ASN 180 Transition to
Professional Nursing
Section II, Objectives 1, 2
Objectives
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Describe the purpose of research in
the practice of professional nursing.
Describe the steps in the research
process.
What is it?
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Discussion
– What is research?
– What is Nursing?
– What is Nursing Research?
Historical development
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Florence Nightingale
1923 first doctoral program
1929 first master’s program
Three studies credited with moving nursing
education to the university setting
– Nutting report, 1912
– Goldmark report, 1923
– Burgess report, 1926
Historical Research
activities
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40’s & 50’s = organization an delivery of
nursing services
– 1950 = ANA sponsored study on nursing
functions and activities
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50’s and 60’s = effective education
preparation of nurses
60’s and 70’s = conceptual models, theories,
clinical studies
80’s and 90’s = clinical nursing research
The question
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How does Nursing Research contribute
to the profession of Nursing?
How Nursing historically
acquire knowledge
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Traditions
Authority
Borrowing
Trial and Error
Personal Experience
Role modeling and mentorship
Intuition
Reasoning
Research
Quantitative vs. Qualitative
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Hard science
Test theory
Concise & narrow
Deductive reasoning
Reductionist design
Controlled data
collection using
instruments
Analysis: numbers and
statistics
Objective, formal
reporting
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Soft science
Create theory
Complete and broad
Inductive reasoning
Holistic design
Communication and
observation
Analysis: words and
individual
interpretation
Subjective, expressive
Research Steps
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Formulate a research question or
problem
Defining the purpose of the study.
Reviewing relevant literature.
Developing a conceptual framework.
Developing research objectives,
questions, and hypotheses.
Defining research variables.
Research Steps, cont.
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Selecting a research design.
Defining the population, sample, and
setting.
Conducting a pilot study.
Collecting data.
Analyzing data
Communicating research findings, their
implications and the limitations of the study.
Types of Research Design
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Historical
Exploratory
Evaluative
Descriptive
Experimental
Quasi-experimental
Let’s do some research
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Identify some phenomenon that you
would like to research.
Use research steps to identify how you
would conduct the research.
Nursing Research Roles
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Nurse researcher
Consumer
Member of research team
Research Utilization
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Three levels
– Instrumental
– Conceptual
– Symbolic
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Models
– WICHE
– CURN
– Iowa, NCAST, Dracup-Breu, Stetler, Horne,
OCRUN
Nursing Students Role
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Start reading research.
– Read the Abstract
– If it is, read the rest of the article critically
Evaluate research design
 Evaluate if sample size is sufficient and
sufficiently randomized
 Is it relevant for your practice
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Any article that states the research has
proved anything is not valid.
Objectives


Describe the purpose of research in
the practice of professional nursing.
Describe the steps in the research
process.