use of a homogeneous

sample of subjects to
eliminate variability on
characteristics that
could affect study
outcomes.

design that emerges in the field as

the
study unfolds.

is used to remove the effect of

situational factors that could affect the study
outcomes
(e.g., the environment) and intrinsic subject
characteristics extraneous to the research
question.

Another technique is to control

extraneous variables
through

One such procedure

is known as

concerns the
strength of evidence that a
relationship exists
between two variables.

concerns the degree to

which
the results of a study can be
attributed to the
independent
variable.

study is
performed, as a means of controlling situational
factors.

the exactness
of the relationships revealed after
controlling
extraneous variables

involves efforts to make

groups comparable
by matching subjects (either
through
pair-matching or
balancing groups

(the ability to detect true

relationships
among variables

preexisting group differences;

(changes resulting from

the passage of time

effects of a pretest
on outcomes

the occurrence of events

external to an independent variable
that can affect
outcomes

refers to the generalizability

of study findings to other samples
and settings

effects attributable to subject attrition

changes in the
way data are gathered over time

the population
from which a sample is drawn

Threats to external validity

qualitative researchers tend to be

creative and intuitive, putting
together an array
of data drawn from many sources to
arrive at a
holistic understanding of a
phenomenon.

determine salient aspects of

the phenomenon under study

represents a larger group of interest

that closely examines important

aspects
of the phenomenon

include expectancy
effects (Hawthorne effect, placebo
effect, nocebo
effect); novelty effects; interaction of
treatment and history effects;
experimenter
effects; and measurement effects

involves
seeking preliminary evidence of the
effectiveness of the treatment as
designed in
phase I.

confirm findings.

the researcher focuses

primarily on long-term consequences
of
the intervention, including both
benefits and
side effects.

which are studies designed to

assess the effectiveness of clinical
interventions,
are often designed in a series of
phases

of a clinical trial is designed to finalize

the features of the intervention

plotted on special graphs

Most sequential trials use measures indicating

experimental data
from paired mini-experiments are
continuously
analyzed; the experiment is stopped
as
soon as the evidence supports a
conclusion
about the efficacy of the intervention

the plot crosses one of the boundaries,

is a full experimental test of

the treatment, often referred to as a

assesses the effectiveness

of a program, policy, or procedure to
assist
decision-makers in choosing a course
of action.

attempts
to understand all the effects of a
program,
regardless of whether they were
intended

test whether an intervention

caused any net impacts relative to
the
counterfactual.

assesses the congruence

between the goals of the program
and
actual outcomes

describe the status of some

condition after the introduction of an
intervention.

seek to determine
whether the monetary costs of a
program
are outweighed by benefits and
include both
costbenefit analyses and costeffectiveness
analyses.

factors such as accessibility, range of

services, facilities, and organizational
climate

describe
the process by which a program gets
implemented
and how it functions in practice.

is a term sometimes
used to refer to a distinctive process
of planning,
developing, implementing, testing,
and disseminating
interventions.

is undertaken to document
the quality and effectiveness of
health care and
nursing services.

which the design and evaluation of

an intervention flow

the investigator is
concerned with the development,
validation, and
assessment of methodologic tools or
strategies

nursing interventions and actions)

severity of illness and

case mix of the caseload

deliberate attempts to test the

implications
of the original research)

specific end-results of patient care in

terms of
patient functioning

exact duplication of methods of an

earlier
study in a new study

close approximation but not exact

duplication
of methods

examines peoples characteristics,

behaviors, attitudes, and intentions
by
asking them to answer a series of
questions

in which interviewers meet

respondents face-to-face and
question them

is a method of integrating the

findings of prior research using
statistical procedures,
counting each study as one unit of
analysis.

are self-administered
(i.e., questions are read by
respondents, who
then give written responses).

are more economical, but

are not recommended if the interview
is long or
detailed or if the questions are
sensitive or personal.

focuses on the culture of a group

of people and relies on extensive field
work

is a method of problem
solving in which several rounds of
questionnaires
are mailed to a panel of experts.

are studies to document the

needs of a group or community. The
three main
techniques used to conduct needs
assessments
include the key informant, survey,
or indicator
approach.

outsiders

nsiders

strive to acquire an emic (insiders)

perspective of a culture rather than
an
etic (outsiders) perspective. Nurses
sometimes
refer to their ethnographic studies as
ethnonursing
research.

