A Variable & An Operational Definition : The Nursing Research Perspective

By : Kumboyono

Department of Nursing Medical Faculty Brawijaya University April, 2004

Class Objectives : After completing this class, the student should be able to :
Exlpain about the variable of nursing research Explain about the operational definition of variable

Introduction
An important part of critiquing research is determining whether the author is clear and consistent regarding : How the concepts in the framework are used in the design of the study How the concepts are operationalized into variables

Introduction
Terms used to refer to the concepts that are being investigated : Quantitative studies Variables Qualitative studies Topics phenomena

Introduction
We are always thinking in constructs, concepts and variables.. It helps us organize and order the world around us.
We think of animals, then fish, then shark. This represents : a construct (animals) a concept (fish) a variable (shark)

Constructs, Concepts, Variables

Construct : a concepts with a general meaning within a conceptual framework (e.g. : emotional responses) Concept : term that abstractly describes and names an object or phenomenon (e.g. : anxiety) Variable : precise, well-defined concepts that will be measured in research study (e.g. : response to questionnaire anxiety levels)

Constructs
A mental image of a phenomenon An idea or construct in the mind about thing or an action a cluster of characteristics that describes the concept A construct is broader and more abstract than a concept construct : quality of life concepts : satisfaction with self, happiness

Concepts
Range from being very abstract to being very concrete abstract : anxiety concrete : body temperature Concepts are at a higher level of abstraction than a variable concept : dyspnea variable : self-report of dyspnea, respiratory rate

Variables
A variable is a characteristic, a trait, property, or a condition A variable is a characteristic being measured that varies among the persons, places, or objects being studied. variables are measurable characteristics that can take on different values

Examples :
Construct
Symptom distress

Concept
Pain

Variable
Response to questionanaire behavioral cues

Vomiting

Amount of vomiting

Examples :
Construct Cardiovascular Health Concept Hypertension Variable Blood pressure

Hypercholesterol emeia

Lipid levels

Tipe Variabel
1. Berdasarkan jumlah : Variabel univariat Variabel bivariat Variabel multivariat
Bagaimana pengaruh pelaksanaan standar praktek keperawatan dengan insidensi komplikasi, penurunan masa rawat inap, penghematan biaya ?

2. Sifat hubungan
Variabel dependent Variabel independent Variabel intervening Variabel extraneous

Adakah pengaruh terapi kompres hangat dengan penurunan suhu tubuh pasien typoid ? Is there a correlation between the number of stress reported by nurses in an intensive care unit and nurses desire to leave employment )?

Hubungan antara usia dan kecelakaan kerja Dapatkah penggunaan alat pelindung yang berbeda-beda menjelaskan antara hubungan usia dengan kecelakaan kerja ? (intervening variable) Apakah pengaruh jenis-jenis pekerjaan ? (confounding variable) Apakah pekerja lansia cenderung mengalami kecelakaan kerja pada tahun-tahun pertama ? (modifier variable)

Pembagian vairabel berdasarkan sifat hubungan penting untuk : Menggambarkan kerangka konsep Mengembangkan kerangka analisis Variabel dipilih atas dasar relevansinya dengan pertanyaan penelitian, tujuan penelitian dan hypotesis penelitian

Type Variabel
3. Skala pengukuran variabel
Variabel nominal Variabel ordinal Variabel Kategorikal / Kualitatif

Vatiabel interval Variabel rasio

Variabel Kontinyu / Kuantitatif

Categorical variables
Categorical variables are those that are made to fit into a few discrete categories:
Age could be specified as a categorical variable, e.g., 1=young (<30 y.o.); 2=old (>31 y.o.). Smoking habit could be specified as a categorical variable, e.g., 1=non smoker; 2=smoker.

Continuous variables
Continuous variables are those that are specified as a range of values along a continuum:
Age could be specified as a continuous variable, e.g., any year of life ranging over the life of the subject. Smoking habit could be specified as a continuous variable, e.g., pkgs/day x 365 x #yrs

Nominal
Lowest of the four levels of measurement
Categories that are not more or less but are different from one another in some way

Mutually exclusive & exhaustive categories

E.g. : gender, ethnic background

Ordinal
Categories must be exclusive and exhaustive Quantity of the attribute can be identified. It cannot be demonstrated that the intervals are equal: unequal intervals

Ordinal
Many scales in nursing research are ordinal scales Some may be referred to as metric ordinal scales are are treated as interval scales if the intervals are considered to have some evenness.

