Reading and Critiquing Research

Articles

Chapter 4

1
 Learning Objectives
On completing this class, student will be able to:
1. Identify and describe the major sections in a research journal article
2. Characterize the style used in quantitative and qualitative research
reports
3. Read a research article and broadly grasp its “story”
4. Describe aspects of a research critique
5. Understand the many challenges researchers face and identify some tools
for addressing methodologic challenges
6. research examples and critical thinking activities
 Types of Research Reports
Presentations at professional conferences
Oral presentations (typically at professional conferences).
poster sessions
Journal articles
Papers often subjected to peer review
Peer reviews are often blind (reviewers are not told names of authors
and vice versa.)
 Content of Research Journal Articles
IMRAD Format:
Title and abstract
Introduction
Method
Results
And Discussion
References
 Abstract
Brief description of major features of a study at the beginning
of a journal article
Old style—single paragraph, about 100 to 150 words
New style—more detailed, with specific headings
 Introduction
Description of:
Central phenomena, concepts, or variables
Study purpose, research questions, or hypotheses
Review of literature
Theoretical/conceptual framework
Study significance, need for study
 Method Section
Quantitative studies:
Research design
Sampling plan
Methods of measuring variables and collecting data
Study procedures, including procedures to protect participants
Analytic methods and procedures
 Method Section (cont.)
Qualitative studies (cont.):
Research tradition
Sampling approach and description of study participants
Setting and context
Data collection approaches
Study procedures
Analytic strategies
 Question
Is the following statement True or False?

The review of literature is typically found in the method

section of the research report.

False
Rationale: The review of literature is usually found in the
introduction of the research report.
 Results Section
Findings:
Quantitative studies:
Descriptive information (e.g., description of subjects)
Results of statistical analyses
Names of statistical tests
Value of calculated statistics
Level of statistical significance
 Results Section (cont.)
Findings (cont.):
Quantitative studies (cont.):
Level of statistical significance—index of how probable it is that
the findings are reliable
For example, p<0.05: Probability is less than 5 in 100 that the
findings are false (probability is 95 in 100 that the findings are
“real” and replicable.).
 Results Section (cont.)
Findings (cont.):
Qualitative studies (cont.):
Findings often organized according to major themes, processes, or
categories identified in the analysis
Almost always includes raw data—quotes directly from study
participants
 Discussion
Interpretation of the results
Implications for nursing practice and for further
research
Study limitations
 Question
Is the following statement True or False?

A researcher would describe the limitations of the study in the

results section of the report.

False
Rationale: The study limitations are typically described in the
discussion section of the report.
Why Are Research Articles So Hard to Read?

Often difficult to gather the “story” being told, because

of:
Compactness—page constraints
Jargon
Objectivity, impersonality: using passive voice
Statistical information
 Tips on Reading Research Articles
Read regularly, get used to style.
Read copied articles—underline, highlight, write notes.
Read slowly.
Read actively.(understand what you reading)
Look up technical terms in glossary.
Don’t be scared by statistics—grasp idea of story.
“Translate” articles or abstracts.
RESEARCH CRITIQUES
 Research Critiques
A research critique is a careful and objective appraisal of a study’s
strengths and limitations.
Critiques can be facilitated by:
Using a formal protocol or critiquing guideline—although a one-size-
fits-all guideline does not typically work perfectly (see guidelines for
quantitative and qualitative studies in this chapter as models.)
Reviewing a model of a good critique
Book-Nursing Research page 99
 Question
Is the following statement True or False?
Research critiques are done to evaluate the strengths and
limitations of a study.

True
Rationale: Although there are a wide variety of reasons for critiquing
research, research critiques provide careful and objective appraisals of the
strengths and limitations of a study.
 Understanding Key Research Challenges
Inference:
Inference is the attempt to generalize or come to conclusions based on limited
information.
Reliability
accuracy and consistency of information obtained in a study.
the results are an accurate reflection of a wider group than just the particular
people who participated in the study.
Validity
soundness of the study’s evidence.
 Evaluative Criteria in Qualitative Studies
Trustworthiness
The overall integrity of the study’s evidence
 Bias
An influence producing a distortion in study results
Examples of factors creating bias:
Lack of participants’ honesty
Faulty methods of data collection
Researcher’s preconceptions
Participants’ awareness of being in a special study
Faulty study design
 Research Control
In quantitative studies, research control involves holding
constant extraneous factors (confounding variables) that
influence the dependent variable, to better understand
relationships between the independent and dependent
variables. Example: Urine incontinence.
Research control is one method of addressing bias.
 Randomness
Randomness—allowing certain aspects of the study to be left
to chance rather than to researcher or participant choice.

An important tool for achieving control over confounding

variables and for avoiding bias
 Masking (Blinding)
Blinding or masking—involves concealing information
(usually about the study hypotheses or about participants’
status in different groups) from those playing a role in the
study

Used in quantitative studies to reduce biases stemming from

awareness
 Masking (Blinding) (cont.)
Single blind—only one group is blinded (e.g., study
participants)

Double blind—two groups (e.g., study participants and people

collecting the outcome data) are blinded

A study without blinding is sometimes called an open study,

while a study with blinding may be referred to as a closed
study.
 Question
Is the following statement True or False?

Blinding is used in qualitative studies.

False
Rationale: Blinding is used in quantitative studies to reduce bias
that results from awareness.
RESEARCH EXAMPLES AND CRITICAL
THINKING ACTIVITIES
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of
water pillows in reducing bilateral head flattening in preterm
infants. The sample consisted of 46 healthy infants who were 35
weeks or less gestational age. Half the subjects, at random, were
assigned to receive the special intervention, which involved having
their heads supported on a small water pillow. The other 23 infants
received usual care. The outcome variable was infant head shape,
assessed using cranial measurements indicative of the roundness or
flatness of the head. The measurements were obtained by
assistants who did not know which infants received the
intervention. The two groups of infants had significantly different
head measurements: The heads of those in the treatment group
maintained a round shape, while those of the other infants became
flattened. The findings thus suggest that the use of a small water
pillow can help to alleviate bilateral head flattening in preterm
infants, although replication of this study is warranted.
 Short Answer Questions
1. Was this study qualitative or quantitative (Quantitative)
2. How many sentences in the abstract (and which ones) correspond to material
that would be covered in the report’s introduction? (One, “The purpose…
infants.”)
3. How many sentences (and which ones) correspond to material that would be
covered in the report’s method section? (Five, sentences 2 to 6:
“The sample consisted…received the intervention.”)
4. How many sentences (and which ones) correspond to material that would be
covered in the report’s results section?
(One, “The two groups of infants…flattened.”)
 Short Answer Questions
1. How many sentences (and which ones) correspond to material that
would be covered in the report’s discussion?
(One, “The findings thus suggest…is warranted.”)
2. Was this abstract written in the active or passive voice? (Passive)
3. Was any blinding used in this study?
(Yes, the assistants who made the measurements were blinded to the
infants’ exposure to the water pillows.)
END OF PRESENTATION