Research and Quantitative Study Considerations

Practice flashcards for vocabulary terms and definitions used in quantitative research and academic study considerations.

Gap in the literature

Indicates a need for research by identifying what information is not answered in current studies.

Quantitative Research

Research that is objective (outsider’s view) and deductive in approach (top-down).

Basic Research

Research conducted for the sake of obtaining new knowledge.

Applied Research

Research where study results reach intended audiences to solve practical problems.

Internal Validity

Attempting to create an internal reality of the society under study with the methods selected.

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

A committee in academic and healthcare settings whose main purpose is the protection of human subjects and study participants.

Informed Consent

A process in which participants are given information about a study to decide if they want to participate without coercion.

Beneficence

The ethical principle of maximizing good in research.

Nonmaleficience

The ethical principle of doing no harm.

Justice

Fair treatment and the right to privacy as outlined in the Belmont Report ($1978$).

Hypothesis

An unproven statement that can be tested.

Null Hypothesis ($H_0$)

The hypothesis intended to be rejected, which assumes no difference between two variables or groups.

Type I Error

A false positive that occurs if an investigator rejects a null hypothesis that is actually true in the population.

Type II Error

A false negative that occurs if an investigator fails to reject a null hypothesis that is actually false in the population.

Independent Variable

The variable that can be manipulated, representing the cause or intervention.

Dependent Variable

The variable representing the effect or outcome.

Extraneous Variable

A variable that is known about but is not the variable under consideration for the study.

Confounding Variable

A variable the researcher did not know about and cannot adjust for.

Literature Synthesis

A written narrative format with citations that builds from a literature matrix; it is not an individual reporting of articles.

Meta-analysis

A Level $1$ evidence literature review re-examining and re-working data from mostly published studies using a quantitative design.

Cohort Study

An observational study (no intervention) that can be prospective or retrospective, used to determine prognosis and harm.

Case Control Study

A quick, cheap, and always retrospective observational study good for studying rare diseases or those that take a long time to develop.

Probability Sampling

A broad sampling approach involving random selection to minimize bias, giving everyone in the population an equal chance to be selected.

G-Power

A power analysis tool used to determine sample size in a quantitative study.

Statistical Significance

Indicated by a p-value $\leq 0.05$, meaning the intervention was responsible for the results and not chance.

Nominal Scale

A scale for naming data without a specific order, such as race, gender, or mode of transportation.

Ordinal Scale

A scale that incorporates order and can be ranked, such as test grades or level of education.

Interval Scale

A scale incorporating both order and magnitude but with no absolute zero, such as Temperature ($^{\circ}F$ or $^{\circ}C$) or IQ tests.

Ratio Scale

The most sophisticated scale that combines interval scale with an absolute (defined) zero point, such as weight or infection rates.

Discrete Data

Data consisting of distinct or separate whole numbers where subdivision is not possible.

Continuous Data

Data in fractional or decimal numbers that can be divided into smaller levels and take any value within a range.

Novel Data

New data the researcher is collecting for a current study.

Reliability

A property of a data collection tool where measurements are consistent and do not fluctuate greatly.

Cronbach’s alpha

A mathematical formula for internal consistency that measures how well a survey measures what it is intended to; a tool is stronger as the coefficient approaches $1$ (ideally $0.70$ or greater).

Descriptive Statistics

Statistics used to explain or describe data, including mean, median, mode, range, and standard deviation.

Inferential Statistics

Statistics used to assist in making predictions, such as t-tests, ANOVA, and Pearson Product Moment.

External Validity

The ability to transfer the results of a study to another like population.

Dissemination

The process of getting study results to where others can use it, such as through poster presentations or article publications.

Construct

An idea more complex than a concept that is deliberately invented for a research project, such as 'self-care' in Orem’s Nursing Theory.