Flashcards
Qualitative versus Quantitative Research
Cards in this deck (50)
- 1A good Research question:...-Provides focus and purpose to research
– Prevents vagueness
– Focuses activities of researcher
– Provides testable hypotheses
– To ultimately improve and amend practice - 2A poor Research Question:...Likely to lose favour with ethics committees, funding bodies
- 3What are important considerations for a research question?Has the question already been answered
• If it has – can it be modified for relevance to my field
• Current vs old
• Relevance
• Of interest
• Is it answerable (NB resources)
• Is it ethical
• Are potential researchers sufficiently knowledgeable
• So what - 4What is the feasibility of research questionsAll research questions cannot be answered
• Important points to consider:
– Is the research question answerable
– What sample size will I need
– How much time is available
– What resources do I have - 5What are reasons to ask research questions?To test a hypothesis – especially in experimental research
• To evaluate a situation
• To improve clinical practice
• To explore feelings and attitudes - 6What are four essential categories?– Explaining
– Describing
– Controlling
– Exploring - 7How do you answer the research question?Develop a structure for the project
• Define aims and objectives
– Often confused
– Aim: intention or goal of research
– Objective: means by which we achieve the aim
• Number of objectives outweigh number of aims - 8What are objectives to answer a research question?Possible objectives:
– To search the available literature covering public awareness of the health
professions
– To explore possible means of targeting the general public
– To decide survey limits and sample size
– To submit a research proposal
– To produce a draft questionnaire
– To obtain ethical approval
– To pilot the questionnaire
– To rework the questionnaire
– To distribute the questionnaire
– To analyse the data
– To write up the project
– To submit the report - 9What are potential objectives?Decide on participants – university students, college students, from
which course, age,
• Explore previous research on healthy eating behaviour
– in group of choice
– in different groups (as comparison)
• Design a research tool – survey, questionnaire, interview questions
• Define outcome – what is healthy eating behaviour
• Ethical approval
• Pilot the tool (and amend if appropriate)
• Conduct the study
• Analyse and disseminate - 10What is the research process?Identify gap in knowledge
• Formulate research question
• Define aims and objectives
• Design research and obtain ethical approval
• Pilot work
• Collect data
• Analyse data
• Interpret findings
• Come to conclusions
• Disseminate findings - 11Research outputs should be:Valid: True properties – measuring what you are trying to measure
• Internal validity: is methodology valid, any biases, inappropriate methods,
systematic errors
• External validity: applicability beyond experiment, ‘generalisability’ - 12Research outputs should be:Research should be reliable
– Repeated outputs should be consistent - 13What is a hypothesis?• Hypotheses state expected relationship/difference between
variables or factors - 14How are hypotheses tested?Hypotheses are tested by gathering and examining data
• Data are gathered in experiments and surveys in order to measure
variables
• Data can be gathered in any environment – lab, hospital, school,
prison, university, homes, kitchens, rabbits, brain cells etc…
• Data are PLURAL (sing. datum) - 15What is a null hypothesis? H0The hypothesis that there is no significant difference between specified populations, any observed difference being due to sampling or experimental error.
H0: There are no gender differences in calcium intake in school
children - 16What is the alternative hypothesis? H1H1: There are gender differences in calcium intake in school
children
– Depending on question may have numerous alternatives - 17What is the purpose of research in terms of hypotheses?To gather evidence to reject H0.
