How a Research Problem Should be?

1. Formulating ResearchFormulating Research
Problems, QuestionsProblems, Questions
and Hypothesesand Hypotheses
SathiSh Rajamani m.ScSathiSh Rajamani m.Sc
(n)(n)
0968811545409688115454

2. 201/28/15
Learning Objectives
 Describe the general
steps in the research
process
 Describe process of
identifying a research
problem
 Define research
questions, directional
and non-directional
hypotheses
 Describe the difference
between Level I, II, and
III studies
 Describe the use of
research questions vs.
hypotheses in a
research study

3. 301/28/15
Research Defined
 Research is an organized and
systematic way to find answers to
questions
 Research is a creative process

4. 401/28/15
Why is research important to the
profession of nursing?
 Nursing research provides a scientific
knowledge base for practice.
 Knowledge obtained from sound
research is transformed into clinical
practice, leading to nursing practice
that is evidence-based.

5. 501/28/15
Research and Nursing
 “The nurse must be a knowledgeable
consumer of research, one who can
critique research and use existing
standards to determine the merit and
readiness for research use in clinical
practice” (ANA, 1997; AACN, 1998b).
 LB-W & H p. 7

6. 601/28/15
Developing & Refining a
Research Problem
 Research study should include:
A specific problem area
Review of relevant literature
Significance to nursing
Feasibility

7. 701/28/15
Research Topics
 Nursing research topics include
studies of patient populations, or an
individual’s response to health
problems, or potential health problems.

8. 801/28/15
The Research Idea
 Professional experience
 Burning questions
Yours
Others
 Literature
 Professional meetings
 Discussions

9. 901/28/15
Research Topics
 Observations
 Behaviors
 Concepts
 Theories
 Testing of assessment and intervention
strategies

10. 1001/28/15
Criteria for developing a good
research question: FINER
 Feasibility
 Interesting
 Novel
 Ethical
 Relevant
 Cummings et al. 2001

11. 1101/28/15
FINER
 Feasible
 Subjects
 Resources
 Manageable
 Data available?
 Interesting
 Novel
 In relation to previous
findings
 Confirm or refute?
 New setting, new
population
 Ethical
 Social or scientific value
 Safe
 Relevant
 Advance scientific
knowledge?
 Influence clinical practice?
 Impact health policy?
 Guide future research?

12. 1201/28/15
Narrowing the research topic
 Idea → brainstorming
 Literature review
 Identify the variables for study
 Formulate research problems and
questions/hypotheses
 LB-W & H p. 51 – see fig. 3-1

13. 1301/28/15
A Research Question Must
Identify
1. The variables under study
2. The population being studied
3. The testability of the question

14. 1401/28/15
Variables in research
 Have 2 or more properties or qualities
 Age, sex, weight, height
 Is one variable related to another?
 “ Is X related to Y? What is the effect of X on Y?” etc.

15. 1501/28/15
Variables in research
 Independent
variable:
 has a presumed effect
on the dependent
variable (outcome)
 May or may not be
manipulated
 Dependent variable:
 Something that varies
with a change in the
independent variable
 Outcome variable

16. 1601/28/15
Population
 The population to be
studied must be
specified in the
research question

17. 1701/28/15
Testability
 Research problem must imply that the
problem is measurable/testable
 Example of a poorly phrased research
question
“Should postoperative patients control how
much pain medication they receive?”
 How would you revise the question?

18. 1801/28/15
Characteristics to Consider
 Research questions
Cannot be answered by yes/no
 Should ask:
What happens when?
What’s going on here?
How does this happen?
Why does one thing work better than
another?

19. 1901/28/15
Examples
 What is the relationship between
effectiveness of pain management
strategies and quality of life?
 How do older adults adapt to living
with early stage dementia?

