Exam I Flashcards
Qualitative studies:
Explore subjective experiences, using narrative data
phenomenology, ethnography, grounded theory, case study, historical
Quantitative studies:
Test hypotheses Uses numeric (statistical) data
(experimental, non-experimental)
What are the 5 steps of the quantitative research process:
- Concept phase
- Design and planning
- The empirical phase
- The analytic phase
- The dissemination phase
What are the steps of the qualitative research process(4):
Conceptualizing and planning
Conducting the study
Data saturation
Disseminating findings
What does the PICOT format stand for?
P- population
I- intervention or exposure (independent variable)
C- comparison or control ( ex- placebo, gold standard)
O- outcome (dependent variable)
T- time frame
What does the term construct refer to when used by a researcher?
An abstraction inferred from situations or behaviors. It is not a direct measurement, it is vague and ambiguous and needs to be defined.
What term describes a researcher’s expectations or predictions about relationships among study variables?
Hypothesis
What is the difference between a conceptual definition and a operational definition?
A conceptual definition is the theoretical meaning of concepts under study (textbook meaning). The operational definition of a concept specifies how researchers will measure the concept.
How does a moderator variable affect the the relationship between independent and dependent variables ?
Affects the strength or direction of a relationship between the independent and dependent variables
What are two aspects required for a fully developed research question?
Defined population
Situation of interest
What are statistics and research the basis of?
Evidence based practice
What is characteristic of an experimental study and what type of approach method is it?
It is a quantitative method in which an intervention is introduced.
During which phase of the quantitative research process is the intervention introduced and observation/data collection started?
Empirical phase
During which phase of the quantitative research process are results shared with colleagues?
Dissemination phase
What determines the sample size of a qualitative study?
Data saturation
What is a simple hypothesis?
A predicted relationship between one independent variable and one dependent variable.
What is a complex hypothesis?
Statement of a predicted relationship between two or more independent and/or two or more dependent variables
What is a directional hypothesis?
Specifies not only the existence but also the expected direction of the relationship between variables. Ex: greater than, less than
What is a nondirectional hypothesis?
Predicts the existence of a relationship but not the direction of the relationship
What does a null hypothesis state?
States that there is no relationship between the variables
What is the alternative/research hypothesis?
The opposite of the null hypothesis, consists of a statement about the expected relationship between the variables
What outlines the basis for regulations affecting research by the US government?
The Belmont Report
What 3 ethical principles were outlined in the Belmont report?
- Justice
- Beneficence
- Respect for human diginity
How did the Nuremberg code established in the 1940’s strive to do and what did its existence come out of?
Strives to protect participants’ rights to participate voluntarily, right to withdraw, and protect from suffering/injury, and balance risk/benefit.
Following the Nazi crimes
The Declaration of Helsinki requires:
Care be taken to protect non-therapeutic research subjects from harm.
What is the basis for the core ethical principle: Justice?
Right to fair treatment and the right to privacy. Researchers must equally distribute burdens and benefit
What is the basis for the core ethical principle: Beneficence?
Do no harm. Increase benefit and decrease risk to study participants
What is the basis for the core ethical principle: Respect for human dignity?
The right to self-determination and the right to full disclosure. Includes informed consent, right to withdraw from study, and not be coerced
What does IRB stand for?
Institutional Review Board
What is the IRB’s role?
- Promote conduct of ethical research
- Protect the rights of those who participate
- Assess risk:benefit ration
- Ensure compliance with federal regulation
- Ensure participants are selected in an equitable fashion
- Informed consent is obtained
- Confidentiality is maintained
- Date collection and safety standards upheld
- Vulnerable pops. protected.
What is an important aspect of the composition of an IRB?
There should be at least 5 members and at lease 1 member has to be a non-researcher
What is an Exempt Research?
Study does not pose any apparent risk. There is no way to link date with subjects (anonymous surveys, etc)
What is an Expedited Review?
Study that poses minimal risk; no more than that, that is encountered in daily life or with routine testing
What is a Full/Complete Review and when is it used?
Used when study has greater than minimal risk, uses a vulnerable population, or when subject identity must be known to researchers
What are examples of vulnerable groups/populations that may be involved in research?
- Children
- Mentally ill
- Severely ill or physically disabled
- Terminally ill
- Institutionalized people
- Pregnant women
What aspect of a study is outlined under HIPPA regulations?
WHO will receive the information participants give
What is process consent?
The researcher continually renegotiates consent, allowing the participants to have a collaborative role
When a self-administered questionnaire is completed this reflects:
Implied consent
The most secure means of protecting confidentiality is:
Anonymity
What allows researchers to refuse to disclose identifying info on participants in any civil, criminal, administrative, or legislative proceeding at any level?
