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Notes on Research Overview and EBP Process

RESEARCH OVERVIEW

  • Core focus: understanding the components and structure of research and how it informs evidence-based practice (EBP).
  • The material is organized as a set of slides detailing the elements of research and hypotheses used in quantitative inquiry.

STEPS OF THE EBP PROCESS

  • Ask a clinically meaningful question
  • Collect the evidence
  • Critically appraise the evidence
  • Synthesize the evidence
  • Integrate evidence with clinical expertise, patient value and preferences, and clinical setting
  • Make a decision and implement
  • Evaluate outcomes

RESEARCH OVERVIEW: PROBLEM STATEMENT AND PURPOSE

  • Problem Statement components:
    • Problem identification
    • Background
    • Scope
    • Consequences of the problem / Significance
    • Knowledge gap
  • Purpose statement (structure):
    • The purpose of this study was to…
    • Example action verbs: \text{investigate},\; \text{test},\; \text{evaluate},\; \text{compare},\; \text{examine},\; \text{explore},\; \text{describe},\; \text{understand},\; \text{discover}

RESEARCH OVERVIEW: RESEARCH QUESTION

  • Common forms of research questions:
    • In (population), what is the relationship between (IV) and (DV)?
    • In (population), what is the effect of (IV) on (DV)?
    • What is the frequency of (V) among (population)?
    • What is the lived experience of… ?
  • Notation for variables:
    • IV = independent variable
    • DV = dependent variable
    • V = variable of interest (could be a variable like a prevalence or incidence)

RESEARCH OVERVIEW: HYPOTHESES

  • Hypotheses include: population, variables, and relationship between variables
  • Variables to consider:
    • Independent vs Dependent variables
    • Conceptual vs Operational definitions of variables
  • Relationship type in hypotheses:
    • Directional vs Non directional (nondirectional)
  • Each hypothesis has a corresponding Null hypothesis

INDEPENDENT VS DEPENDENT VARIABLES

  • Example topic: differences in job satisfaction among nurses by shift pattern
  • Independent Variable (IV): Type of shift worked (day, night, rotating) → \text{IV} = \text{Type of shift worked}, with values {day, night, rotating}
  • Dependent Variable (DV): Job satisfaction → \text{DV} = \text{Job satisfaction}
  • This example illustrates how a causal or associative claim is framed around changes in the IV affecting the DV

CONCEPTUAL VS OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS OF VARIABLES

  • Conceptual definition (theoretical meaning): e.g., the outcome = nurses’ contentedness with their job
  • Operational definition (how it is measured in a study): e.g., the score on the Nurses Satisfaction Survey Tool (NSST)
  • This distinction helps specify exactly what is being measured and how it will be quantified in research

DIRECTIONAL VS NONDIRECTIONAL RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

  • Directional hypothesis example:
    • There will be a difference in job satisfaction between nurses who work only day shift, only night shift, and rotating shifts. Nurses who work rotating shifts will report higher job satisfaction compared to nurses who work only day shift and only night shift.
    • This specifies the direction of the expected effect (rotating shifts > others)
  • nondirectional (non-directional) hypothesis example (implied by page content):
    • There will be a difference in job satisfaction between the groups, but not specifying which group will be higher or lower

NULL HYPOTHESIS

  • Corresponding Null hypothesis to the above directional or nondirectional claims:
  • Null form (example):
    • H_0: \text{There is no difference in job satisfaction between nurses who work day, night, or rotating shifts.}
  • This statement provides a baseline to test against the alternative hypothesis; rejection of H_0 supports an effect or difference

ADDITIONAL NOTES AND CONNECTIONS

  • The EBP process emphasizes integrating evidence with clinical expertise and patient values, highlighting the practical and ethical dimension of applying research to patient care
  • Conceptual clarity (defining variables) and explicit hypotheses are essential for rigorous study design and statistical testing
  • Example study context uses nursing shifts as a concrete illustration of IV/DV concepts and hypothesis types
  • The structure supports critical appraisal: understanding the problem, framing a question, selecting appropriate hypotheses, and planning measurement and analysis

KEY SYMBOLS AND TERMS (RECAP)

  • IV = independent variable
  • DV = dependent variable
  • V = variable of interest
  • Conceptual definition = theoretical meaning of a variable
  • Operational definition = how a variable is measured in a study
  • Directional hypothesis = predicts a specific direction of the effect
  • Non-directional (nondirectional) hypothesis = predicts an effect but not its direction
  • Null hypothesis = statement of no effect or no difference

SUMMARY OF STRUCTURE (FOR REVIEWERS)

  • EBP steps: question → evidence collection → critical appraisal → synthesis → integration with clinical context → decision → evaluate
  • Problem statement components and purpose verbs
  • Research questions formats with population, IV, DV, and lived-experience inquiries
  • Variable types and definitions (IV vs DV; conceptual vs operational)
  • Hypothesis types (directional vs nondirectional) and their null counterparts
  • Practical example using shift work and job satisfaction to illustrate concepts