Guidelines for Critiquing Research Designs in Quantitative Studies
Readings
Polit, D. F., & Beck, C. T. (2012). Nursing research: Generating and assessing evidence for nursing practice (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Chapter 8, “Planning a Nursing Study”
This chapter focuses on the necessary steps for planning a research study. It describes different research designs and their key features and discusses how to plan for data collection.
Chapter 9, “Quantitative Research Design”
This chapter explores quantitative research in greater depth including the importance of experimental design and the role of randomization in conducting research. The chapter also describes quasi-experimental design and observational research.
To prepare:
Review the information in the course text on quantitative research designs. Focus on the information in Box 9.1, “Guidelines for Critiquing Research Designs in Quantitative Studies” located on page 230 of the course text.
Select a topic from the list below and search the Walden Library to find two different quantitative research studies addressing that issue:
Caregiver stress
Anxiety in children
Sleep apnea
Depression in college freshmen
Rural health care issues
Post-traumatic stress syndrome
Traumatic brain injury in veterans
Health effects of environmental contaminants
Bipolar disorder
End-of-life ethical issues
Alternative medicine
For each of the sources that you select, identify the type of quantitative research design used, and evaluate whether it is the most appropriate approach to the research.
Consider the ramifications of choosing an inappropriate design for a research study.
Post the topic you selected, references for the two sources you identified, and the quantitative research design used in each. Critique the appropriateness of the design used and justify your comments with information from the Learning Resources. Discuss the ramifications of choosing an inappropriate design for a research study.
