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Ways of Knowing: Research for Nursing > Week 4 > Flashcards

Week 4 Flashcards

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1
Q

Why do people conduct experiments? i.e. what is the key aspect of why experiments are conducted?

A

The aspect of CONTROL

- increased internal validity of the study - i.e. able to generate cause and effect relationships

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2
Q

What are the types of quantitative research?

A

Descriptive
Exploratory
Causal

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3
Q

Research type: Used to gain new insights, discover new ideas and increase knowledge about a phenomenon (conducted when little is known about a topic)

A

Exploratory (quantitative) research

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4
Q

Research type in which: Structured observations or survey (or both) are used to describe a phenomenon, situation, group or characteristic.

A

Descriptive (quantitative) research

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5
Q

Research type in which the research assesses cause and effect relationships, statistically.

A

Causal (quantitative) research

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6
Q

What is the most common purpose of conducting quantitative research, especially through experiments?

A

Establish a causal relationship between IV and DV.

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7
Q

What are the conditions required to make a causal statement?

A

1 - X precedes Y
2 - X and Y are correlated
3 - No extraneous variables impacting outcome

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8
Q

Although we NEVER PROVE something, we can do this.

A

Gather evidence that supports our claim

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9
Q

Testing a theory

A

Deductive

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10
Q

Directs the research process - framework of who, what, when, where and how - telling the audience who is involved, when, where, how, etc.

A

Research Design

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11
Q

What is the main purpose of research design?

A

Answers research questions

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12
Q

What are the purposes of research design?

A 
Answer research questions
Level of control
Understand biases
Analytical techniques/analysis
Interpretation
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13
Q

Experimental design:

  • What is the aim?
  • Comparison between _______ and _______ groups
  • to get cause and effect relationships, we need at least two groups, and we need to _______ them
A

cause and effect relationship - aim
control and treatment
compare (control and treatment groups))

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14
Q

Experimental design - definition:

  1. There is an ________
  2. There is an _______ and a _______ group
  3. There is _____ _______ to groups
  4. _________ of conditions exists across groups (Except the treatment/intervention)
A
  1. intervention
  2. experimental (treatment); control
  3. Random assignment
  4. Constancy
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15
Q

Technique to ensure that experimental and control groups are as similar as possible (other than the intervention)

A

Random assignment

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16
Q

Random assignment is related to _______ validity - statistically speaking, it should ensure the two groups have similar attributes

A

internal

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17
Q

Randomization:

  1. Random _______ to groups (_______validity) - equal extraneous variables in both groups
  2. Random _________ from population to sample (________ validity) equals extraneous variables in the sample that are true for the population
A
  1. Assignment

2. Selection

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18
Q

Measurable characteristic that varies among subjects

A

Variable

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19
Q

What are the different types of variables?

A

IV
DV
Extraneous variable or covariate

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20
Q

Name the variable based on the definition
A - outcome or presumed effect
B - Interventions or presumed cause
C - Alternative or other possible causes

A

A - DV
B - IV
B - EV

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21
Q

What is the purpose of control (concept of control)?

A

1 - decrease error and the influence of unwanted extraneous variables

2 - Increase probability that study findings are an accurate reflection of the IV-DV relationship

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22
Q

What are the different types of settings?

A

Natural setting
Partially controlled
Highly controlled

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23
Q

Name the setting type based on the description.

A - Artificial environment for the sole purpose of doing research
B - Uncontrolled, real-life situation
C - Manipulated or modified in some way

A

A - Highly controlled
B - Natural setting
C - Partially controlled

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24
Q

Match the research design to the setting.
A - Experiment
B - Quasi-experimental
C - Observational

A

A - highly controlled
B - partially controlled
C - natural (some exceptions)

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25
Q

___________ has the highest level of manipulation of all research methods

A

Experimentation

26
Q

Describe the validity type based on the description.
A - Are changes in the outcome (DV) due to a change in the exposure (IV)?
B - Are the changes generalizable to other populations/settings?
C - The goal of which is to be generalizable to other populations
D - Changes we are observing are the result of the intervention alone - causality

A

A - Internal
B - external
C - external
D - internal

27
Q

When doing experiments, generalizability is often low. But, researcher have one assumption to alleviate this, what is it?

A

Assume that are commonly shared human characteristics - a form of universal evidence from which to generate generalizability

28
Q

Potential, common types of extraneous variables.

A

Threats to internal validity

29
Q

What are some threats to internal validity?

