paper
najanamisabal91
HSA_ResearchGuidelines2020.pdf
G U I D E L I N E S F O R T H E A D V A N C E D H E A L T H S E R V I C E S M A N A G E M E N T A N D
R E S E A R C H S E M I N A R
M A S T E R O F H E A L T H S E R V I C E S
A D M I N I S T R A T I O N
1
Guidelines .............................................................................................................. 2
Part I: Advanced Research Seminar 6717 Research Overview ............................. 3
Advanced Health Services Management Research Seminar HSA 6717 Overview.4
Part II: 6977 Masters Research Project Overview….…………………………………………..5
Organization of the Research Proposal .................................................................. 6
Introduction/Background ................................................................................... 6
Statement of Problem ......................................................................................... 6
Significance of Study ........................................................................................... 7
Literature Review ............................................................................................... 8
Research Methods ............................................................................................ 10
Part II: 6977 Masters Research
Project……………………………………………………………………………………………………………17
Data Analysis………………………………………………………………………………………………….18
Results………………………………………………….………………………………………………………..19
Discussion, Recommendations, and
Conclusions………………………………………….…………………………………………………………22
References………………………………………….………………………………………………………….24
CONTENTS
2
A Masters degree contributes to the professional mastery of an administrative career in
health services administration. The Masters in Health Services Administration prepares
students with hands-on experience in conducting research and interacting with leaders while
working in an administrative residency in health service administration. The student
conducts a research project on a specific healthcare management problem or enrolls in the
Administrative Residency. At some point in the program, the student may choose enrollment
in research or the residency based on their interest.
Typically students enroll in the Professional Seminar (HSA 6930) and the Advanced
Research Seminar (HSA 6717), where all students develop a research proposal by the end of
the semester.
The student has the choice to enroll in either the Administrative Residency (HSA 6875)
or the Masters Research Project (HSA 6977). If the student chooses to enroll in the HSA
6977 instead of the HSA 6875, then the student advances in their research project. Students
who completed their research proposal during the Advanced Research Seminar may
continue to work in the final portion of the research project to fulfill the requirements for
HSA 6977. Page 4 of this guide describes the research project structure in detail.
The student who chooses to conduct a research project will finalize the research project
within two semesters— during the Advanced Research Seminar (HSA 6717) and the
Advanced Health Services Management and Research Seminar (HSA 6977) course. Below
there is a description of the Masters Program structure with either of these choices.
Guidelines
3
The first objective of these guidelines is to provide a roadmap for the student on both the
Advanced Research Seminar and the Masters Research Project. Students should know in
advance about the program research expectations. If a student decides to continue on the
research project path, they have the opportunity to continue to work on the research project
in their interest area. To ensure the student's success, follow these guidelines in preparation
for your research project.
The second objective of this guide is to show students the components for conducting
quantitative and/or qualitative studies, depending on the type of research design as
applicable.
Students are responsible for ensuring the research paper is free of errors in form, style,
spelling, and grammar. Students should follow the American Psychological Association
(APA) writing format. For more information on the APA writing style, consult the 7th
edition manual.
4
Advanced Research Seminar 6717 Overview
WEEK 1-2: Topic Selection
o Students enrolled in the Advanced Research Seminar 6717 who are interested in research,
discuss a research topic with the course instructor.
o Meet the course instructor to discuss potential topics (within the first three weeks).
o Search the literature to narrow down a topic of interest.
o Develop an annotated bibliography.
o Select a feasible research topic within the first three (3) weeks.
Note: Students who do not meet the topic selection deadline will be offered the opportunity to
register in the Administrative Residency HSA 6875.
WEEK 3-7: Develop Research Question and Purpose of Study
o Meet with the course instructor to discuss the research progress and proposed topic.
o Discuss a research proposal structure/plan
o Develop a research question
o Develop Introduction/Background, Statement of Problem, Purpose, and Significance of
Research
WEEK 8-11
o Start the Literature Review: Continue to research and annotate sources
o Start the methods section
WEEK 12-14
o Turn in a comprehensive research proposal including a list of references
5
Advanced Health Services Management Seminar
HSA 6977 Overview
WEEK 1-3: Data collection
o Meet with the course instructor to discuss the research progress and recruitment progress.
o Continue data collection process.
