Assignment: Critiquing Nursing Research Articles

Approaching the Assignment

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

Here's how you should approach completing this week’s assignment to finish critiquing an article:

1.  First, do your assigned reading in Grove & Gray (2019) and complete the reading worksheets early in the week.  This will introduce you to the critique 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.  Lightly cross out the abstract for the article (you won't be using it). Then, for this week, re-read carefully from the study’s methods section through the end of the article. 

3.  Print this document and find the best answer to each question below based on your assigned reading for the week and what you have read in the instructor assigned research article. 

4.  Some of the questions in the critique assignment below will seem unfamiliar to you. Look up key terms from the question in your textbook.  Some examples of these terms might be: power analysis, inter-rater reliability, and generalization. You can also look in Chapter 12 for an example of a critical appraisal (or critique) of a quantitative research article.

5. Once you have completed this assignment “on paper”, go into blackboard and enter your answers by the assignment due date and time listed in the syllabus.  Ignore any wording from Blackboard that indicates that “this is a test” and carefully enter your answers from this document.  

6.  You will have two access attempts to record your answers.  This is given to you so that if you encounter technical difficulties on your first attempt, or you would like a second attempt to try to improve your grade, you may do so.  You will not be able to see the questions that you missed when you submit your attempt.  Blackboard will record the highest grade from the two submissions.

If you have questions about this assignment, you can post them to your group discussion board for help.  Please do not post the exact question from the assignment below and ask the group for the answer as this would constitute academic dishonesty.

Sample

1. What sampling method or plan was used by the authors in this study?

a. Simple random sampling

b. Systematic sampling

c. Convenience sampling

d. Network sampling

2. According to Grove & Gray (2019), what are the potential biases of this sampling method?

a. This is a strong probability sampling method with very little potential for bias.

b. This method is used when an ordered list of all members of the population are available, and provides a random but not equal chance for inclusion in the study.

c. This method provides little opportunity to control for bias because subjects are included in the study merely because they happen to be in the right place at the right time.

d. This method is specific to the individuals who were recruited and the information gained cannot be generalized to others who don't share these types of experiences.

e. None of the above biases best describe the sampling method chosen by the author.

3. What was the final sample size reported by the authors for this study?

a. 180 participants

b. 115 participants annually

c. 82 participants per month

d. 28 participants

4. Was a power analysis conducted? If so, which statement best describes the results of the power analysis?

a. The authors mention that a power analysis was conducted using a power of 0.8, an alpha value of 0.5, and a moderate effect size.

b. The authors mention that a power analysis was conducted, and 90 participants were needed for each group.

c. The authors do not report that a power analysis was conducted.

d. The authors mention that a power analysis was conducted using a power of 0.8, and alpha value of 0.5, and a strong effect size.

5. Which of these statements would be considered to be specific inclusion criterion for the sample in the research article?

a. Participants were able to understand English.

b. Participants were able to read and write.

c. Participants were patients on the telemetry unit or the ACE unit.

d. Participants were scheduled to be discharged.

6. Which of these statements would be considered to be exclusion criterion specifically identified by the author for the sample in the research article?

a. Participants could not complete the survey forms.

b. Participants were less than seventy years old.

c. Participants had delirium or dementia.

d. No exclusion criteria were specifically reported by the authors.

7. What is the acceptance rate for this study?

Step 2: Read Instructor Assigned Research Article on Blackboard

a. 100%

b. 182/180 X 100% = 99%

c. 2/180 X 100% = 1%

d. unknown / cannot be calculated

8. Which of the following would be accurate for the attrition rate for this study?

a. 1/78 X 100% = 1%

b. 0%

c. 77/78 x 100% = 98%

d. unknown / cannot be calculated

9. What was the setting for this research study? Briefly describe the setting and indicate whether it was appropriate for conducting this study.

a. The setting for this study was a partially controlled setting and was appropriate for this study's research design.

b. The setting for this study was a natural or field setting and was appropriate for this study's research design.

c. The setting for this study was a highly controlled setting and was appropriate for this study's research design.

d. The setting for this study was not well described by the authors and therefore not appropriate for conducting this study.

Measurement Methods. 

10. Which ones of these questionnaires, scales, or physiologic measures are used in this research study?

a. The Katz Index of Activities of Daily Living

b. The Pearlin Stress Process Model

c. The Bandura Self-Efficacy Scale

e. Clinical Skills Self-Efficacy Scale

11. How do the authors describe the CURRENT reliability of the Caring Behaviors Inventory for Elders (CBI-E)?

a. They allowed the participants to complete the scale in a location of their own choice.

b. They reported a Cronbach’s alpha level of 0.94.

c. They tested the current group of subjects using two different versions of the same scale (alternate forms reliability).

d. They computed a Cronbach's alpha on a modified version of the scale that was administered to this group of subjects.

