DCE NURSING 314: RESEARCH METHODS
RN to BSN
Anne
Hedger, MN, ACNP-CS, ANP-CS, PNP-AC, CCRN
Adjunct Online Faculty
Linfield-Good Samaritan School
of Nursing
Spring
2007
|
Course Number:
|
NUR 314
|
|
Course Title:
|
Research Methods
|
|
Faculty:
|
Anne Hedger, MN, ACNP-CS, ANP-CS, PNP-AC, CCRN
Adjunct Online Faculty
ahedger@linfield.edu
annehedger@yahoo.com (alternate)
|
|
|
|
Catalog Description:
|
Methods used in formulating and conducting research on
problems arising within health care.
Prerequisite: Statistics course
|
|
|
|
Course Objectives:
|
1. Identify the major steps in the research process.
2. Define the relationship between problem identification and a theory in the
research process.
3. Describe strengths and limitations of various research designs.
4. Differentiate between probability and nonprobability sampling.
5. Describe various data collection methods.
6. Define types of reliability and validity of quantitative data collection
instruments.
7. Describe criteria for evaluating the trustworthiness of qualitative data.
8. Describe the analysis of quantitative and qualitative research data.
9. Interpret and evaluate research.
10. Discuss ethical issues relevant to research.
|
|
|
|
Topical Outline:
|
I. Major Steps in the Research Process
II. Theory and Problem Identification
III. Research Designs
IV. Sampling
V. Data Collection Methods
VI. Quality of Data
VII. Analysis of Data
VIII. Interpreting and Evaluating Research
IX. Ethical Issues in Clinical Research
|
|
|
|
Teaching Strategies:
|
Lecture/discussion online
Audiovisual aids
Reading
assignments
Homework assignments
Study Modules/Quizzes
Small group work
|
|
Evaluation Methods:
|
Research Utilization Assignments
Preparation of a research proposal
Critique of a research study
Study modules
Attendance, preparation and participation
|
|
Required Texts:
|
Polit, D. & Beck, C. (2005). Essentials of Nursing
Research (6th ed.). Philadelphia:
Lippincott.
Publication
Manual of the American Psychological Association. (5th ed.). (2001). Washington, D.C.:
American Psychological Association.
|
|
Date
|
Content
|
For this week
|
|
Week One
2/17/07- 2/21/07
|
Course Overview
Overview of the research process.
Quantitative and
Qualitative Study Overview
|
P&B Ch. 1, 2, 3
|
|
Week Two
2/22/07-2/28/07
|
Reading Research
Reports
Ethics in Research
|
P&B Ch. 4,5
|
|
Week Three
3/1/07-3/7/07
|
Research Problems,
Questions, Hypotheses
|
P&B Ch. 6
|
|
Week Four
3/8/07-3/14/07
|
Literature Reviews
Theories, Models and
Frameworks
|
P&B Ch.7, 8
|
|
Week Five
3/15/07-3/21/07
|
Quantitative
Research Design
|
P&B Ch. 9
|
|
Week Six
3/22/07-3/28/07
|
Quantitative
Research Sampling
|
P&B Ch. 12
|
|
Week Seven
3/29/07-4/4/07
|
Qualitative
Research Design and Sampling
|
P&B Ch.
10,12
|
|
Week Eight
4/5/07-4/11/07
|
Specific Types of
Research
Data Collection
Methods
|
P&B Ch. 11, 13
|
|
Week Nine
4/12/07-4/18/07
|
Data
Collection
|
P&B Ch. 14
|
|
Week Ten
4/19/07-4/25/07
|
Quantitative and
Qualitative data analysis
|
P&B Ch. 15,16
|
|
Week Eleven
4/26/07-5/2/07
|
Research Critiques
|
P&B Ch. 17
|
|
Week Twelve
5/3/07-5/9/07
|
Research Critiques
Utilization of
nursing research
|
P&B Ch. 18
|
|
Week Thirteen
5/10/07-5/16/07
|
No in-class work.
