RESEARCH AND EVIDENCE BASED PRACTICE IN NURSING

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NRSE_4550_M1_LA_Research_Questions_and_Hypothesis.ppt

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CHAPTER 2

Research Questions,

Hypotheses, and Clinical Questions

The Research Question

Presents the idea that will be studied

Also called the problem statement

Research questions focus on:

Describing variables

Specifying the population being studied

Examining testable relationships among variables

The hypothesis attempts to answer the research question

Research Questions Should

Define specific question area

Reflect a review of the literature

Identify the potential significance to nursing

Reflect the feasibility of studying the research question

Defining the Research Question

Literature Review

Critical examination of individual studies and systematic reviews to refine and focus the research question

Important variables can be identified

Significance of the
Research Question

Will patients, nurses, the medical community in general, and society potentially benefit from the knowledge derived from the study?

Will the results be applicable for nursing practice, education, or administration?

Will the results be theoretically relevant?

Significance of the
Research Question

Will the findings lend support to untested theoretical assumptions, extend or challenge an existing theory, fill a gap, or clarify a conflict in the literature?

Will the findings potentially provide evidence that supports developing, retaining, or revising nursing practices or policies?

Feasibility of the
Research Question

Is there time?

Is the population of interest available?

Are facilities, equipment, and money adequate?

Does the researcher have the experience and skills necessary?

Are there ethical difficulties?

Fully Developed Research Question

Three characteristics should be evident:

The variables being considered are clearly identified.

The population being studied is specified.

The possibility of empirical testing is implied.

Variables

Something that varies

Examples: Age, weight, height, religion, ethnicity

Do differences in one variable relate to differences in another variable?

Is X related to Y?

What is the effect of X on Y?

Variables

Independent variable—X

Presumed to have the effect on Y

Manipulated

Dependent variable—Y

Varies depending on X

Not manipulated but observed

This is the variable we are interested in understanding

**Remember the dependent variable is DEPENDENT on the Independent variable**

Variables

A variable could be the independent variable in one study and the dependent variable in another study.

Variables

EXAMPLE

In an article about sexual behaviors that are predictive of risk for HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS is the dependent variable.

In an article about the relationship between HIV/AIDS and maternal parenting practices, HIV/AIDS status is the independent variable.

Important Concept: Causal Relationships

Changes in X do not necessarily CAUSE changes in Y.

Changes in X are said to be RELATED to changes in Y.

It cannot be assumed that changes in X CAUSED changes in Y.

Population

Must be clearly specified

The setting is also usually clearly described

Breast cancer survivors who have completed treatment

Adolescents in substance abuse treatment

Nursing students in the first year of nursing school

Testability

Can the research question be tested by measuring the relationship between the independent (X) and dependent (Y) variables?

The variables can be observed, measured, and analyzed.

Study Purpose, Aims, or Objectives

What the investigator hopes to achieve

Suggests the level of evidence to be obtained

Study Purpose, Aims, or Objectives

Research Hypothesis

Flows from the research question, literature review, and theoretical framework

Predicts the expected outcome

Formulated before the study is started because it determines how data are collected, analyzed, and interpreted

Research Hypothesis

What Is a “Good” Hypothesis?

A declarative statement that identifies a predicted relationship between X and Y

The nature of the relationship is implied

Causal relationship: X causes a change in Y

Associative relationship: X and Y are systematically related

What Is a ‘Good’ Hypothesis?

Testable: variables can be observed or measured

Theory base: consistent with existing theory and research findings

Wording of the Hypothesis

The variables of the hypothesis:

The population being studied

The predicted outcome of the hypothesis

Research Hypothesis vs. Statistical Hypothesis

Research hypothesis

Also known as scientific hypothesis

Predicts the expected outcome

May be directional or nondirectional

Research Hypothesis vs. Statistical Hypothesis

Statistical hypothesis

Also known as null hypothesis

States there is NO relationship between X (independent) and Y (dependent) variables

Directional vs. Nondirectional

A directional research hypothesis predicts the expected direction of the relationship between X and Y.

A nondirectional research hypothesis does not predict the anticipated direction of the relationship between X and Y.

Hypotheses

Most hypotheses are RESEARCH hypotheses and DIRECTIONAL because they PREDICT the DIRECTION of the outcome.

That is, they state in what way and in what direction X will influence Y.

Hypotheses

Some hypotheses are TWO-TAILED hypotheses and NONDIRECTIONAL because they PREDICT that there will be a difference between the groups but not the DIRECTION of the difference.

Developing a Clinical Question

Clinical questions have four components, or PICO:

Population

Intervention

Comparison

Outcome

Developing a Clinical Question

Critiquing the Research Question

Is there an implied relationship between two or more variables? Between an independent (X) and dependent (Y) variable?

Is the population being studied described?

Can the implied relationships be tested?

Critiquing the Hypothesis

The hypothesis might not be explicitly stated; it may be inferred.

Even when stated, the hypothesis should be reexamined in the Results or Discussion section.

Data analysis should answer the hypothesis.

The hypothesis should logically follow from the literature review and theoretical framework.

Critiquing the Hypothesis

If hypothesis is directional, determine whether it is the appropriate direction.

The hypothesis should be stated in such a way that it can be clearly supported or not supported.

REMEMBER: Hypotheses are NEVER PROVEN. The findings either support or do not support the hypothesis.

Critiquing the Hypothesis

The hypothesis should be stated objectively without value-laden words.

The way the hypothesis is stated suggests the type of research design that should be used and the level of the evidence.

If the study is exploratory, it is appropriate to pose research questions rather than hypotheses.

Which is a ‘good’ hypothesis when X is independent and Y is dependent?

X will significantly improve Y.

Y will significantly improve X in population B.

X will significantly improve Y only if Z exists.

X will significantly improve Y in population B.

ANSWER: D

RATIONALE: X will significantly improve Y in population B. A is incorrect; the dependent variable, represented by Y, is often referred to as the consequence or the presumed effect that varies with a change in the independent variable. B and C are partially correct. D is the best answer because the population being studied must be specified in the research question.

Which must be explicitly identified in a research article?

Research question

Hypothesis

Intervention

Testability

Population

ANSWER: C

RATIONALE: Intervention is the correct answer. The other responses may not be explicitly identified in the research article but are implied, whereas the intervention is the dimension of health care at interest. It often asks whether a particular intervention is a useful treatment and is therefore necessarily identified in the article.