WEEK 4-5: Preliminary Analyses
o Meet with the course instructor to discuss a data analysis plan and conduct analyses.
o Report and discuss preliminary analyses with the course instructor
WEEK 6-7: Report participant demographics and other statistics
o Finalize analyses and reporting
WEEK 8-10: Write recommendations and conclusions
o Finalize the discussion, recommendations limitations and conclusions write up
WEEK 11-12 Prepare research project presentation
o Final research project presentation
o Turn in final research paper
6
Organization of the Research Proposal
The research proposal allows the student to write a formal written plan put forward for
consideration in the Professional Seminar.
When the student is writing the research proposal, it is written in the future tense, since
the research has not been conducted.
Example: 'This research will explore…'
Title Page
The title page should include several sections: Project title, name, name of the institution
name of the course instructor, and date the proposal is submitted. Do not include a running head
on the title page.
The title should be brief yet informative, providing the reader with a description of the
proposed topic of the research study. The title should reflect the identification of the problem the
research assesses.
Introduction/Background
The first section must capture the reader's interest, provide a rationale for the study as a whole,
and inform the reader about the research content and scope.
First, explain the research background starting from a broad perspective (e.g., what is known
about the problem globally? What is the prevalence of the problem nationwide? Second, describe
the problem at the local/state level.) Third, describe what is known about the research topic.
This section includes relevant references to support the statements part of the background. The
references should be from reliable sources of information, and these should be accurate.
References can be found in the peer-reviewed literature (i.e., scholarly journals), books, and other
reliable sources.
Statement of Problem
The statement of the problem lays the foundation for the issues being explored in the research
project. This section details why the problem requires research. The statement of the problem
section usually starts by addressing why the student is pursuing this research topic. Is it severe
enough to warrant the study? Next, place the problem and research question in perspective,
develop a narrative on the demographics (introducing the population of interest), and location of
the problem (setting/geographical location) or situation leading to the applied research. It is
essential to provide compelling evidence the problem exists. This section should also be supported
7
by evidence-based references/citations. Cite relevant literature to support the topic of interest and
the variables of the study.
Significance of the Study
This section narrates why the proposed research study is relevant or meaningful and why the study might be necessary. The use of literature is highly recommended to describe the gaps in
the published literature, insufficient knowledge in the subject area, or the need to validate the
findings of previous studies. Explain what the benefit or contribution to new knowledge is.
Example: "This research is important to understand barriers to access health care services
for South Florida residents with cardiovascular diseases. This study is relevant to
understand better what the specific barriers are so that intervention tailored to this
population are implemented."
Qualitative studies are exploratory in nature. An example of qualitative research is Interviews of clinical practitioners about the types of policies on a specific health program or available
therapies to treat a disease. This type of research is recommended when a researcher wants to
understand the population or area of interest from a behavioral or analytical perspective.
Interpretations of the answers are required.
In qualitative studies, there is a guide to topics/themes. Through this design, there is some
flexibility to explore the participant's responses through a structured interview process.
If a student decides to use a qualitative study as the design of their research, he/she shows the
study findings' using the research participants' direct narrative quotes that should support the study
conclusions.
Qualitative research question example: "What are the relevant barriers for access to
healthcare are for South Florida residents with cardiovascular diseases."
Quantitative Research
Quantitative studies use a structured variable-specific survey questionnaire or secondary data
collection. When using this type of research design, the student uses a representative sample of the
population of interest. The student should be cautious about the type of questions when using
questionnaires and should consult with the course instructor if they are planning to use surveys to
collect data. The survey question (s) should follow the research question objectives.
In these types of studies, the student should be able to speak about the data that supports the
conclusions. In quantitative research, it is not possible to subjectively interpret any results, as is the
case of qualitative research.
8
Quantitative research question example: "What are the most prevalent barriers to access health care services identified by South Florida residents with cardiovascular diseases?"
Literature Review
The purpose of the literature review is to describe the related and existent evidence about the
topic of interest. Creswell (2014) suggests that the literature review shares with the reader the
results of previous studies, related to the one being proposed/conducted.