Concentrate on your research proposals.
|
|
|
Week Fourteen
5/17/07-5/23/07
|
No in-class work. Concentrate on your
research proposals.
|
|
COURSE WEEK
The online week begins on Thursday and ends on
Wednesday.
Class opens on Thursdays at 12:00am
(midnight) and close the following Wednesday at 11:59pm, PST.
Day 1 – Thursday
Day 2 – Friday
Day 3 – Saturday
Day 4 – Sunday
Day 5 – Monday
Day 6 – Tuesday
Day 7 - Wednesday
EVALUATION
In
order to successfully pass NUR 314 you must receive a Grade of at least
"C" in the critique of a research report, and grade of at least
"C" in the research proposal. Class attendance, preparation and
participation is expected.
Each assignment will
comprise the following points toward your final grade:
Assignments Points
Syllabus Quiz 10
Research Utilization
Exercise
Identification of Problem Area 5
Written Problem Statement 5
List of 10 research articles from lit review 5
Approval of critique article 5
Research Report Critique
Part I 40
Research Report Critique
Part II 120
Research Proposal 120
Quizzes (5 total, 20 points
each) 100
Participation 60
Total 470 pts
Grade Points Percentage
A 437-470 (93-100)
A- 423-436 (90-92)
B+ 404-422 (86-89)
B 390-403 (83-85)
B- 376-389 (80-82)
C+ 357-375 (76-79)
C 343-356 (73-75)
C- 329-342 (70-72)
Unacceptable Grade
D+ 310-328 (66-69)
D 296-309 (63-65)
D- 282-295 (60-62)
F 0-281 (0-59)
|
Penalty for Assignments Submitted Late:
|
Please be timely in submitting your assignments. Assignments are due by 11:55pm on the due
date, pacific standard time. There
will be a 10% per day deduction for late work, with a minimum deduction of
one point. If you know you're going to be away on a day an assignment is due,
know that I will ALWAYS accept work early (without a penalty!), so send it on
in a day or two ahead of time. I do not accept any assignment more than
three (3) days late. No assignments are accepted after the last
day of class.
|
|
Incomplete Course Work
|
A grade of incomplete will not be given for NUR 314 except
for extremely extenuating circumstances. Before such a grade is awarded, a
contract specifying remaining requirements and due dates must be agreed upon
by the student and instructor.
|
|
Academic Dishonesty
|
Academic work is evaluated on the assumption that the work presented is
the student's own, unless designated otherwise. Anything less is unacceptable
and is considered academic dishonesty.
Cheating consists of using or attempting to use unauthorized materials,
information, or study aids in any academic work submitted for credit.
Plagiarism is the submission of academic work for credit that includes
materials copied or paraphrased from published or unpublished works without
documentation.
Fabrication is the falsification or invention of any information or
citation in academic work.
Facilitating academic dishonesty consists of helping or attempting to help
another student to violate the college's policy on academic dishonesty.
The course instructor will, when discovering a case of academic
dishonesty, inform the Dean of Students, as well as the student, in writing
of the incident within ten days of the discovery of the offense. The written
document detailing the incident will also be placed in the student's
permanent file in the Records Office. Engaging in academic dishonesty will
result in not passing the course. The Dean of Students is responsible for
referring all cases involving more than one offense to the College Judicial
Council, which may impose College-level penalties. Students may appeal a
decision.
|
|
|
Students with documented disabilities who may need accommodation,
who have any emergency medical information that the instructor should know,
or who require special arrangements in the event of evacuation, should meet
with the instructor as early as possible, no later than the first week of
class.
|
|
Disability
|
|
|
COURSE
REQUIREMENTS
A. Study Modules/Quizzes
You will find that you have
required quizzes (which are really study modules) to complete and submit.
In WebCT, you can find these under “Assessments.”
