Discussion: Research Article Appraisal

Discussion: Research Article Appraisal

Instructions: A major skill that is learned in this course is how to critically read and appraise nursing research articles. The purpose for appraising an article is to evaluate the research process followed by the author(s) of the assigned article. This information-intensive, time-intensive process is not learned overnight. To demonstrate your skill at appraising an article, you will complete this open-book short answer assignment.

Here’s how you should approach completing this week’s assignment to begin appraising an article:

1. First, do your assigned reading in Gray, Grove, & Sutherland (2017). This will introduce you to the skills you will need for the week.

2. Skim the entire instructor assigned research article that has been posted on Blackboard for you so that you will have an idea of what it is about. Then, for this week, re-read carefully the introduction / literature review /theoretical framework and methods sections of the article again.

3. Print the Research Article Appraisal, Part One Assignment and find the best answer to each question based on your Gray, Grove, & Sutherland (2017) assigned reading for the week and on what you have read in the instructor assigned research article.

4. Some of the questions in the appraisal assignment below will seem unfamiliar to you. Look up key terms from the question in your textbook. Some examples of these terms might be: problem statements, hypotheses, or variables. You can also look in Chapter 18 for an example of a critical appraisal (or critique) of a quantitative research article.

5. Download the Assignment so you can type in your answers. Once completed, upload your Assignment to the assignment link above by the time and date listed on the Course Schedule. Be thoughtful and review the information that has been given to you to complete this assignment.

6. APA will only apply to quotations and citations in the assignment as directed. Again, do not use quotations unless directed in the assignment.

If you have questions about this assignment, you can post them to the Coach Group discussion board for help. Please do not ask the group for the answer as this would constitute academic dishonesty.

Article Critique Questions

Student Answers

Question #1: Introduction

a) What are the qualifications of

the researchers?

b) Discuss the clarity of the title

(type of study, variables and

population are identified).

c) Discuss the quality of the

abstract. (includes purpose,

design, sample, intervention

and key results)

Question #2: Research Problem and Purpose: (For help with these questions, refer to chapters 3, 5, 18)

a) What is the problem statement(s)? Please quote this directly from the article and cite it appropriately.

b) What is the purpose statement(s)? Please quote this directly from the article and cite it appropriately.

c) What is the significance and relevance of the study to nursing?

d) Is the study feasible to conduct? Include three of the following: time commitment, money commitment, researcher expertise, availability of subjects, facilities, and equipment, cooperation of others, ethical considerations.

Question #3: Review of the Literature. (For help with these questions, refer to chapters 7 & 18.)

a) List three major topics discussed in the review of literature (ROL).

b) Are any theories or models identified in the ROL.

c) Does the ROL describe current knowledge of the research problem? Briefly explain how.

d) Briefly explain how the studies reviewed in the ROL are summarized.

Question #4: Study Framework. (For help with these questions, refer to chapters 8 & 18)

a) How do the authors describe the study’s framework? Is it implicit or explicit?

b) List the important concepts found in the framework.

c) Does the framework present the relationships among the concepts? (yes / no) If yes, give one example of a relationship between two concepts. If there a map or model provided in the article, give the page number.

Question #5. Research objectives, questions, or hypotheses. (For help with these questions, refer to chapters 6 & 18)

a) Does this article have objectives, questions, or hypotheses? Be specific and say which one of these three it has.

b) List the article’s objectives, questions or hypotheses. Be specific and say which one of these three it has. Quote this directly from the article and cite it appropriately.

Question #6. Variables (For help with these questions, refer to chapters 6 & 18)

a) List the major study variables.

b) Are the major study variables independent, dependent, or research variables?

c) What are the conceptual definitions of the major variables (Hint: from the review of literature)?

d) What are the operational definitions of the major variables? (Hint: you may find this information in the ROL or in the “Methods” section of the article).

e) Did the author identify any extraneous variables? If so, briefly describe.

f) List the demographic variables that are identified in the study. (Do not describe the sample characteristics here).

Question #7. Research Design (For help with these questions, refer to chapters 1, 10, 11 & 18)

a) Is the design type descriptive, correlational, quasi-experimental, or experimental.

b) Explain how the design type that you picked in a) (above) match the study’s objectives, questions, or hypotheses?

c) Explain how the design type that you picked in a) (above) provides a means to examine the study’s purpose?

d) Does the study include a treatment or intervention? If so, briefly describe. (Hint: you may find this information in the ROL or in the “Methods” section of the article).

e) Were pilot study findings used to design the major study?

Question #8 Strengths and Weaknesses *Hint* use guidelines about strengths and weaknesses on page pp. 439-442 Step 2, Chapter 18

a) Identify two strengths of the

study

b) Identify two weaknesses of

the study

LINK TO THE ARTICLE

https://elearn.uta.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-8172114-dt-content-rid-142440982_2/xid-142440982_2

Discussion: Research Article Appraisal

Discussion: Research Article Appraisal

You must proofread your paper. But do not strictly rely on your computer’s spell-checker and grammar-checker; failure to do so indicates a lack of effort on your part and you can expect your grade to suffer accordingly. Papers with numerous misspelled words and grammatical mistakes will be penalized. Read over your paper – in silence and then aloud – before handing it in and make corrections as necessary. Often it is advantageous to have a friend proofread your paper for obvious errors. Handwritten corrections are preferable to uncorrected mistakes.

Use a standard 10 to 12 point (10 to 12 characters per inch) typeface. Smaller or compressed type and papers with small margins or single-spacing are hard to read. It is better to let your essay run over the recommended number of pages than to try to compress it into fewer pages.

Likewise, large type, large margins, large indentations, triple-spacing, increased leading (space between lines), increased kerning (space between letters), and any other such attempts at “padding” to increase the length of a paper are unacceptable, wasteful of trees, and will not fool your professor.

The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced with a one-inch margin on the top, bottom, and sides of each page. When submitting hard copy, be sure to use white paper and print out using dark ink. If it is hard to read your essay, it will also be hard to follow your argument.

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS

Discussion Questions (DQ)

Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.
Weekly Participation

Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.
APA Format and Writing Quality

Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.
Use of Direct Quotes

I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.
LopesWrite Policy

For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.
Late Policy

The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.
Communication

Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me:
Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.