QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

Respond to two of your colleagues with a comment that asks for clarification, provides support for, or contributes additional information.

Zandra Harrold

          Qualitative and quantitative research designs are often compared based on their characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses in clinical research. Proponents of quantitative designs argue that quantitative studies are better due to their rigor, unlike qualitative investigations, which lack the same attribute. However, this discussion will illustrate that qualitative studies are rigorous because they can be assessed for accuracy, dependability, transferability, credibility, and confirmability. Thus, qualitative designs are reliable in clinical experiments because they dwell on patients' experiences while implementing useful research designs to produce accurate, measurable, and confirmable evidence. 

           Qualitative research findings are as rigorous as quantitative studies because they are characterized by strong research designs and can provide accurate, measurable, and confirmable answers to research questions. Although proponents of quantitative research might argue that qualitative research lacks the same rigor as quantitative investigations, qualitative research equally serves the same benefits in nursing practice. Rigor in qualitative research refers to the strength of the research design and the method's ability to answer the research question (Cypress, 2017). Rigor in qualitative studies could also mean the state of accuracy, exactness, and precision in research findings to enhance the trustworthiness of an investigation. Vretare et al. (2020) confirm that the reliability of qualitative studies is proven by an investigation's credibility, transferability, confirmability, and dependability. These are examples of controls that would enhance the rigor and reliability of a nursing experiment. For example, the credibility of the study could be assessed through analysis and evaluation of research findings to ascertain the validity of the responses or the methods used to collect data. Evaluation and analysis are implemented to confirm that the evidence collected is valid, true, accurate and unbiased. Notably, the rigor of a qualitative study could be proven through the transferability of the research findings. Transferability is synonymous with generalizability, meaning research findings' applicability in different contexts (Vretare et al., 2020). Accordingly, qualitative research is rigorous enough to facilitate evidence-based practice due to the confirmability of research findings. The confidence of a study is determined by the degree to which other experiments could approve research findings. Indeed, when the results and inferences do not contradict other scholarly materials, then the rigor of a qualitative study is determined since researchers have confidence that their findings are accurate, authoritative, and dependable for evidence-based practice. Henceforth, the trustworthiness of a qualitative study is the evidence of rigor in research, which guarantees the credibility and dependability of qualitative investigations in clinical research. 

           The trustworthiness of qualitative research in clinical research guarantees the suitability of these research methods for investigating nursing and practice factors leading to increased medical errors. Qualitative research in clinical contexts concerns patients' experiences and the applicability of research findings to improve such experiences. Concerning the problem of increasing medical errors, qualitative research would help determine causal effects and factors to consider when addressing the identified challenge. Busetto et al. (2020) note that qualitative studies assess complex multi-component interventions or systems of change, addressing questions beyond "what works" towards "what works for whom when, how, and why" and focusing on intervention improvement rather than accreditation (p.2). This assertion implies that the chosen qualitative design would help find more answers regarding the source of medication errors while enabling clinicians to determine which solutions work and which do not suit the identified research problem. Therefore, the ability to choose the causal relationship between variables and find multiple solutions to the identified issue makes qualitative research design the ideal investigation method for the patient safety program I identified in week 1. 

References

Busetto, L., Wick, W., & Gumbinger, C. (2020). How to use and assess qualitative research methods.  Neurological Research and Practice,  2(1), 1-10.  https://doi.org/10.1186/s42466-020-00059-zLinks to an external site.

Cypress, B. S. (2017). Rigor or reliability and validity in qualitative research: Perspectives, strategies, reconceptualization, and recommendations.  Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing,  36(4), 253-263.  https://doi.org/10.1097/DCC.0000000000000253Links to an external site.

Vretare, L. L., & Anderzen-Carlsson, A. (2020). The critical care nurse’s perception of handover: a phenomenographic study.  Intensive and Critical Care Nursing,  58(1), 1-7.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iccn.2020.102807