These activities have been
designed to facilitate your understanding of research and to stimulate your
critical and creative thinking processes. There is one quiz for each two weeks
of class. There is no quiz over weeks 11
and 12.. There are 5 quizzes total, each
with 20 questions, combined of a series of multiple choice and T/F questions.
These quizzes are a required portion of your grade that you must complete. Each question is worth one (1) point, and
will eventually end up equaling 100 points toward your final grade.
I will post the quiz at the beginning
of the two week period, so that you can work on the answers as you study the
material. You only have one chance to
sit down and fill in your answers, so be ready to do so. You can print out the quiz and work on it as
you do your reading assignments. These
can be open book, open lecture, and you can work with your classmates if you
desire throughout the two weeks, but you will need to submit your answers to
the quiz by the due dates. You have one
chance to take each quiz, so be ready to take it as you sit down. Do not
submit your answers until you are ready and can complete these. When you fill in the answers, you should do
it in one sitting so that you don’t get logged off and lose your submission.
Quiz grades and answers will be
available after the due date. You can
take the quiz anytime during the two weeks that you desire, but each quiz is
due on the due date and time.
B. Research Utilization
Assignments
Steps
1. Identify a problem or question that you have encountered in
your nursing practice .
The problem could be a procedural practice, a communication problem, a decision
making problem, etc. Submit a one paragraph essay on why you have decided this
is a problem. Indicate why you wish to
do research in this area. Look at the
problem generally, and also specifically.
Submit your paragraph to the assignments section by the due date.
2. Submit
a list of the following on your topic/focus of the area you deemed
problematic. Phrase the answers to the
following as discussed in your text and study materials. Submit to the assignments section by the due
date.
1. What is your Problem Statement?
2. Formulate your Problem Statement into a
Research Question.
3. Pose three Hypotheses on this Problem
Statement and Research Question.
4. What is your Statement of Purpose?
5. What are your three Aims/Objectives in your
proposed study?
3. Do a literature search to identify articles that relate to your
problem statement.
Select a minimum of 10 articles that will help in creating your literature
review on your topic, and submit this list of the 10 articles using APA format
as a reference list to the assignments section by the due date. These articles should be less than 5 years
old, and from scholarly journals.
4. Select one (1) researched based article (from your list of
10 above) that relates to your problem statement to critique. Specify which of
the 10 articles you have found that you want to use for your research critique
assignment. Once you have my approval,
you may proceed in working on your Research critique assignment. Once approved, you will need to forward a
copy of the article to me. You can send
by email attachment, or by U.S. Postal Service to me. (PO
Box 399, Beavercreek, OR 97004)
5. Critique Research article. See criteria in the syllabus
below on Research Critique.
Submit Part I (Component headings 1-4) to me by the due
date by submitting to the assignments section. Part II of the critique assignment is the
final draft. You can use my comments and
feedback from Part I and revise this section, and combine it to the remainder
of the assignment so that you include component headings 1-11.
6. Complete the Research Proposal. See criteria in the syllabus below.
Grading
Identification of Problem
Area Due 3/2/07 5
pts
Written Problem Statement Due 3/9/07 5
pts
List of 10 Research
Articles from Lit Review Due 3/23/07 5
pts
Approval of Critique
Article Due
3/30/07 5
pts
Research Critique Part I (1-4) Due 4/20/07 40
pts
Part II (1-11) Due 5/11/07 120
pts
Research Proposal Due
5/23/07 120
pts
D.
CRITIQUE OF A RESEARCH REPORT
GUIDELINES FOR INDIVIDUAL CRITIQUE OF
NURSING RESEARCH STUDY
You are required to read and critique a faculty approved nursing research
article discussed through the research utilization exercise and report your
findings in a narrative format. Be sure
to comment on the study’s strengths as well as weaknesses. Give specific examples of both. Avoid vague generalizations of praise and fault-finding. Suggest alternatives that the research (or
future researchers) might want to consider.
Don’t just identify the problems in the research study. Offer some recommended solutions, making sure
the recommendations are practical ones.
