Frequency of Use of Various

¶ … Frequency of Use of Various Research Tools and Their Application in a Study of Nursing Education Efficacy

The frequency in use of various research tools is a direct result of the broadness of applicability and efficacy of each specific tool. An understanding of the basic frequency with which certain tools are utilized, then, can project with some confidence the usefulness and applicability of these tools in a specific research project. At the same time, despite the regularity of use of some research tools, specific tools might be inappropriate or ineffective in specific research projects and applications. Based on the frequency of use of certain research tools and the specific issues present in the specific research question, this paper attempts to analyze the available research tools and methodologies in determine the degree to which Health Education Systems, inc. (HESI) testing is a predictor of National Council of Licensure Examination (NCLX) success.

Almost any peer-reviewed research study or in-house research proposal makes extensive use of one or more libraries and their resources (Leedy & Ormrod 2008). These resources are shifting increasingly towards electronic databases, which in any adequate research library contain electronic copies of full-text journals and periodicals that often number in the thousands. Libraries also represent a physical place where knowledge on a given subject is consolidated and codified, making research that much more simple to carry out. Libraries and the resources they provide -- i.e. access to the published results of previous research and study -- are essential to developing an understanding of the background and research needs of any area of study, making them almost universally utilized in both specific research studies and overall research methodologies and the most common general research tool (Leedy & Ormrod 2008).

Computers have come in as a close second to libraries in their frequency of use in research over the past few decades, and this gap has arguably closed or even been eliminated in recent years due to libraries' increased computerization (Leedy & Ormrod 2008). In addition to accessing resources that were also or formerly available in print, computers have long been utilized for their analytic and statistical abilities; they are much more efficient at transforming raw data to interpretable figures than other computational methods (Niaz 2008; Qual 2009).

The combined techniques of measurement constitute the third most frequently used research tool, as most research projects require some form of measurement (Leedy & Ormrod 2008). Even literature reviews, which often contain little actual manipulation of data, still must assess -- that is measure -- the overall findings of the various studies either quantitatively or qualitatively, or often both (Aggleton 1985). Qualitative measurements constitute a broad class of the available measurement techniques, and are seen as of an increasing importance in nursing (Niaz 2009).

Statistics, which even applied to qualitative data necessarily quantifies results, is almost as frequently used as all other measurement techniques. It is entirely possible to conducts research without relying on statistics, but they almost always can be utilized either in developing a background understanding of the issue or as comparison features within the research itself (Qual 2009). Statistics can come from external sources or be generated by the research study itself, but either way they form an essential part of many research projects. Their tendency to generalize results is both their strength and weakness, and could account for their slightly lower use (Qual 2009).

So far, the research tools listed have all been external; things found somewhere other than the researcher him or herself. The human mind -- the thinking unit of the researcher -- is of course utilized regardless of the research project (or basic activity of daily life), but it is still valid to suggest that the brain is not as frequently used as a research tool as other tools. Though correlations and conclusions might be theorized by the mind, external empirical evidence is generally required before they are widely accepted and jump from theory to practice (Aggleton 1985; Qual 2009). Similarly, a facility with language can be convincing and useful in conducting and expressing the results of research, but is not an adequate tool on its own.