12. How do the authors describe the validity of the Caring Behaviors Inventory for Elders (CBI-E) used in this study?

a. The Caring Behaviors Inventory for Elders (CBI-E) scale was reviewed by six experts prior to being used in this study.

b. The Caring Behaviors Inventory for Elders (CBI-E) was examined by face, construct, and discriminant validity methods.

c. The Caring Behaviors Inventory for Elders (CBI-E) was described as having construct validity. 

d. The Caring Behaviors Inventory for Elders (CBI-E) readability levels were identified prior to being used in this study.

13. What types of questionnaires or surveys were used in this research study?

a. The authors developed the Caring Behaviors Inventory for Elders (CBI-E).

b. The authors developed their own questions to ask about demographic information.

Step 3: Find Best Answer to Each Question in the Critique Assignment

c. Interviews were reportedly used, but the author does not explain what was included in them.

d. The authors developed their own questions to assess functional status.

14. Were any physiological measurements collected from the subjects for the purpose of this study?

a. Yes

b. No

Data Collection

15. Which of the following best describes the data collection process used in this study?

a. Participants were contacted by phone by nurse researcher.

b. Primary unit nurses obtained participants’ Katz Index of Activity of Daily Living scores on admission and discharge.

c. Questionnaires / surveys were mailed to the prospective returned in a self-addressed stamped envelope.

d. Researchers consented participants after face to face discussion of study.

16. Based on the study's data collection methods, if there were more than one data collector, would an estimation of inter-rater reliability be an important concept for the authors to report on for this study?

a. Yes, and the authors reported their efforts to achieve inter-rater reliability.

b. Yes, but the authors do not discuss any efforts to achieve inter-rater reliability.

c. No, the issue of inter-rater reliability does not apply here.

Data Analysis.

17. What descriptive statistics were NOT reported in this study?

a. mean

b. median

c. frequencies

d. kurtosis

18. Which one of these inferential statistics were NOT used to examine the data obtained from the participants?

a. Pearson correlation

b. Spearman rho

c. Multiple regression

d. Chi square

19. What is the level of significance (alpha level) set at for this study?

a. .01 or 1%

b. .05 or 5%

c. .10 or 10%

d. An alpha level or level of significance chosen by the authors was not specifically mentioned in the text of the article.

Researcher’s Interpretation of the Findings

20. Which statement from the article would be considered a significant result? 

a. In this study, the summed CBI-E score (M = 72.07, SD = 6.78) indicated that the total population of subjects (elders; n = 180) perceived high levels of caring.

b. Among total respondents (n = 180), 154 subjects (85.6%) experienced no decline, 26 (14.4%) experienced decline.

c. There is a postive correlation between elders’ perceptions of nurse caring behavior and functional status.

d. There is a positive correlation between elders’ perceptions of nurse caring behavior and satisfaction with care. 

21. Which one of these statements from the article would be considered a non-significant result?

a. The percentage of elders who declined on the ACE unit was higher than on the telemetry unit.

Step 4: Look Up Key Terms in Your Textbook

b. There was a positive correlation between elders’ perceptions of nurse caring behavior and satisfaction with care.

c. There was a negative correlation between elders’ perceptions of nurse caring behavior and satisfaction with care.

d. The regression model of type of unit and nurse caring models predicting satisfaction of care explained 24% of the variance of elders’ satisfaction with care.

22. Which one of these statements from the article would be considered clinically important?

a. Among total respondents (n = 180), 154 subjects (85.6%) experienced no decline, 26 (14.4%) experienced decline.

b. There was a negative correlation between elders’ perceptions of nurse caring behavior and satisfaction with care.

c. In this study, the summed CBI-E score (M = 72.07, SD = 6.78) indicated that the total population of subjects (elders; n = 180) perceived high levels of caring.

d. In this study, elders 70 and older were satisfied with nursing care when they perceived caring nursing behaviors.

23. Which statements below, as reported by the author, would be considered a limitation of the study?

a. The instrument CBI-E had not been tested previously in a hospital setting.

b. In this study acutely ill hospitalized elders reported that nurses demonstrated caring behaviors, and they were satisfied with nursing care.

c. Elder care is complex, a specialty that requires specialized education.

d. The interaction of nurse caring behaviors (predictive variable) and type of unit (moderator) was neither associated with nor did it predict satisfaction with nursing care.

24. Which of these statements would be considered a statement regarding generalization of these results? 

a. The sample lacked cultural and racial diversity.

b. The instrument CBI-E had not been tested previously in a hospital setting.

c. Elder care is complex, a specialty that requires specialized education.

d. In this study acutely ill hospitalized elders reported that nurses demonstrated caring behaviors, and they were satisfied with nursing care.

25. Which of these statements from the article would be considered a recommendation for future studies?

a. The interaction of nurse caring behaviors (predictive variable) and type of unit (moderator) was neither associated with nor did it predict satisfaction with nursing care.

b.  Additional research is needed to identify the factors that contribute to the functional decline of hospitalized elders.

c. Although there was no unit difference in subjects’ functional status decline, the overall rate of functional decline (14.4%) was lower than the 33% in previous studies. 

d. Teaching elder care in new-nurse orientation might improve nurse caring behaviors that lead to satisfaction and care quality.