Address each of the following areas.
Do not answer questions with yes/ no answers. Explain, describe and give
examples from the article to support your critique. You are to submit the following via the
assignments section by the due date.
A. A copy of the research
article. You can scan, email as an
attachment, or send via US Postal Service as discussed above. This should be sent to me after you have
instructor approval for the article you have chosen.
B. There are two parts.
Part I will include component headings 1-4.
1.
Initial Critique
2.
Purpose, Objectives, Hypotheses, Questions
3.
Literature Review
4.
Theoretical/Conceptual Framework
Part II will include your revisions from part I
(using my feedback and comments) with the remainder of the components of the
critique assignment (component headings 1-11).
C. The paper should be double-spaced
and grammatically correct. Attach a
reference list in APA format, 5th edition. Reference the research article and any
literature used to support the critique.
The critique itself should address each of the following questions with
answers and rationale. Please answer the
questions as given below, and write in paragraph format. Headings are required as below (1-11) to
organize your critique. The paper itself
does NOT have to be in APA format, although
the reference list does.
1. Initial Critique
- What
type of study was conducted?
- What
was the setting?
- Were
the steps for the research process clearly identified?
- Were
any of these steps missing?
- Did
the study flow logically from one section to another?
- Is
the study an important one in terms of the significance of the problem
studied
- Does
this research problem have obvious relevance to some aspect of the nursing
profession
- Was
it feasible for the researchers to study the problem and purpose
identified?
2. Purpose,
Objectives, Hypotheses, Questions
- State the research problem and purpose.
- Where does the author state the purpose?
- Is the problem to be addressed formally stated as a statement of
purpose, research question, or hypothesis to be tested? Is this
information communicated clearly and concisely?
- Are the purpose statements and research questions worded
appropriately (e.g., are key concepts or variables identified and the
study group or population of interest specified)?
- In the introduction to the problem, what is the general area of
concern in need of a solution, improvement and/or alteration?
- Do you agree with the author as to the need for the study?
- Are the objectives, questions or hypotheses linked to the study
framework?
- Are the hypotheses testable in the study?
- State the research hypothesis(es). If the author did not state
research hypotheses, is their absence justifiable?
- Explain how the hypotheses flow logically from the theoretical
rationale or review of the literature? If the hypotheses do not relate to
the review of the literature, what justification is offered for the
researcher's predictions?
- Are the hypotheses directional or nondirectional? State the
rationale for the type of hypotheses (directional or nondirectional).
- Are hypotheses stated as research hypotheses or null hypotheses?
- Does the problem have significance for the nursing profession? How
will the research contribute to nursing practice, nursing administration,
or nursing education?
3. Literature Review
- Are
the relevant studies identified and described?
- Are
the majority of sources primary or secondary?
- Does
the literature review include current sources?
- Is
the present study connected to previous research?
- Does
the content of the literature review relate directly to the research
problem or is it only peripherally related? Give examples to support your
response.
- Did
the author critically appraise and compare key studies? Are the studies
critiqued by the researcher, or just brined accounts of the study results
given?
- Is
the review organized in such a way that the development of ideas is clear?
- If
the review is part of a research report for a new study, does the review
support the need for the new research? If the review is designed to guide
clinical practice, does the review of the evidence support the need for
(or lack of need for) changes in practice?
- Is
the style of the review appropriate? Does the reviewer paraphrase, or is
there an overreliance on quotes? Does the review appear unbiased? Does the
reviewer use appropriately tentative language?
4. Theoretical/Conceptual Framework
- Does
the research report describe an explicit theoretical or conceptual
framework for the study? If not, does the absence of an explicit framework
detract from the usefulness or significance of the research?
- What
is the framework, and how is it presented?
- Does
the framework describe and defined the concepts of interest?
- Does
the framework present the relationships among the concepts and related
them to the study variables?
- Does
the report adequately describe the major features of the framework so that
readers can understand the conceptual basis of the study?