The literature review is a critical review and assessment of current as well as previous research
studies or evidence in the field of study. This section compares and contrasts previous studies
related to the topic chosen, combining, and summarizing related studies.
The reader should be able to find a roadmap and a narrative describing many aspects of the
literature on what is known about the topic. Start by explaining the problem worldwide,
nationwide, and explain the varying results documented in the literature.
Provide a logical structure to the reader, guiding them through previous research studies and
theories supporting the proposed research, establishing the importance of the topic.
Be critical and consistent. Provide an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of previous
and current studies.
Cooper (2010) & Creswell (2014) recognized four aspects of literature reviews described below:
1) Integrate research/evidence that others have done or said 2) Criticize scholarly work 3) Build bridges between related topics 4) Identify the principal issues in a field
Example of a research question for the example below: "What are the barriers to access health care services identified by South Florida residents with cardiovascular diseases?"
Literature Example: "Access to health care seems to be improving in the United States
(Clooney, 2017). However, some research has found significant increases in chronic diseases
such as cardiovascular diseases in the state of Florida (Jones-Who, 2018). Therefore, more
research is needed to understand barriers for access to health care services identified by South
Florida residents with cardiovascular diseases, since the prevalence is rising. A recent study
found positive effects on access to health care and cardiovascular disease outcomes (Clooney &
Comellas, 2018). Clooney and Comellas (2018) argued there is an increasingly aging population
9
in South Florida identifying significant transportation barriers to access preventive care
services."
According to Creswell (2014) (in quantitative research), the literature review starts with a
(1) introduction section, followed by (2) topic 1 (the independent variable) (3) topic 2 (the dependent variable) and (4) topic 3 (studies that address both the dependent and independent variable) and (5) a summary highlighting the most important studies (Creswell, 2014, p. 47).
The literature review for a qualitative and quantitative study is written as part of the research
proposal.
Note: Use current literature / evidence. Seek the input from your course instructor.
Literature Review: Step by Step
Creswell (2014) suggests several different ways to work on a literature review:
1) Identify keywords to locate different materials in a library. The keywords may emerge from the literature, and it may allow for the identification of a topic.
2) Search journals, books, databases (e.g., FIU computer databases: ProQuest, EBSCO, PubMed, etc.).
3) Gather as many reports as possible that are related to the research topic. 4) Skim through the articles. Creswell (2014) suggests that throughout this process, it is
essential to try to gain a sense as to whether the research will make a useful
contribution to the understanding of the literature.
5) Begin a literature map. a. This is a visual picture or groupings of the literature on the topic illustrating
how the study will contribute to the literature.
b. Position the study within the larger body of research. 6) Begin to draft summaries of the most relevant articles. Start critiquing the previous
literature and point out deficiencies and issues with the methods.
7) Assemble the literature review. Structure of the literature thematically (use headings).
The literature review conclusion should suggest how the proposed research may contribute
to the current literature and could address gaps in the current literature.
10
Research Methods
This section describes participant selection, the data collection of the research procedures,
and data analysis.
This section starts with a description of the study design (i.e., qualitative and/or quantitative
design). The methods section includes the following:
1. Introduction. This section includes a reiteration of the statement of the problem and the research question. 2. Participants. This section includes the study population and sample selection (quantitative) or a description of study participants (e.g., males and/or females, age range, ethnicity, or other demographical characteristics). Describe how the participants will be chosen (qualitative), recruitment procedures, the estimated number of participants, and reimbursement or monetary compensations are given to participants (if any) should be specified.
3. Procedures for data collection. This section includes detailed descriptions of procedures (quantitative or qualitative) used/to be used to collect the data. Anticipate how data will be collected. Explain why each procedure was chosen. It is also essential to describe how the procedure will address the research questions. 4. Data Collection. In this course, data collection will be done mainly through secondary data (data collected by others, not the principal investigator). Provide a rationale for the procedures, using arguments based on its strengths and weaknesses, costs, data availability and/or convenience. 5. Ethical Considerations. This section should describe foreseeable risks or discomforts
related to participation (if any). Everyone who decides to participate in the study should receive
an informed consent form. The researcher should provide their contact information in case the
participants request additional research-related information.