Certificate of Confidentiality
The 3 most common types of research misconduct include:
- Fabrication
- Falsification
- Plagiarism
What is a power analysis?
A statistical analysis done prior to a study in order to reasonably see a result. Is there ‘power’ in the study?
What is an emergent design?
One that evolves in the field while collecting and analyzing date (qualitative)
Phenomenology can be described as:
Exploring and describing lived experiences (especially when very little is known about a phenomenon)
What are the two main schools associated with phenomenology?
- Descriptive- described experiences
2. Interpretive- interpreting the context the lived experience occurs
What is the main source of information associated with phenomenology?
Interviews
The impact of phenomenological researchers beliefs are realized by _________ and controlled for by ___________
Introspection
Bracketing
What is bracketing and which type of phenomenological research is it most important in?
Setting aside researcher bias so it does not affect the study. Most important in descriptive phenom. research
Phenomenology samples are usually how large?
5-10 people
Smaller than ethnographic and grounded theory
Ethnography can be described as:
Describes and interprets cultural behaviors
Patterns, lifeways, and experiences of a defined cultural group
What is ethnography grounded in?
Anthropology
What is often used as an information source for ethnographers?
‘Artifacts’; what people make and use
Ex- art, music, dance, etc
What is the difference between an emic and an etic perspective in ethnographic research?
An emic perspective is the insider view of the informants.
An etic perspective is the outsiders interpretation of the experiences of that culture (researcher’s view)
How is field work done in ethnographic research?
Researchers often use a participant observation strategy in which they make observations of the culture while participating in its activities
Who do ethnographers often enlist and why?
Key informants. These individuals have extensive knowledge of the culture and help researchers gain entry and establish rapport. They may also help researchers interpret things they have observed
Grounded theory can be described as:
Understanding and explaining basic social/psychological processes. Aimed at generating a theory
What are the two main schools of grounded theory?
- Substantive theory
2. Formal grounded theory
What is substantive theory? (grounded theory)
Data is based or grounded in information from a specific area ( may serve as springboard to formal grounded theory)
What is formal grounded theory?
Seeks to develop a theory and extend the core variable
Does grounded theory begin with a focused research problem?
No, the problem emerges from the data
During the grounded theory research process what is the goal?
To identify the core variable
What is the core variable in grounded theory?
The social process people use to resolve the main concern/problem that is being studied.
Occurs frequently, links data together, describes a pattern
How can the historical qualitative research approach be described?
Uses a systemic approach to collect and compare data as it relates to past experiences
What is the goal of historical research?
To describe and interpret historical events
What is the assumption of historical researchers?
Nothing is new, so we should be able to search history for examples and learn about the present and future
Two sources associated with historical research?
- Primary
2. Secondary
What are case studies?
In depth investigations of a single entity (ex- individual, family, institution, community, etc).
Researchers obtain large amounts of descriptive info and examine relationships amount different phenomena or may examine trends over time
What are the four main types of case studies?
- Single
- Multiple
- Holistic (global nature of case studied)
- Embedded (multiple units of analysis)
What is purposive sampling?
Selecting specific study participants that will allow researchers to learn the specific data needed
Ex- maximum variation sampling, homogenous sampling
What is convenience sampling?
Participants come forward/volunteer
What is snowball sampling?
Participants refer others or guide the researcher to other potential participants. Also known as nominated
What is theoretical sampling?
A type of purposive sampling use in grounded theory. In which selection of incidents, people, etc are done on the basis of their potential manifestation or representation of important theoretical constructs.
What type of interviews start with a grand tour questions?
Unstructured interviews.
What type of interviews are focused based on the information the researcher would like to know?
Semistructured interviews
What is a focus group interview?
5 or more participants. Should be homogenous
When are joint interviews used?
When interpersonal relationships are important to the study
How are life histories and oral histories different?
Life histories are self-disclosed narrative while oral histories are personal recollections of experiences told to a researcher
These relate to incidents directly related to data be collected:
Critical incidents
What is the goal of participant observation?
To understand behaviors and experiences as they occur in natural environments.
What are three common types of observations?
- Descriptive (broad, allows researcher to figure out the basics)
- Focused (hone in on selective events)
- Selective (most focused, facilitate comparisons)
What is critical case sampling?
Selecting cases that are especially important or illustrative
What is data saturation?
When no new information is being generated, redundancy is reached
What is reflexivity?
Awareness of the part the researcher plays in the study and the effect they have on the data
What are the 2 major ways unstructured observational date are most commonly recorded?
- Logs
2. Field notes
What are participant written accounts usually referred to as?
Diaries
What is an audit trail?
A researcher’s systematic documentation of material that allows an independent auditor to draw conclusions about trustworthiness
What are the two most frequently used data collection in a qualitative study?