- Is
the framework consistent with the research paradigm?
- Do
the research problem and hypotheses naturally flow from the framework, or
does the purported link between the problem and the framework seem
contrived?
- Are
conceptual definitions of the concepts in the study provided? Are the
conceptual definitions consistent with the framework? Are the definitions
clear and sufficiently detailed?
- Identify
the variable(s) of interest in the study.
- State
the conceptual definition of each variable.
- State
the operational definition of each variable.
- Are
the variables adequately defined?
- Which
variable(s) are independent variables
- Which
variable(s) are dependent variables.
- Did
the framework guide the study methods? For example, do the operational
definitions correspond to the conceptual definitions? Were hypotheses
tested statistically?
- Does
the researcher tie the findings of the study back to the framework at the
end of the report? How do the findings support or undermine the framework?
Are the findings interpreted within the context of the framework?
5. Design
Research Designs in Quantitative Studies
- Given
the nature of the research question, what type of design is most
appropriate? How does this correspond to the type of design used?
- Does
the design used in the study involve an intervention? If yes, was an
experimental, quasi-experimental, or preexperimental design used--and was
this the most appropriate design?
- If
the design is nonexperimental, why didn't the researcher manipulate the
independent variable? Was the decision regarding manipulation appropriate?
- Was
the study longitudinal or cross-sectional? Was the number of points of
data collection appropriate, given the research question?
- What
type of comparisons were called for in the research design (e.g., was the
study design within-subjects or between-subjects)? Are these comparisons
the most appropriate for illuminating the relationship between the
independent and dependent variables?
- Can
the study be described as a survey, an evaluation, or outcomes research?
- What
procedures, if any, did the researcher use to control external (situational)
factors and intrinsic (subject characteristic) factors? Were these
procedures appropriate and adequate?
- To
what extent is the study internally valid? What types of alternative
explanations must be considered (i.e., what are the threats to the study's
internal validity)? Does the research design enable the researcher to draw
causal inferences about the relationship among study variables?
- To
what extent is the study externally valid?
- What
are the major limitations of the design used? Are these limitations
acknowledged by the researcher and taken into account in interpreting the
results?
Qualitative and Integrated Designs
- Is
the research tradition within which the qualitative study was undertaken
identified? What was the tradition? If no research tradition is
identified, can one be inferred?
- Does
the research question appear to be congruent with the research tradition
(i.e., is the domain of inquiry for the study congruent with the domain
encompassed by the tradition)? Do the data sources and general methods of
the study appear consistent with the tradition?
- How
well is the research design described? Are design decisions explained and
justified?
- Does
the design appear thoughtful and appropriate? Does the design lend itself
to a thorough, in-depth, intensive examination of the phenomenon of
interest? What design elements might have strengthened the study (e.g.,
would a longitudinal perspective have been preferable, although a
cross-sectional design was used)?
- Is
the study exclusively qualitative, or were both qualitative and
quantitative data collected? Could the study have been strengthened by the
inclusion of some quantitative data?
- If
both qualitative and quantitative data were collected, were they used in
complementary fashion? How (if at all) did the inclusion of both types of
data contribute to enhanced theoretical insights, enhanced validity, or
movement toward new frontiers?
6. Ethical/Protection
of Human Subjects
- Are
there any ethical transgressions in this study, or is there any evidence
that the rights of human subjects were violated during the course of the
investigation.
- Were
the subjects informed about the research project?
- Were
the study participants subjected to any physical harm, discomfort, or
psychological distress? Did the researchers take appropriate steps to
remove or prevent the harm?
- Did
the benefits to participants outweigh any potential risks or actual
discomfort they experienced? Did the benefits to society outweigh the
costs to participants?
- Was
any type of coercion or undue influence used in recruiting participants?
Were vulnerable subjects used?
- Were
participants deceived in any way? Were they fully aware of participating
in a study, and did they understand the purpose of the research? Were
appropriate consent procedures implemented?
