NCM 211: Nursing Research 1 Module

Course Description:
As part of the research course, the subject is designed to orient the students to
theoretical concepts and principles of the research process. This will also guide
the students in conducting group research focusing on problem identification up
to the proposal of the research report.

Overview

The development and utilization of nursing knowledge is essential for continued

improvement in patient care. Conducting researches in nursing, as all other sciences, is
important to establish a knowledge-base for practice, improvement, and development.
As health care provider and a researcher, you have always asked ourselves questions,
as much about the phenomena you observe on a daily basis as the deepest mysteries
of nature. When curiosity and intuition are applied in a systematic approach to find the
answers to questions like these, when you draw on experience and the knowledge you
have already acquired, then you are doing research. All of us in our daily lives explore,
investigate, invent, solving problems in school, trying out new recipes in the kitchen,
finding the best way to prune a plant, or simply playing with friends. Dedicating lives to
research mean making study and experiment, and leads these activities to the
acquisition of new knowledge. In this module, all the information was gathered through
the use of the different books including different internet websites in order to get the
information needed to give an essential knowledge and skills of the young researcher
like you! Unlock your imaginations and creativity, spread your eyes around you, and
make research as your baseline in making decision. You can change the world by your
own simple discovery. Come on! Join us in this adventure and let us see the treasure
that we discover.

Unit I. INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE

LEARNING OUTCOMES
A. Define the following terms:
1. Research;
2. Problem solving; and
3. Nursing research
B. Differentiate research from problem solving;
C. Compare research and problem solving in terms of process;
D. Explain the characteristics of research;
E. Discuss the goals of Nursing Research;
F. Describe the importance of nursing research; and
G. Explain the ethical implications of research
H. Review the different steps of research

References:

A. Definition of terms:
1. Research

Research came from the old French word cerchiers, meaning “to
seek or search”. The prefix “re” means again – signifies replication of the search.

Research is a systematic inquiry that uses disciplined methods to answer

questions or solve problems. The ultimate goal of research is to develop, refine, and
expand a body of knowledge (Polit & Beck, 2004).

Research is an honest, scientific investigation undertaken for the purpose of

discovering new facts which will contribute to the present body of knowledge and
can lead to an effective solution of existing problems. (Committee on Research of
the PNA)

Research is a studious inquiry or examination, investigation or experimentation

aimed at the discovery and interpretation of facts, revision of accepted theories or
laws in the light of new facts or practical applications of such new or revised
theories or laws. (Webster)

Any systematic search for understanding limited to a particular subject that for
purposes of investigation, has been continued in problematic form and formally
defined. (Barr)

Research in the broadest sense, is an attempt to gain solutions to problems. It

is the collection of data in a vigorous controlled situation for the purpose of prediction
or explanation. (Treece and Treece)

Research is a formal, systematic and intensive process of carrying on a scientific

analysis for the purpose of discovery and development of an organized body of
knowledge. (Best)

Discovers answers to questions through the application of scientific procedures

that have been developed to increase the likelihood that information gathered will be
relevant, reliable and unbiased. (Claire Seltiz [Link])

2. Problem Solving is a scientific process of identifying the problem and finding ways
to solve that problem.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN RESEARCH AND PROBLEM SOLVING

 RESEARCH PROBLEM SOLVING
 All elements of a scientific inquiry must  The same explicitness and
be explicitly (clearly) and precisely precision though they may be
(accurate) described. utilized, are not usually
demanded by problem solving
 Where Research data are quantitative,  Detailed statistical analyses are
they are analyzed with appropriate seldom done and quantitative
statistical procedures. data are usually limited to simple
frequency counts.
 Factors other than the variable under  Such controls are not required.
study are controlled as much as
possible.
 One objective is to ensure that  The primary aim is the solution
findings are generalizable to a of a problem existing in the
population larger than the one under population being studied, little or
study. no attention is given to whether
the findings are applicable to a
larger population.
 The search for new knowledge  The facts for the investigation
through hypotheses testing must be are always from the same
done in a setting and with study setting and from many of the
subjects different from those which subjects that gave rise to the
gave raise to the observations that proposal that the study be done.
prompted the study and hypotheses.
 Entails a written plan in sufficient  Entails no such requirements.
detail and explicitness that the study
may be replicated and the findings
verified.
 The research has moral obligation to  The problem solver needs only
report his findings in writing so that to provide information, in verbal
others may share the new or tabular form, to those in the
knowledge. immediate setting of the
problem and to propose
changes that will help them
solve the problem.
COMPARISON BETWEEN RESEARCH AND PROBLEM SOLVING
IN TERMS OF PROCESS