A 
Alternative explanations
Rival hypothesis(ses)
History, maturation, testing, instrumentation, selection, attrition/mortality
30
Q

If participants characteristics raise possible alternative explanations

A

Selection bias

31
Q

Inter-rater differences, failure of instrument

A

Instrumentation (threat to internal validity)

32
Q

IF an event occurs simultaneously with the intervention and affects the outcome

A

history (threat to internal validity)

33
Q

Natural changes which affect the outcome of the study

A

Maturation (threat to internal validity)

34
Q

Act of being tested once affects outcome of next test

A

Testing (threat to internal validity)

35
Q

For the following descriptions, name the threat to internal validity
A - People become sensitive - change their behaviour as a result of being tested
B - Getting hungry and changing your behaviour
C - Battery in the watch dies
D - if one group has something drastically different from the other
E - some people drop out of the study or die

A 
A - testing
B - Maturation
C - Instrumentation
D - selection bias
E - Mortality/attrition
36
Q

Differential loss from groups

A

Mortality/attrition

37
Q

What are the different threats to external validity?

A

selection effects
Hawthorne effects
Measurement effects

38
Q

If a study sample does not represent the population of interest

A

Selection effects

39
Q

Natural reactions to being studied - people in both groups know what is occuring and either change their behaviour or communicate with each other, or both

A

Hawthorne effects

40
Q

Actual act of being tested affects outcome - sensitivity

A

Measurement effects

41
Q

Describe the level of control for threats to validity for the following research designs:
A - experimental
B - Quasi-experimental
C - Non-experimental

A

A - control most threats
B - control some threats
C - may control some threats

42
Q

For the following flow-chart, describe what research design is chosen:

  1. Are participants randomly assigned?
    a) Yes - A
    b) No –> continue to 2
  2. Is there a control group
    a) Yes - B
    b) No - C
A

A - experimental
B - quasi-experimental
C - non-experimental

43
Q

Describe the typical flowchart of an experimental design, starting from the eligible and consenting sample and ending with the outcome.

A

Eligible and consenting sample –> random assignment to treatment or control groups –> Manipulation –> outcome –> compare outcome (analyses)

44
Q

Threats to validity occur in what part of the experimental design flowchart?

A

Selection effects occur before placing individuals into experimental or control group

other threats occur from the groups –> outcome stage

45
Q

What are the strengths of the experimental design?

A

Establish causality/causal direction

Control

46
Q

What are the limitations of experimental design?

A

May be difficult to implement
Generalizability/external validity may be low
Not ethical for some conditions

47
Q

What is the major difference between experimental and quasi-experimental design?

A

No random assignment

48
Q

What additional threat to validity does the quasi-experimental design have compared to the experimental design?

A

selection effects

49
Q

What are the strengths of the quasi-experimental design?

A

Establish causality/causal direction

Control

50
Q

What are the limitations of the quasi-experimental design?

A

Cannot make clear cause and effect statements
May be difficult to implement
Generalizability (External validity) may be low
Not ethical for some conditions

51
Q

If we delete the randomizatoin step from the classic experimental design, what do we have?

A

Quasi-experimental design called non-equivalent control

52
Q

If we delete the control group from the classic experimental design, hat do we have?

A

Quasi-experimental design called one group (pre-test - post-test)

53
Q

What is the difference between a non-experimental design and experimental design?

A

No random assignment (may have random selection however)

No manipulation

54
Q

The analysis of a non-experimental design may be?

A

Univariate, bi-variate, multivariate

55
Q

What are the strengths of the cross sectional non-experimental design?

A

Fast
less expensive
large number of participants
large number of variables

56
Q

What are the limitations of the cross-sectional non-experimental design?

A

No causal certainty

threat to validity - selection bias

57
Q

What are the strengths of the non-experimental prospective (longitudinal study) design?

A 
timeline established (exposure before outcome)
large number of participants
Large number of variables
58
Q

What are the limitations of the non-experimental prospective (longitudinal study) design?

A

VERY expensive, long-term follow-up needed
large loss to follow-up possible
Threats to validity
- selection bias
- history (many people change exposure over time)
- instrumentation (tests may change over time - e.g. breast cancer screening)
- testing (if people are aware of outcomes - may change behaviours)

59
Q

What are the strengths of the non-experimental retrospective research design?

A

Fewer participants - very specific

Large number of variables

60
Q

What are the limitations of the non-experimental retrospective research design?

A

Very difficult to find adequate control group
threats to validity
- selection bias
- recall bias (testing bias)

Ways of Knowing: Research for Nursing (6 decks)

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