Qualitative and Quantitative Content
Qualitative Research
When conducting qualitative research, the aim is to address people's experiences, needs, and
different perspectives. Qualitative research aims at understanding and observing attitudes, life
circumstances, beliefs, opinions, behaviors, and processes in depth.
Data is collected by interviewing people and recording the responses as well as observing and
documenting participant body language. The conventional approaches for facilitating interviews
are:
11
a. In-depth interviews: These are one on one interviews. Researchers are interested in
understanding individual experiences or opinions.
b. Focus group interviews: The researcher attempts to discuss or explore participants'
opinions in a group setting.
c. Telephone mediated interviews: The researcher interviews participants by phone.
d. Online mediated interviews: These are one on one interviews conducted online.
e. Observation: This is an approach often used as a supplement to recording
participant's responses.
Quantitative Research
When conducting quantitative research, data is often gathered using surveys either in person
or through the Internet. If the information is collected through a survey questionnaire, it usually has
three sections: (a) inclusion/exclusion criteria, (b) demographic information, and (c) the questions
assessing the study variable (s) of interest.
Participants
Qualitative Research
In qualitative research designs, the researcher purposely identifies the individuals (usually
between 5 to 10 study participants) for the proposed study (Creswell, 2014). He/she should have
in mind the research problem and which population (s) are affected by the problem.
This section of the paper describes the selection of study participants, explains the
characteristics of the participants, and describes the proposed number of participants. It also
includes the inclusion and the exclusion criteria for including the research population.
Quantitative Research
As is the case with qualitative research designs, this section describes the selection of
participants (e.g., data), explaining the demographic characteristics, and describing the proposed
number in the sample being studied. It also includes the inclusion and exclusion criteria for
selecting the research sample. Sample sizes may vary based upon the research aim/question (s).
Large sample sizes (e.g., ≥ 100), often leads to increased accuracy in estimates about the
population.
Note: Students are encouraged to ask their course instructor for recommendations on sample
sizes.
12
Procedures
Qualitative Research
This section describes the participant's recruitment process as well as the methods used while
conducting the interviews (e.g., notes, audiotape recording, and videotape recording). Discuss how
the group (if a focus group) will discuss a quiet, comfortable place to ensure everyone
speaks/participate. Describe the development of a topic guide. A topic guide is used in the
interview process to guide and discuss critical questions the interviewer would like to cover,
including useful prompts to encourage discussion.
Include an explanation about transcribing the interview once the participant's
interviews/discussions have ended. After transcribing, the student reads the interviews (i.e., the
data) and start coding it.
Note: Coding is an approach used to organize the data by grouping pieces (categorizing
the data) and writing a word representing a category (Rossman & Rallis, 2012;
Creswell, 2014, p. 198). In qualitative research, data is primarily in the form of
words derived from the participant's expressions on a subject matter.
The data should be organized into categories of themes. Describe how validity occurs in the
research process to validate the findings of the proposed study.
Describe one or more strategies for establishing the accurateness of the findings. Some of the
commonly used strategies are described below:
a) Triangulation: Search for different data sources and use these to build the justification of themes (Creswell, 2014). If the researcher finds that the themes are established based on
converging several sources of data or participant perspectives, then this would add to the
validity of the study.
b) Member checking: Taking the emergent themes back to the participants and asking them if they feel the themes are correct.
Note: To check the reliability, researchers may cross-check the results with an
independent person who can check the codes used by the researcher. Consult the
course instructor for more information on these methods.
13
Quantitative Research
In this section, the student documents the participant's recruitment process (e.g., consecutively,
using a snowball approach, randomly, or other procedure that is free from bias). The student must
always provide informed consent and specify the research is voluntary to all participants before
starting the data collection process. Therefore, the student must describe the informed consent
process in the methods section (if administering a survey).
This section describes the processes used while collecting the research data. It documents all
the processes for gathering data, selecting participants (or sites), providing copies of the consent
form (if applicable).
Describe the study variables, the parameters established for the variable (s) of study (e.g.,
optimal health risk scores are defined as ≥10"), and how these data collected was collected.