RESEARCH PROBLEM SOLVING

a. Identify the problem a. Identify the problem
b. Review of related literature b. Gather pertinent information
c. Theoretical framework c. Suggest solutions
d. Questions to be answered & d. Consider outcomes
 hypothesis
to be tested
e. Research methodology e. Choice of solution
f. Data gathering f. Implement solution
g. Analysis & interpretation of data g. Evaluation
h. Summary, conclusion & h. Modify, revise, change
recommendation

CHARACTERISTICS OF RESEARCH

1. Orderly and systematic

The researcher undertakes the investigation systematically in an ordered
sequence of steps.

2. Control
The researcher identifies and eliminates specific constraints or limitations
to ensure precision and validity of results.
It means the imposition of conditions in the Research situation, to
minimize bias and maximize the precision and validity data gathered.

3. Empiricism. It refers to gathering of evidence and relying on one’s own

senses. (thru observation)

4. Generalization. It means that the Research findings may be applied to a

situation on population larger than the one studied.

This is a holistic statement that is formulated after due analysis of an adequate

number of cases, instances that bear common traits, characteristics or trends.

3. Nursing Research

 It is defined as a study of all aspects, components, activities and phenomena

relating to health and of interest to nurses.

 It is defined as a formal systematic, rigorous and intensive process used for

solutions to nursing problems or to discover and interpret new facts and
trends in clinical practice, nursing education or nursing administration
(Waltz and Bausell, 2001).

 It is systematic inquiry designed to develop knowledge about issues of

importance to the nursing profession, including nursing practice, education,
administration, and informatics.

GOALS OF NURSING RESEARCH

It is important that it is within the context of promotion and maintenance of health,
prevention and cure of illness, the habilitation and rehabilitation of the disabled
and the handicapped whose life depends on others for survival.

SPECIFIC GOALS:

1. Efficiency and Effectiveness in Nursing Care

The primary reason for conducting research is to foster optimum care for clients,
for the nursing profession exists to provide service to society based on accurate
knowledge.

2. Worthiness and Value of the Nursing Profession to Society

This means that health care is indispensable to man’s survival, and nursing care is
one of its major components, therefore to enable nurses to deliver quality care is to
make use of the most recent research findings that provide proofs or evidences to
validate and justify the appropriateness and adequacy of nursing care.

3. Identifying, Implementing and Evaluating Effective Health Care Modalities

Nursing research enables nurses to cautiously assess individuals and groups, as

basis for planning accurate nursing interventions. Inclusions of all factors are biological,
physiological, social, behavioral, spiritual and environmental components that influence
health and disease in man’s stages of development.

4. Clinical Nursing Research has the potential for providing quality care of clients.
It is concerned with the following tasks:
A. The systematic study of nursing problems and phenomena, using the nursing
process of assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating nursing care.
B. Improving nursing practice and patient care through creative and scientific
studies, knowledge of health and the promotion of health throughout the
life span.
C. Identifying nursing interventions that can help individuals respond efficiently
and effectively to actual or potential health problems.
D. The initiation and assessment of change as a result of nursing care to clients,
and incisive efforts to make this new knowledge useful in nursing practice.

IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH IN NURSING

1. Description
 Nurses can – describe: Through research nurse describes a
phenomenon that relates to the nursing profession as well as to observe, define,
and document nursing situations under inquiry.
Ex: Nursing care rendered by professional and non-professional nursing
personnel to respond to the health needs and problems of individuals, families,
groups, and communities intended to bring comfort and ease to clients.

2. Exploration
Research explores the phenomenon being investigated by observing and
recording events or situations occurring in that phenomenon; it answers “what”
questions on the phenomenon; and use enough examples to become familiar
with the phenomenon for more precise and accurate understanding of this.
Ex. “What factors influence, affect or relate to the adjustment of patients
to hospitalization?”
“How do nurses react to aggressive patients?”
“What do insulin dependent patients want to know about their
ailment?”
“What factors relate to patient stress levels?”
“Is the patient’s stress caused by the behavior of the nursing staff?”

3. Explanation
Research seeks clarification of prevailing situation to answer questions
that asks “why” a phenomenon occurred. “Why did this happen?”
What could have happened if….?”
Ex. Why do older patients need more time than younger patients to
recover?”
“Why is care of chronically ill patients done more effectively at home
than in a hospital?”
“Why do younger children need parenting than older children?”

4. Prediction and Control

Research anticipates possible psychological and physiological reactions to
nursing interventions. Research supports nursing decision by eliminating barriers
and sourcing ways and strategies that would bring about effective client care
outcomes.
Research findings will help eliminate nursing actions that do not achieve
desired outcomes

Prediction – projects a situation or events that could arise from research

investigation.
Control – puts up a barrier to hinder or minimize the effects of anticipated
outcomes or reactions.
- also refers to nursing actions or interventions that respond to
patient needs in order to prevent and eliminate potential health
problems.
 Ex. Incidence of Down’s Syndrome in infants is expected to increase with
the age of the mother.”

Prediction: Projection of the greater risk of a 40-year old woman, compared to a

25-year old one in bearing a child with Down’s Syndrome.
Control: Partial control of the outcome by educating average women on the
risks of child bearing and potential maternal and fetal threats.
Offering amniocentesis or other therapeutic means to minimize or
eliminate these threats to women over 35 years old.

5. Generation of knowledge - Research findings from rigorous studies constitute the

best type of evidence for informing nurses’ decisions, actions, and interactions with
clients

6. Nurses could evaluate & document their contributions to the health care
delivery system
Research enables nurses to describe the characteristics of a particular
nursing situation about which little is known; to explain phenomena that must be
considered in planning nursing care; to predict the probable outcomes of certain
nursing decisions; to control the occurrence of undesired outcomes; and to
initiate activities to promote desired client behavior for informing nurses’
decisions, actions, and interactions with clients

CHARACTERISTICS OF NURSE RESEACHERS

1. Intellectual curiosity
- an inquisitive, curious, questioning mind is vital.
o NR undertake inquiry and serious thinking about situations and problems
affecting nurses and nursing.
o NR are eager to seek information, read extensively on the subject, utilize
their own training and experience and those of others, observe practices
pertinent to the problem and have a never-ending passion in their quest for
new knowledge.

2. Creative thinking, coupled with the ability to go beyond what already exists
and develop various ways of doing things.

3. Critical thinking, clinical expertise and a working knowledge of the scientific problem-
solving technique help to a great extent in formalizing the study.

4. Ability to relate their study t a known theory, and through a scholarly thinking, to
articulate this in a precise and organized manner.
 5. Patience and discipline to see the study through, there will be long hours of digging up
the required literature, sorting out the relevant and the irrelevant, writing and rewriting
the manuscript until the study becomes an integrated whole.

6. Intellectual honesty – researchers are honest in collecting, analyzing and reporting data.

7. A sense of humor – Researchers must accept inadequacies in the study as bases for
improvement along with such “accidents” as papers getting mixed up, blown by the
wind or used as scratch paper by a playful child.