- Were
appropriate steps taken to safeguard the privacy of participants?
- Was
the research approved and monitored by an Institutional Review Board or
other similar ethics review committee?
7.
Sampling
Quantitative Sampling Designs
- Is
the target or accessible population identified and described? Are
eligibility criteria specified? To whom can the study results be
generalized?
- Are
the sample selection procedures clearly described? What type of sampling
plan was used?
- How
adequate is the sampling plan in terms of yielding a representative
sample?
- Did
some factor other than the sampling plan affect the representativeness of
the sample (e.g., a low response rate)?
- Are
possible sample biases identified?
- Is
the sample size sufficiently large? Was the sample size justified on the
basis of a power analysis or other rationale?
Qualitative Sampling Designs
- Is
the setting or study group adequately described? Is the setting
appropriate for the research question?
- Are
the sample selection procedures described? What type of sampling strategy
was used?
- Given
the information needs of the study, was the sampling approach appropriate?
Were dimensions of the phenomenon under study adequately represented?
- Is
the sample size adequate? Did the researcher stipulate that information
redundancy was achieved? Do the findings suggest a richly textured and
comprehensive set of data without any apparent "holes" or thin
areas?
8.
Data Collection/Methods
- Was
the data collection process clearly described?
- Was
data collection conducted in a consistent way?
- Were
research controls maintained?
- If
data collectors were used, were they adequately trained?
- If
the study is qualitative, how is the credibility of the data established?
- Is
the method used to collect data compatible with the purpose of the
research?
- If a
particular approach is used to guide the inquiry, does the researcher
complete the study according to the process?
- Does
the researcher describe the selection of participants?
- Are
the participants who were chosen appropriate for this research question?
- Is
data collection focused on human experience?
- Does
the researcher describe data collection strategies (i.e. interview,
observation, field notes)?
- Are
the procedures for collecting data made explicit?
Self-Reports
- Does
the research question lend itself to a self-report method of data
collection? Would an alternative method have been more appropriate?
- Is
the degree of structure consistent with the nature of the research
question?
- Given
the research question and respondent characteristics, did the researcher
use the best possible mode for collecting the data (i.e., personal
interviews, telephone interviews, or self-administered questionnaires)?
- Do
the questions included in the instrument or topic guide adequately cover
the complexities of the problem under investigation?
- If a
composite scale was used, does its use seem appropriate? Does the scale
adequately capture the target research variable?
- If a
vignette, projective technique, or Q sort was used, does its use seem
appropriate?
Observational Methods
- Does
the research question lend itself to an observational approach? Would an
alternative method have been more appropriate?
- Is
the degree of structure consistent with the nature of the research
question?
- To
what degree were observers concealed during data collection? If there was
no concealment, what effect might the observers' presence have had on the
behaviors being observed?
- What
was the focus of the observation? How much inference was required on the
part of the observers, and to what extent did this affect the potential
for bias?
- Where
did the observations take place? To what extent did the setting influence
the naturalness of the behaviors observed?
- How
were data actually recorded (e.g., on field notes, checklists)? Did the
recording procedure appear appropriate?
- What
was the plan by which events or behaviors were sampled? Did this plan
appear appropriate?
- What
steps were taken to minimize observer biases?
Biophysiologic Methods
- Does
the research question lend itself to a biophysiologic approach? Would an
alternative method have been theoretically more appropriate?
- Was
the proper instrumentation used to obtain the biophysiologic measurements?
Would an alternative instrument or method have been more appropriate?
- Does
the researcher appear to have the skills necessary for proper
interpretation of the biophysiologic measures?
9.
Validity and Reliability of Instruments
- Were
the measurement strategies clearly identified and described?
- What
level of measurement was achieved by each instrument?
- Was
the reliability of each measurement method adequate?
- Was
the validity of each measurement method adequate?
- If
physiological instruments were used, were they accurate and precise?
- If
observers were used is evidence of inter-rater reliability given?
10.
Data Analysis