Data Collection
Qualitative Research
It is common to develop structured and semi-structured questions and record each
participant's responses. The interview research question should map to the main research
question.
When conducting qualitative research, an interview/discussion guide is developed to conduct
the interviews. These questions address the main research problem. Other data collected during
the interviews could include participant demographics (e.g., age, sex, race/ethnicity, income for
descriptive statistics).
Note: The student interviewer informs the research participant of the location, day, and
time of the interview. The interviewer ensures the participants have the interviewer
contact information in case they get lost, are delayed, or have other problems before the
interview.
During and before the interview:
a) Provide an informed consent form indicating the research is voluntary
b) Remind the research participants that they will be recorded
c) Remind the research participants that there are no right or wrong answers during the
interview session (promote open and honest communication)
d) State name and the goal of meeting with the participants
e) Ask each participant to introduce themselves, state their names or initials so that you
can later distinguish each participant responses
14
f) Do not redirect or interpret the respondent answers, or judge
g) Know the interview guide and questions
h) Do not bring any knowledge to the table
i) Be comfortable with silence Note: Use probes as needed. For example – be silent, repeat the statement they said, and then continue neutrally ("I see, uh…"), direct ("Tell me more"), and clarify (what, where, when, what).
Quantitative Research
This section describes how many questions are going to be used (even if it is secondary data
collection) and how the survey that led to the data collection was developed.
Example: "The data used in this research is from the cardiovascular diseases questionnaire used
in research conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention. This is a national cross-sectional research study representative of the
U.S. population. The interviewers were elderly persons and minorities to provide a full
representation of the U.S population. Note: If the student plans to use a survey or other form of data collection, consult the course instructor for guidance.
Sample Population (Participants) Qualitative Research
In qualitative research designs, the researcher purposely identifies the individuals (usually
between 5 to 10 study participants) for the proposed study (Creswell, 2014). The student should
have in mind the research problem and which population (s) are affected by the problem.
This section describes the selection of study participants, explains the characteristics of the
participants, and describes the number of participants the student plans to recruit. To determine
the sample size, consult the course instructor for guidance. This section includes the inclusion
and exclusion criteria for study participation. The inclusion criteria describe which participants
should be included in the research (e.g., individuals with diabetes and/or people who had an HPV
vaccination, ages 18yrs and over).
Conversely, the exclusion criteria disqualify those individuals (potential participants) who do
not meet the described characteristics the researcher is looking for.
Quantitative Research
15
As is the case with qualitative research designs, this section of the paper also describes the
selection of research participants, explains the characteristics of the participants, and describes
the proposed number of participants. It also includes the inclusion and exclusion criteria for
study participation (as described above). Samples sizes may vary based upon the research
aim/question (s). Large sample sizes (e.g., ≥ 100), often leads to increased accuracy in estimates
about the population. Students are encouraged to ask their course instructor for recommendations
on sample sizes. The requirements for sample sizes may vary by study design. Instrumentation Qualitative Research
This section describes the qualitative research approach to open-ended questions. In
qualitative research, the study questions usually begin with what, when, where, why, and how.
It is common to develop structured and semi-structured questions and record each
participant's responses. The interview research aim/questions should map to the main research
question (s) of study.
When conducting qualitative research, an interview/discussion guide is developed to conduct
the interviews. These questions address the main research problem. Other data collected during
the interviews could include participant demographics (e.g., age, gender, race/ethnicity, income
for descriptive statistics).
Note: When conducting qualitative studies, the researcher obtains consent from potential
research participants. The researcher then sets up an appointment to conduct the
interview. As discussed in the types of the qualitative research section of this guide,
interviews can be in the form of focus groups, individual interviews, and others (as
described on page 9). The interviewer then informs the research participant (s) of the
location, day, and time of the interview. The interviewer ensures the participant (s) have a
contact number in case they get lost, are delayed, or have other problems before the
interview.