Ethical considerations in Research

 Honesty and Integrity

This means that you need to report your research honestly, and that this applies to your
methods (what you did), your data, your results, and whether you have previously
published any of it. You should not make up any data, including extrapolating unreasonably
from some of your results, or do anything which could be construed as trying to mislead
anyone. It is better to undersell than over-exaggerate your findings.
When working with others, you should always keep to any agreements, and act sincerely.
 Objectivity
You should aim to avoid bias in any aspect of your research, including design, data analysis,
interpretation, and peer review. For example, you should never recommend as a peer
reviewer someone you know, or who you have worked with, and you should try to ensure
that no groups are inadvertently excluded from your research. This also means that you
need to disclose any personal or financial interests that may affect your research.
 Carefulness
Take care in carrying out your research to avoid careless mistakes. You should also review
your work carefully and critically to ensure that your results are credible. It is also
important to keep full records of your research. If you are asked to act as a peer reviewer,
you should take the time to do the job effectively and fully.
 Openness
You should always be prepared to share your data and results, along with any new tools
that you have developed, when you publish your findings, as this helps to further
knowledge and advance science. You should also be open to criticism and new ideas.
 Respect for Intellectual Property
You should never plagiarize, or copy, other people’s work and try to pass it off as your own.
You should always ask for permission before using other people’s tools or methods,
unpublished data or results. Not doing so is plagiarism. Obviously, you need to respect
copyrights and patents, together with other forms of intellectual property, and always
acknowledge contributions to your research. If in doubt, acknowledge, to avoid any risk of
plagiarism.
 Confidentiality
 You should respect anything that has been provided in confidence. You should also follow
guidelines on protection of sensitive information such as patient records.
 Responsible Publication
You should publish to advance to state of research and knowledge, and not just to advance
your career. This means, in essence, that you should not publish anything that is not new,
or that duplicates someone else’s work.
 Legality
You should always be aware of laws and regulations that govern your work, and be sure
that you conform to them.
 Animal Care
If you are using animals in your research, you should always be sure that your experiments
are both necessary and well-designed. You should also show respect for the animals you
are using, and make sure that they are properly cared for.
 Human Subjects Protection
If your research involves people, you should make sure that you reduce any possible harm
to the minimum, and maximize the benefits both to participants and other people.
This means, for example, that you should not expose people to more tests than are strictly
necessary to fulfil your research aims. You should always respect human rights, including
the right to privacy and autonomy. You may need to take particular care with vulnerable
groups, which include, but are not limited to, children, older people, and those with
learning difficulties.

HUMAN RIGHTS GUIDELINES

1. Employment in settings where research is conducted

- Employees must be advised as to the type of risk involved, how to recognize
these risks and proper actions needed to counteract harmful effects and
unnecessary danger.

2. Nurses’ Responsibility to protect the rights of Human subjects

- subjects must be given relevant data before participating in activities that go
beyond established and accepted procedures to meet their personal needs.
- “captive groups”
o students
o patients
o inmates in institutions and prisons

3. Scope of Application
- research activities involving patients, donors, informants, etc.

4. Nurses’ responsibility to broaden knowledge

 - obligation to support additional knowledge that further clarifies the scientific
aspects of nursing practice and delivery of nursing service.

5. Informed consent
- to safeguard the basic rights of self-determination
- the subject needs to receive a detailed description of the benefits for him/her or
the development of knowledge.
- The subject has the option to discontinue participation nay time.
- The subject must be free from direct or indirect coercion and deception.

6. Representation in Human Subjects Committee

- to ensure the individual right are not denied, an institutional committee judged
competent to review studies and investigations involving human beings has been
created.