- 18What are 2 types of research?1. Qualitative
2. Quantitative - 19What is Quantitative research?Quantitative (objective, hard science; factual)
– Testing hypotheses
– Experiments and statistics
– Collect and manipulate numbers and data
– How many Xs are there - 20What is qualitative research?Qualitative (subjective, soft science; perceptual)
– Generates ideas – what is X, why is X, how does X feel
– Explores perceptions, opinions, attitudes, experiences
– Involves observing and interpreting human behaviour
– Seeks to explain behaviour by uncovering beliefs, motives
– Collects and uses no numbers - 21What are research tools for quantitative research?– Clinical trials
• RCTs (independent and dependent variables)
– Experiments
– Surveys
– Questionnaires (closed questions)
– Measurements
– Observations of performance/compliance
– Likert scales (eg 1 to 4)
• The quality of undergraduate diet is optimal
– 1strongly agree 2agree 3disagree 4strongly disagree - 22What are research tools for qualitative research?Qualitative
– Interviews
– Focus groups
– Recorded conversations
– Questionnaires (open questions)
– Discussion forums (on line)
– Observation of behavioural traits - 23Quantitative research in healthNumber-based experiments, observations, surveys
• Majority of health research is quantitative
• Application of statistical and mathematical techniques
• Modern history – epidemiology in 1800s
– John Snow (1854) London cholera outbreak
• Deaths were not random – clustered around a single water pump
• Quantified deaths and proximity to pump
• Study of quantifiable variables
• Can establish whether relationships exist between variables
• A strong player in evidence-based practice - 24Qualitative research in healthUsed to establish causal relationship
• Relative importance of causal mechanisms
• Determine differences between groups (patients, practices)
• Assess validity and efficacy of equipment, diagnostic tools,
interventions
• Monitor change over time
• Captures snapshot of situation at a given time - 25Definition of distributionn
- 26Definition of frequencyn
- 27Definition of prevalencen
- 28Definition of mean, median, moden
- 29Definition of correlationn
- 30Definition of probabilityn
- 31Definition of p valuen
- 32Definition of incidencen
- 33Definition of trendn
- 34Definition of errorn
- 35Definition of cause vs effectn
- 36What do quantitative experiments include?Experiments
– Controlling a set of conditions
– Modifying a single variable
– Test and compare outcomes
– Carried out in a controlled manner - 37What do quantitative observations include?Observations
– Examining and evaluating a set of conditions
– No modification or control
– Questionnaires, sampling, systematic reviews - 38what are criticisms of quantitative research?Limited exploration of human issues
• Includes only the observable
• Science-dominated
• Not holistic
• Target driven - 39Qualitative research in healthAdopted in healthcare since 1970’s
• Enable study of experiences, perceptions, beliefs, motivations,
intentions, behaviour
• Studies factors which cannot be measured
• interactive, responsive, holistic
• Exploration not experimentation
– eg explore patient perceptions of healthcare staff
• “if I have a serious decision to make that might affect my whole life, I want to be
sure I am dealing with someone who knows what its all about, not an amateur”
– Clack (2004) Medical Education, 378, 177 - 40Why use qualitative researchPotential useful tool to answer research question
• May be used to explain unanticipated or odd findings
• Obtains human perspective and opinions which statistics might not
identify - 41criticisms of qualitative researchUnscientific
• Subjective
• Anecdotal
• Impressionistic
• Prone to bias - 42What is nominal data?Nominal data
– Numerical code to categorize characteristics
– Numbers do not convey quantity (simply a label)
• male = 1, female = 2;
– Numbers can not be added etc - 43What is ordinal data?Ordinal data
– Natural ordering, positioning or rank
– Intervals between categories not equal
– Intervals are sequential
– Closed-ended questions on Likert scale - 44What is interval data?Similar to ordinal data
– Accepted scales – regular measurable intervals
– Absolute and continuous
– Interval between points are equally split
– Eg temperature
– Likert scales rarely interval - 45What is ration data?Ratio data
– Interval data except has a natural zero point eg time t=0,
temperature 0 Kelvin
– Intervals equal in magnitude - 46What is Non-numerical data?Qualitative data
• Can generate fresh theories (grounded theory)
• GT develops theory from data - 47What are Open-ended questionnaires?Open-ended questionnaires
– Subjects respond in own words
– Easy to ask but difficult to analyse
– Cheap and anonymous - 48What are • Interviews?Interviews
– One-to-one or (focus) groups
– Audio or video recorded in combination with written notes
– Probe ideas from interviewees in structured or unstructured way
• Structured – questions asked in consistent and sequential way
• Unstructured – requires expertise, free to move in any direction, difficult to
analyse - 49What are • Observations?Observations
– No direct inquiry
• Direct observation produces quantitative data
• Participant observation produces qualitative data - 50What are Written documents?Written documents
– Transcripts
– Analysed using content analysis
– Data are often coded to aid interpretation
Information
- Description
- Graduate Record Examination (GRE) reasearch methods Flashcards on Qualitative versus Quantitative Research , created by Cleo Smiley on 03/02/2016.
- Created by
- Cleo Smiley
- Views
- 1
- Rating