20. 2001/28/15
Purpose Statement
 The purpose of the study encompasses
the aims or goals the investigator
wants to accomplish
 Purpose ≠ Question

21. LB-W & H p. 58 Box 3-2 2101/28/15

22. 2201/28/15
Research Questions
 Research studies do not always
contain hypotheses
 Exploratory and descriptive studies
may pose research questions instead

23. 2301/28/15
What is a researchable
question?
 Helps solve a problem, add to theory,
or improve nursing practice
 Needs to be usable, current, and clear
 Provides answers that will explain,
describe, identify, predict or qualify

24. 2401/28/15
Guidelines for writing research
questions
 Start with a simple question
Has one stem and one topic
 Action-oriented
 The way you ask a question determines
how you will answer it

25. 2501/28/15
Writing the research question
 Examples:
What are the health beliefs of the Amish?
What is the relationship between preoperative
teaching and postoperative pain?
Why does increased assertiveness in nurses
lead to lower nosocomial infection rates?

26. 2601/28/15
Hypothesis
 Statement about the relationship
between 2 or more variables
 Converts the question into a statement
that predicts an expected outcome
 A unit or subset of the research
problem

27. 2701/28/15
Characteristics of hypotheses
 Declarative statement that identifies the
predicted relationship between 2 or
more variables
 Testability
 Based on sound scientific
theory/rationale

28. 2801/28/15
Hypotheses
 Hypotheses may not always be
explicitly stated
 Wording must include:
The variables
The population being studied
The predicted outcome of the hypothesis

29. 2901/28/15
Directional vs. Non-Directional
Hypotheses
 Directional hypothesis
Specifies the direction of the relationship
between independent and dependent
variables
 Non-directional hypothesis
Shows the existence of a relationship
between variables but no direction is specified

30. 3001/28/15
Examples
 Directional hypothesis
 Cardiac patients who receive support from former
patients have less anxiety and higher self-efficacy
than other patients
 Non-directional hypothesis
 There is a difference in anxiety and self-efficacy
between cardiac patients who receive support from
former patients and those who do not

31. 3101/28/15
Research vs. Statistical
Hypotheses
 Research hypothesis = scientific hypothesis
 Statement about the expected relationship of the
variables
 Can be directional or nondirectional
 Statistical hypothesis = null hypothesis
 States there is no relationship between the variables
 L-B, W & H p. 66-67

32. 3201/28/15
Example: Statistical Hypothesis
 Oxygen inhalation by nasal cannula of
up to 6L/min does not affectdoes not affect oral
temperature measurement taken with
an electronic thermometer.
Variables?
 other examples?

33. 3301/28/15
Levels of Questions
 Level I
 Little to no literature is
available on the topic and
the purpose is to describe
what is found as it exists
naturally
 Level II
 There is knowledge about
the topic but relationships
among the variables are
not well known
 Level III
 There is a great deal of
knowledge about the topic
and the purpose of the
study is to test the theory
through direct manipulation
of the variables

34. 3401/28/15
Level I Questions
 Lead to exploration and result in a
complete description of the topic
 Examples:
What are the characteristics of suicidal
patients?
What are the spiritual needs of transplant
patients?

35. 3501/28/15
Level II Questions
 Build on the results of
Level I studies
 Look for relationships
between the variables
 Examples:
 What is the relationship
between relaxation and
pain in postoperative
patients?
 What is the relationship
among nutrition, birth
weight of the newborn, and
age of the mother?

36. 3601/28/15
Level III Questions
 Builds on the results of previous
research
 Lead to experimental designs
 Examples:
Why does patient satisfaction increase with
positive attitudes toward self-care?
Why does increased vitamin C decrease skin
fragility in elderly people?

37. 3701/28/15
Summary of Level I, II, and III
Questions
 Level I questions have only one
variable and one population
 Level II requires a minimum of 2
variables in one population
 At level III there must be 2 variables
that specify a cause and effect

38. 3801/28/15
Examples
 What are the body positions into which
nurses place LBW intubated infants?
 What is the relationship between body
positions and heart rate in the LBW
intubated infants?
 Why does supine body positioning
decrease heart rate in the intubated
LBW infant?

39. 3901/28/15
Summary Points
 Preliminary steps in the
research process
include forming a
research problem,
questions and
hypotheses
 A hypothesis attempts
to answer the question
posed by the research
question
 Research questions
illustrate a relationship
between variables,
identify independent
and dependent
variables, include a
population, and imply
that a problem is
testable

40. 4001/28/15
Your questions?