PARTS OF RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Parts of Proposal Contents/Specifications

Preliminary Pages Preliminary pages are provided
- TITLE PAGE Correct format is followed
- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
(Final Paper)
- ABSTRACT (Final Paper)
- TABLE OF CONTENTS
- LIST OF TABLES
- LIST OF FIGURES
CHAPTER I Running Head—Arial 10—Upper right corner separated by three dots
(Center) from the page number—1 inch margin—not found at the beginning of
a chapter

INTRODUCTION (Center)

- Prevailing issues and causes about the research topic are cited
(what the problem situation is).
- Explains the discrepancy between “what is” and “what should be” as
well as the possible reasons for the discrepancy.
- Global, national, and local scenarios and statistics about the
variables or topic are cited to situate the study.
- Provides compelling reasons why the research problem was
selected.
- Presents an overview of readings (studies/researches) which
provided direction to the current study (existing conditions in
research environment which warrant pursuance of the study).
- Purpose(s) in conducting study and significance of the study are
clear.

- Competence as well as linkage of the researcher to (personal

experience) conduct the study is well explained (for proposal
purposes only)
- Thesis statement is clear and not just a mere repetition of the
purpose of the study.
 Review of Literature (Flushed to the left)

- Arguments and counterarguments presented on the relevance of the

study using RRL and theories.
- The study is premised or anchored on a theory/ theories.
- Relevant supporting theory/theories are discussed in relation to the
variables.
- Concepts integral to study are discussed
- Description of variables according to functional relations and the
conceptual interrelatedness of the variables in the study are
provided.
Theoretical Framework (Quantitative) (Flushed to the left)

- Clearly summarizes the theories of which the study is anchored.

Conceptual Framework (Quantitative) (Flushed to the left)

- Clearly summarizes the concept of the study (variables and

indicators).
Statement of the Problem (Quantitative) (Flushed to the left)

- The main problem presents the variables, locale and duration of the
study as well as the proposed output.
- Sub problems are stated in interrogative forms which are clear and
measurable.
Purpose of the Study (Qualitative) (Flushed to the left)

- Grand tour question.

Research Questions (Qualitative)

- State specific questions pertaining to the study.

Hypothesis(es) (Flushed to the left) (Quantitative only)

- A brief introductory paragraph is provided. “The hypothesis will be

tested at 0.05 level of significance.”
- Make(s) a statistical comparison parallel to the study’s purpose.
- Stated in the null form.
- Direct(s) in determining relationship between variables.
Significance of the Study (Flushed to the left)

- Specific beneficiaries of the study are enumerated as well as the

corresponding tangible benefits they can derive from the study;
beneficiaries are arranged according to importance.
CHAPTER II METHOD (Center)

- A brief introductory paragraph is provided.

Design (Flushed to the left)

- Includes a research flow and is well-explained.

Setting (flushed to the left)

- A thorough description is provided.

Participants (Flushed to the left)
(“Subjects” for animals and “Materials” for plants)
 - Subjects or participants whenever applicable must be clearly
described.
- Selection criteria.
- Sampling method, distribution, and ethical measures [whenever
applicable] are discussed.
Measures (or Sources of Data or Tools) (Flushed to the left)

- Construction, contents, tables of specifications [whenever

applicable], validation, reliability, determination, administration, and
scoring are described in detail.
Procedure (Flushed to the left)

- Research procedures provide detailed information about how the

data will be gathered, from where, and from whom by whom and
when.
- Ethical considerations (i.e. permission from NCIP when interviewing
indigenous people) are discussed.

For Quantitative:
- Enumerate
For Qualitative:
- Narrative
- Must be grouped according to activities done before, during, and
after data gathering.
Analysis (Flushed to the left)

- Discusses how the data will be treated.

- The statistical tools are stated and their functions are clearly
explained.
- Basis for range of scores or means [if applicable] are provided.
REFERENCES (Center) - Must be alphabetically arranged according to the principal author’s
family name using APA format.
APPENDICES (Center) - Transmittal letters to the head of the research locale, participants of
the study, and to the chair of the ethics committee (when necessary)
is appended.
- Samples of instruments, research tools (interview schedule,
checklist, and questionnaire) are provided.
- Time Table is appended.
- Other appendices such as photos, documents, or existing programs
are appended.
- Appended Curriculum Vitae covers the candidate’s personal,
professional, and academic experiences.