is the definition of settings?
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specific place; the types of place where information is gathered; hospitals, homes, or other community settings (diabetic unit)
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What is the definition of a site?
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overall location; the specific location for the research; it could be an entire community or an institution (hospital)
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What is the definition of phenomena (also termed concept)?
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abstractions of particular aspects of human behavior and characteristics; pain, fatigue, and resilience
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What is the definition of construct?
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an abstraction or concept that is deliberately invented (constructed) by researchers for a scientific purpose; self-care in Orem's model of health maintenance
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What often refers to a slightly more complex abstraction than a concept?
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construct
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What is the definition of a theory?
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an explanation of some aspect of reality; concepts are knitted together into a coherent system to describe or explain some aspect of the world
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Researchers often start with what in a quantitative study?
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a theory and using deductive reasoning, make predictions about how phenomena would behave in the real world if the theory were true; predictions are then tested and results are used to support or challenge the theory
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What is often the product of the research in a qualitative study?
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a theory
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What is the definition of a variable?
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an attribute that varies, that is, takes on different values; body temperature, heart rate, weight, anxiety, and fatigue
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What are the central building blocks of quantitative studies?
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variables
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What is the purpose of a clinical study?
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guides practice
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What is a collaborative study?
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interdisciplinary research team with varied backgrounds and approaches doing a study together
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What is a formal or classical theory?
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systematic, abstract explanation which knits concepts or constructs together; logical deduction
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What is a descriptive theory?
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"beginning baby study": describes a specific phenomenon, inductive classification, and can also be called a sensitizing framework
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What is a grand theory?
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explains a broad segment of human experience; very abstract (Nurse, Patient, Health, and Environment)
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What is a middle-range theory?
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explains specific phenomena, like stress or health promotion; it is less abstract and more easily used in research
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What is a conceptual model?
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more loosely structured; does not link concepts using logical deduction; ideas are not well connected
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What is a model?
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use of minimal words to represent phenomenon
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What is a schematic model or conceptual map?
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diagram of representation of how ideas are connected; displayed visually with pictures
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What is a framework?
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conceptual underpinnings of any study; it may be explicit or implicit
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What is a theoretical framework based on?
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a specific theory
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What is a conceptual framework based on?
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a specific conceptual model
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Theoretical Approaches: Quantitative
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makes predictions about how concepts interact if the theory is true; test predictions (hypotheses)
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What is a hypotheses?
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a specific prediction of what you think will happen in the study
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Theoretical Approaches: Qualitative
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may use framework as philosophical basis or approach OR it may produce a theory; DEVELOPS a theory
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How is a theory developed and tested?
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it is developed inductively and tested deductively
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What do research findings do?
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shape a theory; assesses the worth of a theory and provides a basis for new theories
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What does a theory do?
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guides and generates research ideas
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What are constants?
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they do not vary in the study; unchanging; it is a way of adding control
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What are some characteristics of variables?
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by nature they vary from one person to another; they are concepts of interest to the researcher; understand how or why things vary; any quality of a person, group, or situation
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What are inherent variables?
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inherited characteristic; may also be called an attribute; gender, age, blood type
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What is a created variable?
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invented by the researcher; type of pain management or type of pet therapy
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What are heterogeneous variables?
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they have lots of variety
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What are homogeneous variables?
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they are very similar
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What is a continuous range of values?
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values on a continuum; age, weight, heart rate, blood pressure
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What is a discrete range of values?
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limited number of values; number of children, pets
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What are categorical range of values?
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fall in one of two or more specific areas/types or categories; gender, blood type, degree, age
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What are characteristics of an independent variable?
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presumed cause, one doing the influencing, one manipulated, one effecting the other, the treatment or the intervention, may be inherent (natural process)
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What are characteristics of a dependent variable?
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"depends" on the other, presumed effect, one influenced by the other, one being studied or one that researcher wants to understand, one being effected, can be called outcome or criterion
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What are characteristics of conceptual definitions?
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abstract or theoretical meaning; not always given (implied) from literature review; can be explicit-clearly drawn from a theory; end product in qualitative studies
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What are characteristics of operational definitions?
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only necessary in quantitative; the way the concept will be measured; operations to be performed to collect information; should be congruent or match conceptual definition
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What is the definition of a sample?
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people who provide information; only those selected to be in a single study
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What is the definition of a population?
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entire aggregate of people from whom subjects may be chosen; total group
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What is a qualitative setting?
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naturalistic setting or field
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What is a quantitative setting?
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controlled situation or laboratory
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What is datum?
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singular, one "bit" of information
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What is a data set?
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all pieces in a study
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What are examples of quantitative data?
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numbers, numerical values
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What are examples of qualitative data?
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narrative, descriptions, words
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What are types of existing data?
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already collected; medical records (most common)
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What are types of new data?
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collected for the study; self-reports, observational, and biophysiological
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What is a self-report?
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subjects verbally or in writing provide the information
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What is observational?
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researcher observes the subjects and records
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What is biophysiological?
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physiological clinical data collected for the study
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What are some characteristics of quantitative relationships?
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connection between two or more phenomenon under study; relationship between independent and dependent variables; more than, less than; higher or lower; greater or smaller
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What is a causal relationship?
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cause and effect (if you have an intervention); cause probing purpose
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What is a functional relationship?