During the interview, the researcher follows the following research protocol:
j) Provide a consent form
k) Remind the research participants that they will be recorded
l) Remind the research participants that there are no right or wrong answers
during the interview session (promote open and honest communication)
m) State name and the goal of meeting with the participants
n) Ask each participant to introduce themselves, state their names or initials so
that you can later distinguish each participant responses
16
o) Do not redirect or interpret the respondent answers, or judge
p) Know the interview guide and questions
q) Do not bring any knowledge to the table
r) Be comfortable with silence Note: Use probes as needed. For example – be silent, repeat the statement they said, and then continue neutrally ("I see, uh…I understand"), direct ("Tell me more"), and clarify (what, where, when, what).
Quantitative Research
This section describes the survey (s) instrument (s). Describe how many questions there are and
if the survey has been used in previous research. If the survey has been used in previous research,
refer to the research and reference it in the references section.
Example: "The survey used in this study was adapted (Jones-Who and Einstein et al., 2019) and is intended to assess the needs of older adults over the age of 65. Survey questions were tested before study initiation. Reliability was measured by surveying a subsample of people. The reliability was 0.59, suggesting good reliability." Note: According to Creswell (2018), when using a previously used instrument, ensure to report the reliability and validity of scores on past uses.
Ethical Considerations
For both qualitative and quantitative designs, this section explains how the researcher will
protect the privacy and confidentiality of the research participants. It describes how the data will be
securely stored and/or transported and how the data will be kept confidential to protect the
participant's privacy. It also describes how the data will be handled once the research is completed.
This section should describe foreseeable risks or discomforts related to participation (if any).
Everyone who decides to participate in the study should receive an informed consent form. The
researcher should provide their contact information in case the participants request additional
research-related information.
17
Masters Research Project HSA 6977
WEEK 1-3: Data collection
o Meet with the course instructor to discuss the research progress and recruitment progress.
o Continue data collection process.
WEEK 4-5: Preliminary Analyses
o Meet with the course instructor to discuss a data analysis plan and conduct analyses. o Report and discuss preliminary analyses with the course instructor
WEEK 6-7: Report participant demographics and other statistics
o Finalize analyses and reporting
WEEK 8-10: Write recommendations and conclusions
o Finalize the discussion, recommendations limitations and conclusions write up
WEEK 11-12 Prepare research project presentation
o Final research project presentation o Turn in final research paper
18
Data Analysis Qualitative Research
Before the data analysis, ensure you have collected the "prescribed" data according to the
course, instruct suggested guidance. This section explains how the data analysis section would be
organized. It also describes the data analysis plan, how to code the study variables, and the specific
statistical tests (e.g., counts, percentages, means) that would be gathered (if applicable). Tips: Propose to use software for data organization and management:
a) NVIVO and/or Microsoft Excel can be used to organize the historical data
collected.
b) For the demographical data (organize it in Microsoft Excel).
c) If using Microsoft Excel, create headings in each column with the themes (type the
questions you asked in your interviews) for classifying themes and units of
analysis.
d) Quantify (count) your themes and report its frequencies
e) Always refer back to the research aim/question, asking has the research
aim/question been answered.
Quantitative Research
This section explains how the data analysis section is organized. Follow the data analysis plan
written in HSA 6717 sequential order. The analysis plan section should include:
(1) Descriptive statistics of the data for all the dependent and independent study variables.
(2) Describe the univariable analysis for the main effect and/or bivariate analysis plan,
including choosing the right statistic for the analyses.
(3) Explain the multivariate analysis plan (if applicable).
When describing the statistical tests, document the use of descriptive statistics (i.e., the
reporting of frequencies and percentages, average and counts). Justify the selection of the statistical
test (s).
After discussing the descriptive statistics, focus on describing how the variables will be
measured on the survey instrument. How will the variables (i.e., dependent and independent
variables) be categorized (e.g., continuously or categorically)? How will the variables be
19
numerically coded? Discuss which of the questions in the survey instrument answer the research
question (s).
Describe other statistical data plans on how to handle the data (e.g., missing variables, outliers,
normality of the data). Discuss if the survey instrument (s) have reliability and internal consistency
(Cronbach alpha statistic).
Explain the results will be shown using tables, graphs, figures, or another form.
The paper ends with a discussion of the implications for the practice of the study. It can discuss
theoretical and practical consequences once the study is completed.
