Evidence-Based Nursing 

About: Evidence-Based Nursing is an academic journal published by BMJ. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Reproductive medicine & Medicine. It has an ISSN identifier of 1367-6539. Over the lifetime, 2498 publications have been published receiving 22762 citations. The journal is also known as: EBN & EBN Online.

Qualitative data analysis

Abstract: Good qualitative research uses a systematic and rigorous approach that aims to answer questions concerned with what something is like (such as a patient experience), what people think or feel about something that has happened, and it may address why something has happened as it has. Qualitative data often takes the form of words or text and can include images. Qualitative research covers a very broad range of philosophical underpinnings and methodological approaches. Each has its own particular way of approaching all stages of the research process, including analysis, and has its own terms and techniques, but there are some common threads that run across most of these approaches. This Research Made Simple piece will focus on some of these common threads in the analysis of qualitative research. So you have collected all your qualitative data – you may have a pile of interview transcripts, field-notes, documents and …

Data analysis in qualitative research

Abstract: Unquestionably, data analysis is the most complex and mysterious of all of the phases of a qualitative project, and the one that receives the least thoughtful discussion in the literature. For neophyte nurse researchers, many of the data collection strategies involved in a qualitative project may feel familiar and comfortable. After all, nurses have always based their clinical practice on learning as much as possible about the people they work with, and detecting commonalities and variations among and between them in order to provide individualised care. However, creating a database is not sufficient to conduct a qualitative study. In order to generate findings that transform raw data into new knowledge, a qualitative researcher must engage in active and demanding analytic processes throughout all phases of the research. Understanding these processes is therefore an important aspect not only of doing qualitative research, but also of reading, understanding, and interpreting it. For readers of qualitative studies, the language of analysis can be confusing. It is sometimes difficult to know what the researchers actually did during this phase and to understand how their findings evolved out of the data that were collected or constructed. Furthermore, in describing their processes, some authors use language that accentuates this sense of mystery and magic. For example, they may claim that their conceptual categories “emerged” from the data1—almost as if they left the raw data out overnight and awoke to find that the data analysis fairies had organised the data into a coherent new structure that explained everything! In this EBN notebook, I will try to help readers make sense of some of the assertions that are made about qualitative data analysis so that they can develop a critical eye for when an analytical claim is convincing and when it is not. Qualitative data come …

Issues of validity and reliability in qualitative research

Abstract: Evaluating the quality of research is essential if findings are to be utilised in practice and incorporated into care delivery. In a previous article we explored ‘bias’ across research designs and outlined strategies to minimise bias.1 The aim of this article is to further outline rigour, or the integrity in which a study is conducted, and ensure the credibility of findings in relation to qualitative research. Concepts such as reliability, validity and generalisability typically associated with quantitative research and alternative terminology will be compared in relation to their application to qualitative research. In addition, some of the strategies adopted by qualitative researchers to enhance the credibility of their research are outlined. Assessing the reliability of study findings requires researchers and health professionals to make judgements about the ‘soundness’ of the research in relation to …

Validity and reliability in quantitative studies

Abstract: Evidence-based practice includes, in part, implementation of the findings of well-conducted quality research studies. So being able to critique quantitative research is an important skill for nurses. Consideration must be given not only to the results of the study but also the rigour of the research. Rigour refers to the extent to which the researchers worked to enhance the quality of the studies. In quantitative research, this is achieved through measurement of the validity and reliability.1 Validity is defined as the extent to which a concept is accurately measured in a quantitative study. For example, a survey designed to explore depression but which actually measures anxiety would not be considered valid. The second measure of quality in a quantitative study is reliability , or the accuracy of an instrument. In other words, the extent to which a research instrument consistently has the same results if it is used in the same situation on repeated occasions. A simple example of validity and reliability is an alarm clock that rings at 7:00 each morning, but is set for 6:30. It is very reliable (it consistently rings the same time each day), but is not valid (it is not ringing at the desired time). It's important to consider validity and reliability of the data collection tools (instruments) when either conducting or critiquing research. There are three major types of validity. These are described in table 1. View this table: Table 1 Types of validity The first category is content validity . This category looks at whether the instrument adequately covers …

Users' Guides to the Medical Literature

Abstract: Guyatt G, Rennie D, editors and The Evidence-Based Medicine Working Group. Users' guides to the medical literature. A manual for evidence-based clinical practice. Chicago: AMA Press, 2002 The JAMA series on how to use the medical literature has been expanded and put into book and CD-ROM format. The Evidence-Based Medicine Working Group along with editors Gordon Guyatt and Drummond Rennie have provided practitioners with a valuable resource for evaluating evidence relevant to their practice. The authors of this “how to” book have made certain that it includes challenges to all levels of users of evidence, from beginners to experts. The material is presented in 3 formats: a 700 page manual for evidence-based practice (EBP) (Manual) that is thorough and comprehensive; a 440 page pocket version of the essentials of EBP (Essentials) that provides an indepth discussion of the basics; and a hyperlinked CD-ROM that contains the contents of the Manual and is included with both hardcopy versions. The Essentials book is small enough to keep in a large pocket, although the print is small and may be difficult for really tired eyes to read. The Manual …