Home

Part 2: Preliminary Steps in the Research Process

Chapter 5: Identifying Nursing Research Problems

Review Questions

Review Questions


This activity contains 12 questions.

	“Learning is enhanced when the material to be learned is relevant to the learner.” This is an example of   a hypothesis. an attribute of a research design. a propositional statement from a learning theory. an assumption.

	Rewrite the following problem statement in the format presented in your textbook. “Do clients like physicians or nurse practitioners best?”   Do nurse practitioners provide better health care than physicians? Does care by a nurse practitioner cause clients to be more satisfied with their care? Should clients spend equal time with the physician and nurse practitioner when on a visit to the physician’s office? Is there a difference in the amount of time spent with clients when seen by physicians compared to nurse practitioners?

	Determine the independent variable(s) in the following problem statement. Is there a difference in the length of time it takes to go to sleep between study participants who (a) drink a glass of warm milk, (b) watch the television, or (c) receive a back rub?   Back rub Glass of warm milk, watching television, and back rub Length of time it takes to go to sleep Method of promoting sleep

	Demonstrate the value of replication studies.   Replication studies have been favored by nurses. In nursing, we have a large number of small, unrelated studies Many nursing studies have not been verified through additional research. Through replication, nurse researchers are able to demonstrate that they are capable of carrying out similar research studies in different locations.

	Pick out the error in the following problem statement. “Is there a correlation between the length of time that students have studied for a test and their grades on the test?”   Independent variable is missing Population is missing All elements are present Dependent variable is missing

	Where do most researchers start when considering a topic for a research study?   Choose a theory to test. Review the literature. Seek grant money and then develop a research proposal on a topic of interest to the funding agency. Pick a problem area that has personal relevance to them.

	Which of the following problem statements is most appropriate for a study? A. “Do women who are going to have a hysterectomy go to sleep quicker the night before surgery if they are given a back rub?” B. “Is there a difference in the length of time it takes to go to sleep the night before a hysterectomy between women who receive a back rub and those who do not receive a back rub?”   Problem Statement B is preferable to Problem Statement A because B is written in a neutral format. Problem Statement A is preferable to Problem Statement B because A predicts the outcome of the study. Either problem statement would be appropriate for a study. Neither problem statement would be appropriate for a study.

	Why is the question format preferable to the declarative format for a problem statement?   This is the format that is most often found in the literature. Most researchers prefer this format. Questions demand answers more than do declarative sentences. Hypotheses are based on questions rather than on declarative sentences.

	Discriminate between the independent and dependent variables in the following problem statement: “Is there a correlation between knowledge of diabetes and knowledge of coronary artery disease?”   Knowledge of coronary artery disease is the independent variable and knowledge of diabetes is the dependent variable. The researcher would make the determination of which of these variables was the independent variable and which was the dependent variable. Knowledge of diabetes is the independent variable and knowledge of coronary artery disease is the dependent variable. An independent and dependent variable cannot be determined in this problem statement.

	Why would a nurse researcher want to conduct a multiple-variable research study?   This type of study will allow an examination of the interaction of variables. It has become the preferred type of study by nurse researchers. Nurse researchers want to conduct more sophisticated studies. More data can be collected in this type of study.

	Discriminate between a comparative problem statement and a correlational problem statement.   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	Contrast the problem statement with the purpose statement in a research study.   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

Answer choices in this exercise appear in a different order each time the page is loaded.

Copyright © 1995-2008, Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Pearson Prentice Hall Legal and Privacy Terms