For more information on statistical tests, consult with the course instructor. Results
This section of the paper describes the results of the data analysis. In order to show and
write the results, the researcher should analyze the data first. The data is analyzed following the
methodology described in the methods section.
The paper begins with a statement describing the purpose of the research and the study
research aim/question. Next, describe the descriptive statistics (i.e., participant's demographics
such as age, sex, race/ethnicity, income, and other relevant characteristics) of all the participants.
Note: The results section should describe the findings of the research organized in
sequence and without bias. Each research aim/question should be addressed. Use text to
describe the results followed by figures and/or tables to present results. Tables are formatted
according to the APA format.
Number all tables and figures with Arabic numerals in the order in which they are first
mentioned in the text. Label the tables as Table 1, Table 2, or Figure 1, Figure 2.
Demographic Characteristics Qualitative Research
This section includes a description of the demographic data describing the participant's age,
gender, and other relevant participant characteristics.
20
Cresswell (2014) describes the data analysis and interpretation process in several steps
described below:
1) Organize and prepare the data for the data analysis. This process consists of
transcribing interviews and/or gathering notes associated with each interview.
2) Read all the data. Obtain a general sense of the overall depth and meaning.
3) Start coding all of the data.
4) Use the coding process to come up with the categories and themes.
5) Progress to how the description and themes will be represented in the narrative.
Typically, this information is presented using tables, figures, and process visuals (based
on theory) to provide meaning and an interpretation of the data.
6) Create an interpretation of the results. Question what were the lessons learned (Lincoln
& Guba, 1985; Creswell, 2014). This could include meanings derived from a
comparison of the findings with information collected from the literature.
Example: Coding participant's demographical characteristics:
Respondents listed their marital status as: (single=1, married=2).
Add a category for respondents that did not fall into the common themes or
categories you have identified (e.g., 99 coded as "lack of time").
Example: Coding responses from open-ended questions.
Participant A statement: "The teaching style
that I think is most helpful for learners is the
computer based. Most people have a computer
in the U.S and we are used to them. I also
think is important to have the information
readily available whenever you need it"
Note: The statement above was coded as "computer-based learning". Label the
categories using a term often taken directly from the participant's language.
The text describes the participant demographic characteristics. Discuss the results in
sequence and without bias. Use text to describe the results followed by figures and/or tables to
present results. When conducting qualitative studies, the participant's demographics are often
collected. If this is the case, describe the data patterns, counts, and percentages. Note: The first table in this section is always the demographical information (i.e., written as the number of frequencies and percentage) of the participants.
Code: Computer
Based learning.
21
1) Describe the sample of participants (e.g., college students ages 18 – 24 years) 2) What was the group profile? (e.g., give the reader a sense of the ratio between
men to women)
3) How many people took part in each focus group?
The significant findings are found within the participant's responses. When conducting
qualitative research, the data analysis is based on thematic analysis, looking at all the data to
identify all the main themes that summarize all the narratives collected. The results should be
organized using headings.
This paper should report the research themes and subthemes from participants' recordings,
even if these do not fit with the primary research categories/themes. Alternatively, some of the
transcriptions may be added as an appendix.
This section concludes with a summary of the major themes found in the results section
(Creswell, 2014). The summary should be focused on the study results based on the analyses and
not on existing studies' findings.
Quantitative Research
The second paragraph describes the results of the descriptive statistics, which include the
demographical characteristics of the participants.
Note: Ensure the research aim/question (s) have been answered and addressed when conducting the data analysis and reporting on the results.
Describe how and where (i.e., the location) the participants were recruited for participation
and the study inclusion criteria. Describe the sample population (i.e., how many participants;
n=100) age, gender educational attainment, and other relevant demographics.
Report the frequencies, average (if applicable), for each variable and its percentage: display
charts, histograms, or any other visual.
Example: Table 1 shows the age range of the respondents. Sixty-eight percent (68%) of the respondents were 25-35 years old, showing that most of them were males (55%) followed by females (45%). The mean age of students was 24.2 years, and/or median income was $30,000.
After reporting the descriptive statistics results and other significant findings, including the
multivariate analyses results (if applicable). Report the exact inferential test (s) used during the
data analysis process (e.g., a Pearson chi-square test was used to evaluate…). The use of a specific
statistical test should be explained and justified.