Rating Scale
How often do you feel in control of your life?
(1) Never (2) Seldom (3) Often (4) Almost always

SCALING
Rating Scales--ordered series of categories of a variable based on an underlying continuum.
Never, Sometimes, Often, Frequently

Likert Scale
Strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, strongly disagree

INTERVAL SCALE
In this case, the distance between these ordered category values are equal because there is some accepted physical unit of measurement. In the Fahrenheit thermometer, mercury rises in equal intervals called degrees.

INTERVAL SCALE CONT..

However, the zero point is arbitrary, chosen because Daniel Fahrenheit, the inventor, decided that zero point on this scale would be 32 degree below the freezing point of water.

INTERVAL SCALE CONT..

Because the units are in equal intervals, it is possible to add and subtract across an interval scale. You can say that 1000 F is warmer than 500, but you cannot say that 1000 F is twice as hot as 500 F.

Ratio
Highest for measurement
Continuum of values Absolute zero point Weight, height, volume

 Pembagian variabel berdasarkan skala pengukurannya dikembangkan sebagai bahan pertimbangan dalam mengkaji status metode analisis data
Setiap skala variabel yang berbeda mempunyai konsekuensi sifat analisis teknik analisis yang berbeda.

Latihan :
1.Status ISPA 2.Suhu Badan 3.Cakupan imunisasi 4.Tingkat pendidikan 5.Prevalensi TB Paru 6.BOR 7. LOS 8. Jenis Malaria 9. Biaya pelayanan kesehatan 10. Status imunisasi 11. Status gizi

Latihan :
12. Status sosial ekonomi 13. Persepsi terhadap DHF 14. Status ANC 15. Kadar HB 16. Jenis Hepatitis 17. Morbiditas penyakit diare 18. Cara pembayaran pelayanan kesehatan 19. Paritas 20. Jumlah peneriamaan tablet besi 21. Pengetahuan ibu tentang larutan gula garam

Operationalizing Research Variables Conceptual Definition:

The abstract meaning of a variable that usually is based on theory.

Operational Definition:
A way of defining a variable that makes it measurable or manipulatable in the real world.

An operational definition
An operational definition is how the researcher defines the variable in measurable terms.
Given the mechanical means thus far invented to operationalize the concept of diastolic blood pressure, different methods may necessarily distort the definition, and the results:
Will dBP be defined by auscultation as the 4th or 5th Korotkoff sound?, or Will dBP be defined by the nadir of the direct arterial pressure waves dicrotic notch?, or Will dBP be defined by the arterial pressure at which ECG indicates peak ventricular electrical repolarization?

An operational definition
Heart rate is a concept defined in intellectual terms as the frequency that cardiac contractile cycles are recurring one after another. Researchers can come up with different ways to measure heart rate, among which some ways are more sophisticated than others :
Palpation of a peripheral arterial pulse [feel] Auscultation or Doppler [listen] Visual by echocardiographic observation [look] ECG [indirect] Photomagnetic oscillations [indirect]

the operational definition of heart rate would have to be modified if it was important to account for observations in which the number of atrial and ventricular contractile cycles per unit of time did not correspond.

An operational definition
Is there such a thing as love?, or happiness? [love and happiness are concepts that virtually everyone can identify, but cant agree on how to measure] Can the degree to which people love other people change?, and does peoples happiness vary and function as the cause or result of circumstances? [if yes, then they are variables] If you want to study them quantitatively, you will have to operationalize love and happiness in measurable terms. Any ideas for how to go about doing that?

Cara mengoperasionalisasikan variabel :

Hindari istilah dalam kamus / tekstual Mendefinisikan dalam makna kontekstual Hindari pernyataan dalam bentuk negatif Apa yang didefinisikan tidak boleh masuk dalam definisi Tidak dinyatakan dalam bahasa yang kabur (ambigous)

Alasan Mendefinisikan Variabel Penelitian

1. Agar tidak menimbulkan kekaburan fokus penelitian dan menghilangkan salah penafsiran terhadap obyek yang menjadi fokus penelitian 2. Mempersempit fokus target populasi dan wilayah penelitian 3. Memudahkan pembuatan instrumen penelitian 4. Memberi makna kontekstual terhadap masalah yang menjadi fokus

Summary
Construct
Concepts Variables Operational Definition Indicators Measurement