File: 3_ Research Design

A. BASIC RESEARCH
 to generate knowledge

B. APPLIED RESEARCH
 used to solve problem
 to find immediate solution

C. QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
1. Experimental
 is a research method used to investigate the interaction between independent and
dependent variables, which can be used to determine a cause-and-effect relationship
i. True experimental
 Has 3 properties: randomization, manipulation and control
ii. Quasi – experimental
 Quasi-experimental research designs do not randomly assign participants to
treatment or control groups for comparison.
 Characteristics of quasi-experimental design include the lack of random
assignment to treatment groups and the inability to prove causation.

2. Non-experimental
i. SURVEY
 Collects data from a defined population in order to make a detailed
description of existing phenomena with the intent of employing the result
to justify current conditions and practices or to make further plans to
improve the situation
 May study small or large samples of subjects drawn from defined
populations

a. CROSS-SECTIONAL SURVEY
examines data at ONE POINT IN TIME
Collects data from a study group at a point in time rather than at several
points in time
To simultaneously collect data on variables of interest from different
cohort (unit) groups
Example: to examine the relationship between AGE & GROWTH
(Physical, social & cognitive)
i. Take measurements of children from different age levels
(under -five, preschool, 6-20 years)
ii. Calculate the average from the variables for each group & plot
the averages to show the general growth pattern of each
variable for children from the different age cohorts

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 A1. Descriptive
 attempts only to relate one variable to another and does not
attempt to determine the cause
 merely collects & analyzes accurate data about a particular topic of

a. Collects data from the Same Group at

Different points in time
b. Example: to examine the relationship
between AGE & GROWTH (Physical, social &
cognitive)
interest, which include: ATTITUDE, PRACTICE, OPINION, ETC.
 presents what was observed or said quantitatively

A2. Exploratory/explanatory
 designed to ANALYZE & determine or EXPLAIN the CAUSE of a
RELATIONSHIP described by a descriptive survey
 can be achieved by the Formulation & Testing of the HYPOTHESIS

b. LONGITUDINAL SURVEY
Take measurements of the SAME cohort or group of children (primary
school) at EACH Data Collection Point (i.e. 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th & 10th year)

B1. Prospective
Explores the presumed cause and then moves forward in time
presumed effect
Starts in the present and ends in the future

B2. Retrospective
Attempts to draw a relationship or link between present events
and events that have occurred in the PAST.
Useful when one is able to follow up each group of individuals
for some time to see the outcome of a particular exposure

Are basically epidemiological in nature & is similar, in principle,

to the EX POST FACTO (“from after effect”)Design
Examples:
o Relationship between smoking and lung cancer
o Cohort study of the effect of the atomic bomb on the
children in Hiroshima & Nagasaki born during the WWII
Example: To understand the effect of exposure of a community
or group to an environmental factor, i.e. Industrial smoke or
noise
If a cement factory is established in a community, to assess the
effect of the environmental pollutant on the health status of the
community over a period of time, as long as 10-20 years

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 ii. Epidemiological study

D. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH – mainly used in social sciences

Types of Qualitative Research Methods:

1. Case study
Case studies are in-depth examinations of people, groups of people, or institutions.

Content analysis is the term used to indicate the examination of communication messages
obtained in case studies, as well as in other types of qualitative studies.

A case study may be considered as quantitative or qualitative research depending on the

purpose of the study and the design chosen by the researcher.

As is true of other types of qualitative studies, for a case study to be considered as a

qualitative study, the researcher must be interested in the meaning of experiences to the
subjects themselves, rather than in generalizing results to other groups of people.

Case studies are not used to test hypotheses, but hypotheses may be generated from case
studies (Younger, 1985).

Example:

A case study approach was used to study the roles of perioperative nurses in Ireland
(McGarvey, Chambers, & Boore, 2004).
In nursing, the case study approach might be used to answer a question such as “How do
the nurse and patient manage nausea associated with chemotherapy?” Jacelon and O’Dell
(2005) have proposed the use of case studies to explore real clinical situations in depth

2. Phenomenology
Phenomenological studies examine human experiences through the descriptions provided
by the people involved. These experiences are called lived experiences.

The goal of phenomenological studies is to describe the meaning that experiences hold for
each subject.

Bracketing is the process in which qualitative researchers put aside their own feelings and
beliefs about the phenomena under consideration to keep from biasing their observations.

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 Examples:
“What is it like for a mother to live with a teenage child who is dying of cancer?”
Daly (2005) studied the lived experiences of mothers of suicidal adolescents.

3. Ethnography
Ethnographic studies involve the collection and analysis of data about cultural groups.

Ethnographers frequently live with the people they are studying.

According to Leininger (1985), ethnography can be defined as “the systematic process of

observing, detailing, describing, documenting, and analyzing the lifeways or particular
patterns of a culture (or subculture) in order to grasp the lifeways or patterns of the
people in their familiar environment”

Ethnographers interview people who are most knowledgeable about the culture. These
people are called key informants.

Example:

Margaret Mead (1929) used it to study the Samoans. Ethnography has been the principal
method used by anthropologists to study people all over the world. Ethnographers study
how people live and how they communicate with each other.

4. Grounded theory
Grounded theory studies are studies in which data are collected and analyzed and then a
theory is developed that is grounded in the data.

A process called constant comparison is used, in which data are constantly compared to
data that have already been gathered. Pertinent concepts are identified and assigned codes.

The grounded theory method uses inductive and deductive approaches to theory
development.

For example:
A nurse researcher might be interested in how young women deal with premenstrual
syndrome (PMS). In talking to a group of these women, one woman might seem to be
distressed at the mention of PMS and not want to discuss it at all. Another woman might
seem embarrassed but is willing to ask questions of the researcher. A third young woman
might seem to be perfectly comfortable talking about PMS and is willing to share her
experiences with the other women. Each of these women responded to the topic in a
unique way.

5. Historical

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 Historical studies concern the identification, location, evaluation, and synthesis of data
from the past.

Historical research seeks not only to discover the events of the past but to relate these past
happenings to the present and to the future.

Historical data should be subjected to both external and internal criticism. External criticism
is concerned with the authenticity of the data, whereas internal criticism is concerned with
the accuracy of the data.

For example, you might examine the types of equipment used by nurses in another time
period. Historical data can also be obtained through oral reports. The material may be found
in libraries, archives, or in personal collections. Much valuable ma

6. Action research
Action research is a type of qualitative research that seeks action to improve practice and
study the effects of the action that was taken (Streubert & Carpenter, 2002).

In action research, the implementation of solutions occurs as an actual part of the research
process. There is no delay in implementation of the solutions.

Participatory action research (PAR) is a special kind of action research in which there is
collaboration between the study participants and the researcher in all steps of the study.

Example:
Action research was used with staff in one hospice and one nursing home setting in London
(Dunckley, Aspinal, Addington-Hall, Hughes, & Higginson, 2005).
The purpose of the study was to identify facilitators and barriers to the use of the Palliative
Care Outcome Scale (POS). The staff took part in semi-structured interviews, completed
diaries, and participated in monthly meetings to give their opinions of what they thought
were the facilitators and barriers to the implementation of the POS.

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