22
Report the significance test (e.g., one-tailed, two-tailed), report the significance level, and any p-
values regardless of finding significance or not. For correlational analyses, report the "n" and
percentages as well as the exact estimate of correlations for all variables compared for each
analysis performed. Provide information to 1) Describe the characteristics of all the data collected;
2) explain the use of a specific analysis technique, and 3) report accurate interpretation of findings.
Make the decision associated with the hypotheses (was the null hypothesis research project
rejected or accepted?). This section ends with a summary of relevant findings arranged in
sequence.
Discussion, Recommendations, and Conclusions
This is the final portion of the research project. This section starts by highlighting the
overall significant study findings. In this section, both the study conclusions and recommendations
are made based on the results of the research. Whenever there is a recommendation, there should
be information to support it. The researcher should cite other studies that support the study
findings.
The discussion and recommendation sections (as well as the entire paper), should be written
from the perspective of a health service administrator. Some crucial topics for consideration can
be found below:
1. Quality Assessment for Patient Care improvement: 2. Financials 3. Information Technology Management & Assessment 4. Economic Analysis & Application to Decision Making 5. Health Policy Formulation, Implementation & further evaluation 6. Legal 7. Market Analysis Research & Assessment 8. Governance Structure & Roles 9. Population Health & Status Assessment 10. Strategy formulation & Implementation 11. Ethics & Clinic Decision Making 12. Management of HR & Health Professionals 13. Organizational Management
The conclusions section should appear last. Ensure this section is consistent with the
research results.
23
Qualitative Research
The first paragraph restates the purpose of the study, and the overall significant study
findings are highlighted. Describe the research findings, along with knowledge not reported by any
other literature.
The conclusions in this section should be based uniquely on study findings using the
research participant's direct narrative quotes, which should support the study conclusions. In
qualitative research, often, the findings may serve to develop a quantitative study to confirm them.
Other important objectives for this section are to:
1) Respond to the research aim/question (s) 2) Address methodological limitations 3) Recount the study findings compared to those of prior studies, and suggest
implications for adjusting theories or informing new knowledge 4) Describe how the results are related to education in the field associated with the study
Quantitative Research
The main objective here is to interpret the findings (refer to the research results), make
recommendations, and conclude.
The first paragraph starts with a restatement of the overall purpose of the study. This
section should report the conclusions based on the study variables. The entire paper must be based
on the statistical results of the data analysis. Discuss how the statistical results relate to the purpose
of the study and the research aim/question.
Present the conclusions by topic (ensure the research aim/questions were answered).
Summarize the research findings presented in the results section. Then, explain the most relevant
finding (s) related to the overall purpose of the study.
When providing recommendations, these must be supported by the results from the data.
Discuss real-world steps for educators to implement the key findings of the research study. Example: The statistical results found that: teaching styles (i.e., computer-based) and students' test scores in the Advanced Management and Accounting course were significant. Then, a recommendation is made, such as a computer-based teaching style that should be employed in order to improve student's test scores.
The final section of the paper is the conclusion. Summarize the overall conclusion of the
data analysis based on the purpose of the study. Explain the significance of the relevant findings
and how these are applied to health services administration.
24
References
All references are repeated in the References/Reference in a consolidated list at the end of the
paper, and before any Appendices. All references should follow the APA Manual, most recent
edition. The author arranges the list alphabetically. The list is headed References and begins on a
new page with a level 1 heading.
A reference entry is typed double spaced with a double space separating each entry. The first
line of each entry is not indented, and the second and all subsequent lines of each entry are
indented. The APA cross reference guidelines specify the DOI inclusion.
Example:
Jones, J. C., Einstein, A., Comellas, M., & Clooney, G. (2017). The examination of the roles of
students' academic performance and attentive processes based on memory. The
Psychology Academic Performance, 3, 27–33. https://doi.org/11.1072/arc34500012
Appendices
A research project should provide an appropriate means for making various supplementary
materials available. These materials are usually the research survey or the question guide
(depending on which is the research design).
Each appendix begins on a new page and is centered with its letter and a short descriptive title