as instrument is
frequently used by ethnographers to
describe
the significant role researchers play in
analyzing
and interpreting a culture.

refers to studies in which

researchers analyze previously
collected data

seeks to discover the essence

and meaning of a phenomenon as it
is experienced
by people

an approach to studying social

psychological processes and social
structures,
aims to discover theoretical precepts
grounded in the data.

the essence of the phenomenon

by remaining open to meanings
attributed
to it by those who have experienced
it

categories elicited from the

data are constantly compared with
data obtained
earlier so that shared themes and
variations can
be determined.

which is grounded in data on a

specific substantive area,

often using data from substantive

theory
studies), which is at a higher level of
abstraction.

out preconceived
views

the systematic attempt

to establish facts and relationships
about past
events

are intensive investigations of a

single entity or a small number of
entities, such
as individuals, groups, organizations,
families,
or communities; such studies usually
involve
collecting data over an extended
period.

which is concerned
with the authenticity of the source

which assesses the worth of the

evidence.

focuses on story in studies

in which the purpose is to determine
how individuals
make sense of events in their lives.

are interpretive
translations produced from the
integration of
findings from qualitative studies.

Such studies may simply be referred

to
as qualitative studies, naturalistic
inquiries, or as
qualitative

is a systematic
means of confirming the applicability
of
clinical strategies suggested by a
qualitative
study and to evaluate clinical
outcomes.

is concerned with a critique of

existing
social structures; critical researchers
strive
to conduct inquiries that involve
collaboration

produces
knowledge through close
collaboration with
groups or communities that are
vulnerable to
control or oppression by a dominant
culture

uses the principles of critical theory

in the study of cultures.

which there is greater integration of

methods throughout the research
process.

the blending of qualitative and

quantitative data
in a single project, can be
advantageous in developing
an evidence base for nursing
practice.

the qualitative and quantitative

aspects of
the study are implemented as
discrete components,
and are distinct during data collection
and
data analysis.

like critical research, is designed

to be transformative, but the focus is
sharply on how gender domination
and discrimination
shape womens lives and their
consciousness.

Examples of component designs

types of integrated designs are

also used to illustrate, clarify,

or amplify the meaning of quantified
descriptions
or relationships.

The most ambitious application of an

integrated
approach is in the area of

Researchers usually sample from an

is the process of selecting a portion

The criteria that specify population

characteristics

which is an entire aggregate of cases.

is the basic unit about which

information
is collectedusually humans in
nursing
research.

to which they would like to generalize

their results.

extent to which the sample is similar

to the
population and avoids bias

refers to the systematic overrepresentation or

under-representation of some
segment of the
population.

wherein elements are selected by

nonrandom
methods) are convenience, quota,
and
purposive sampling

uses the most readily available or

most
convenient group of people for the
sample

type of convenience
sampling in which referrals for
potential participants
are made by those already in the
sample.

divides the population into

homogeneous
strata (subpopulations) to ensure
representation of the subgroups in
the sample

participants
are hand-picked to be included in the
sample based on the researchers
knowledge
about the population.

designs, which involve

the random selection of elements
from the population,
yield more representative samples

involves the random

selection of elements from a sampling
frame
that enumerates all the elements

divides the population into

homogeneous
subgroups from which elements are
selected at random.

estimate sample
size needs.

which is the
standard distance between the
selected elements.

involves the successive selection of

random
samples from larger to smaller units
by either
simple random or stratified random
methods.

is the selection of every

kth case from a list.

that is, selecting

cases that enrich and challenge the
researchers
conceptualizations.

guide them in selecting data sources

that maximize information richness.

which entails
purposely selecting cases with a wide
range of
variation.

selecting cases that are intense but

not extreme);

deliberately reducing
variation

involves studying cases

that meet a predetermined criterion
of importance.

(selecting
the most unusual or extreme cases)

selecting
cases that illustrate what is typical)

which involves
sampling to the point at which no
new information
is obtained and redundancy is
achieved

(selecting cases that are especially

important or illustrative

typically work with a small

sample of people (10 or fewer) who
meet the
criterion of having lived the
experience under
study

make numerous sampling decisions,

including not only whom to sample
but
what to sample

typically use theoretical

sampling and work with samples of
about 20 to 30 people.

who serve as guides

and interpreters of the culture.

(selecting cases on the basis of

their representation of important
constructs