Nursing research: methods and applications

Nursing Research

Fairly commenting on an investigator's research endeavor is a task that must be taken seriously. Although it is quite easy to have an opinion of another's research, it is something quite different to be able to evaluate the research activity in terms of topic specificity and soundness, intent or purpose, data analysis, and informational importance. When embarking upon a critical analysis of another's work the reviewer must, at all times, adhere to the basic principle of prudent evaluation; namely, evaluating the structure of the research upon which scientific conclusion are drawn. More specifically, the function of a research report (article) is to inform readers about the problem being investigated, the methods used to solve the problem, the results of the investigation, and the conclusions being inferred from the results. The printed manuscript is to inform the reader, as expeditiously as possible, what was done, the outcome of the doing, and the investigator's conclusion.

In addition to the above, research reports must be succinct, objective, and crystalline. The ultimate test of an excellent research report is in its ability to be replicated by those who read it. If this criterion cannot be met, then the report is inadequate. The remainder of this review will be an analysis of a particular professional article wherein 50 pre-school pre-surgery children residing in a Lebanon Hospital were assigned to a treatment group and 50 similar children assigned to a control group to determine the effect of the treatment variable. Further, as stated in the assignment guidelines the paper will be pay particular attention to the following: substantive qualities (research problem and purpose, research question and accompanying hypothesis/hypotheses, variable identification, supportive literature, conceptual framework), research methodology, research ethics, data interpretation, writing and presentation style, and quality of presentation and writing. The specific tile of the article is as follows: Zahr, Lina Kurdali (1998). Therapeutic play for hospitalized preschoolers in Lebanon. Pediatric Nursing. 24(5), 449.

Research Question. One of the most important tenets of quantitative research is to present a well developed research question followed by a testable null hypothesis. Unfortunately the author of this particular article did not present the reader with a research question. Had the research investigator presented a research question it would have been similar to the following: To what extent does there exist statistically significant differences in anxiety levels between pre-school children receiving surgery as a result of therapeutic play intervention before surgery compared to those pre-school children who do not receive therapeutic play intervention? However, the author did inform the reader of a testable hypothesis but the hypothesis statement was not in keeping with best-fit research practice as it is not stated in null form nor does it contain the alpha level needed for acceptance/rejection.