Self report
Observation
How many hours does it generally take to transcribe a 1 hour interview?
3-5hrs
What is the minimum amount of time a researcher should read over their date (interviews, logs, etc)?
3 times
How was qualitative data managed previous to computers?
Through the use of conceptual files
Data management is _________ in nature.
Reductive
Data analysis is ________ in nature.
Constructive
How is qualitative data analysis inductive?
The process is creating a whole greater than the sum of its parts. Data is broken down into code and themes are generated
What are the four levels of ethnographic data analysis?
- Domain (units of cultural knowledge; patterns found)
- Taxonomy (which domains analyzed and system of classifying/organizing)
- Componential (relationship amount terms in domain analyzed)
- Theme (cultural themes uncovered)
When does ethnographic analysis begin?
The moment the researcher sets foot into the field.
What is the goal of the descriptive approach to phenomenological analysis?
To find common patterns of experiences shared by particular instances
What are the differences between the holistic, selective, and detailed approach of descriptive phenomenological analysis?
Holistic- views text as a whole
Selective- pulls our key statements and phrases
Detailed- analyzes every sentence
The interpretive approach to phenomenological analysis adhere to:
Hermeneutics
What is central to analyzing data in a hermeneutic study?
A hermeneutic circle which depicts the continual movement from part to whole to part. Represents a continuum used prior to the emerging themes.
What type of data analysis is used in grounded theory?
Constant comparative.
What is constant comparative analysis?
Type of data analysis related to grounded theory. All data sources are compared and core codes emerge
How are substantive and theoretical codes of grounded theory data analysis related?
The substance of the topic under study is conceptualized throughout substantive codes, while theoretical codes provide insight into how substantive codes are related to one another
Substantive codes (grounded theory) are either:
Open- first stage in constant comparative analysis, captures what is going on in the data, may use participant’s own words
Selective- only data related to the core variable
What are the levels of open coding in grounded theory data analysis?
Level I- derived directly from the language
Level II- new level I codes compared to established Level I codes are condensed into this level
Level III- theoretical constructs
What do theoretical codes help grounded theorists do?
Weave the broken pieces of data back together. Enhance the abstract meaning of the relationships between substantive codes
When is a literature review often carried out in a grounded theory study?
After data collection
What is emergent fit and what type of study is it used in?
A concept in grounded theory that involves comparing new data and new categories with previously existing conceptualizations
What is the main theme of grounded theory research called?
Central category or core category
What is axial coding?
The second level of coding in grounded theory, involving the process of categorizing, recategorizing, and condensing first level codes by connecting a category and its subcategories
What is the process of living with the data?
Incubation
What in a qualitative study is similar to reliability and validity in quantitative research?
Trustworthiness
What are the four (+1) criteria for developing trustworthiness in a qualitative study (Lincoln and Guba)?
Credibility Dependability Confirmability Transferability \+Authenticity
What is credibility?
Confidence in the truth of the data and interpretations of them
(must carry out a study in a way that enhances believability of the findings and take steps to demonstrate credibility in research reports- audit trails etc
What is dependability?
The stability (reliability) of data over time and conditions
Credibility can not be obtained in the absence of dependability
What is confirmability?
Accuracy/congruency between participants.
Ensures that the data represents the information participants provided and that interpretations were not invented by researchers
What is transferability?
The extent to which findings can be transferred to or have applicability in other settings or groups
‘Fitting-ness’
What is authenticity?
Extent to which researchers fairly and faithfully show a range of realities
What is prolonged engagement vs persistent observation?
Prolonged engagement is important in establishing credibility; it is the investment of sufficient time data collecting and immersing oneself in data to provide rich, detailed information.
Persistent observation refers to the researchers’ focus on the characteristics or aspects of a situation/convo that are relevant to the phenomena being studied
What do data and method triangulation refer to?
Data triangulation is the use of multiple data sources to validate conclusions. Method triangulation is the use of multiple methods in data collection.
(time- collecting data on the same phenomena at diff times; space- same phenomena at multiple sites; person- collecting data from multiple levels of people)
What is meant to enhance quality and rigor and is described as two or more investigators carrying out independent coding and data analysis?
Investigator triangulation
What is member checking?
Researchers go back to participants to check interpretations. This can enhance a study’s credibility
When researchers used competing theories or hypotheses in analyzing and interpreting data this is called:
Theory triangulation
What is a negative case analysis?
When researchers search for cases that appear to disconfirm earlier hypotheses and revise their interpretations as necessary
What assumption to qualitative studies make in regards to reality?
Multiple realities exist
What are quasi-statistics?
Used in a qualitative study, they tabulate frequency of themes or insights in the data
