Identify a research question or problem of interest. Consider an example of one concern you have had with your nursing practice. This could be a nagging question, a quality of care concern, or an observed gap between standards and practice. Questions you might ask yourself as you reflect include: Why do we do it this way? Are there better ways to assess or intervene? It seems that patients with a specific intervention/assessment have better outcomes. How might this research question or problem of interest be studied using qualitative research? How would it be studied using quantitative research? For example, if your study was about pain, a qualitative study might focus on the number of patients who experience less pain if a distraction is used versus the number of patients who don’t experience less pain. A quantitative study of pain might examine patient’s experiences and feelings of pain.