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also called associative; relationship present but not cause and effect; at least one variable is inherent or naturally occurring
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What do researchers look for in a qualitative relationship?
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patterns, connections, or recurrent themes in order to describe, explain or understand a phenomenon; they are not testing it
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What is the topic?
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broad area or focus regarding the study
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What is the research problem?
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perplexing or troubling condition
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What are characteristics of problem statements?
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articulates problem to be studies; indicates WHY study needs to be done; formulation of what is problematic, poorly understood, or "needs fixing", and the introduction to the problem, argument explaining the need for the study
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What are the six components of problem statements?
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problem identification, background, scope of the problem, consequences of the problem, knowledge gap, and proposed solution
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What is problem identification?
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What is wrong with current situation?
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What is background?
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What is the nature of the problem or the context of the situation?
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What is the scope of the problem?
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How big a problem is it, and how many people affected?
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What are the consequences of the problem?
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What is the cost of not fixing the problem?
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What is the knowledge gap?
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What information about the problem is lacking?
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What is the proposed solution?
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How will the new study contribute to the solution of the problem?
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How do researchers narrow the study (clarification of the problem)?
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statement of purpose, research objectives/aims, research question, hypothesis
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What is the statement of purpose?
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overall goal; general direction of the inquiry, declarative statements; general wording: purpose, goals, aim, objective, intent
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What are the research objectives/aims?
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specific accomplishments in conducting the study; often same as the purpose
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What is the research question?
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specific query; rewording of the purpose; interrogative wording; often give only one or the other (purpose or question)
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What is the hypothesis?
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predicts relationship to be tested; quantitative only
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What are some examples of sources of research problems?
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clinical experience (clinical issues and problems), nursing literature (existing reports), social or political issues (health care), theories (nursing and related disciplines), external sources (research priorities and brainstorming), and programs of research (next steps in investigating problems)
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What is the process of developing and refining a research problem?
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it is a creative process (not always orderly); requires imagination and insight; beings with a broad topic then narrow to researchable area; consider paradigm of approach; the questions "DRIVES" the approach (qualitative or quantitative)
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What are some criteria to consider when developing a research problem?
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significance to nursing, researchability, and feasibility
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What is the significance in the research problem?
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importance to nursing, practical applications, it benefits the nurse, patient, and health care, and improves nursing practice
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What is researchability?
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it can be studied and answered through research
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What are some questions that are not researchable?
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ethical, moral, and values questions
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What is feasibility?
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time, money, available subjects, cooperation of others, facilities, equipment, other resources, and researcher experience
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What is the presumed cause?
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independent variable
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What is the presumed effect?
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dependent variable or outcome variable
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What is a relationship?
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a bond or connection between two or more phenomena
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Where is the problem statement located?
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early in a research article and often begins with the first sentence after the abstract
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What does the statement of purpose identify in a quantitative study?
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key study variables and their possible interrelationships, as well as the population of interest
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What do problem statements for a qualitative study express?
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the nature of the problem, its context, its scope, and information needed to address it
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What does the statement of purpose indicate in a qualitative study?
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the nature of the inquiry, the key concept or phenomenon, and the group, community, or setting under study
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A study whose purpose is to explore or describe some phenomenon is likely to be an investigation of a little-researched topic, often involving what approach?
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qualitative
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What verbs would you expect to see in the statement of purpose for a qualitative study?
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understand, discover, develop, or generate
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What verbs suggest an experimental design?
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test or evaluate
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What verbs suggest a non-experimental design?
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examine or explore
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What verbs suggest quantifiable variables and designs with scientific controls?
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test, evaluate, and compare
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What verbs suggest bias?
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prove, demonstrate, or show
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What deals with abstractions (concepts) that are assembled because of their relevance to a common theme?
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a conceptual model
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What does a conceptual model do?
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broadly presents an understanding of the phenomenon of interest and reflects the assumptions and philosophical views of the model's designer
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What theories are important in qualitative studies?
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descriptive theories; accounts for and thoroughly describes a phenomenon. They are inductive, observation-based abstractions that describe or classify characteristics of individuals, groups, or situations by summarizing their commonalities
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What is an example of a nursing grand theory?
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Parse's Theory of Human Becoming
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What theories attempts to explain such phenomena as stress, comfort, and health promotion?
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middle-range theories
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What theories, compared to grand theories, are more specific and more amenable to empirical testing?
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middle-range theories
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What is an example of a schematic model?
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Pender's Health Promotion Model; which is a model for explaining and predicting the health-promotion component of lifestyle
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Not every study is based on a theory or conceptual model, but every study has a ?
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framework
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What terms are often used interchangeably?
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conceptual framework, conceptual model, and theoretical framework
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What is implicit?
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not formally acknowledged or described
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What shapes how concepts are defined?
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world views
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Can a population consist of all hospital records at a specific hospital?
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yes, populations are not restricted to people
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What is the target population?
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the entire population in which a research is interested
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What is the accessible population?
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the portion of the target population that is accessible to the researcher
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What does sampling involve?
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selecting a portion of the population to represent the population
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What is a subset of population elements?
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a sample
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What is sampling bias?
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the systematic overrepresentation or underrepresentation of some segment of the population in terms of key characteristics
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What are strata?
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subpopulations
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In what section is the sampling plan discussed?
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in a report's method section
