Deck 6: Appraising Qualitative Research

Question 1

Which piece of information presented in the report of a qualitative research study indicates to the nurse researcher that the research meets the criteria of auditability?

A) The researcher's conclusions are congruent with the study findings.
B) The results are meaningful to participants not in the study.
C) The researcher has described the projected significance of the study to nursing.
D) The researcher has documented how the data led to the conclusions presented.

Answer 1

The researcher has documented how the data led to the conclusions presented.

Question 2

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study.Which question would most appropriately analyze the data collection?

A) What is the projected significance of the work to nursing?
B) If a particular approach is used to guide the inquiry, does the researcher complete the study according to the processes described?
C) Are the informants who were chosen appropriate to inform the research?
D) Is protection of human participants addressed?

Answer 2

Is protection of human participants addressed?

Question 3

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study.Which question would most appropriately analyze the statement of the phenomenon of interest?

A) What is the projected significance of the work to nursing?
B) If a particular approach is used to guide the inquiry, does the researcher complete the study according to the processes described?
C) Are the informants who were chosen appropriate to inform the research?
D) Is protection of human participants addressed?

Answer 3

If a particular approach is used to guide the inquiry, does the researcher complete the study according to the processes described?

Question 4

The nurse researcher is critiquing the data analysis that was used in a qualitative research study.Which question would most appropriately analyze credibility?

A) Has adequate time been allowed to fully understand the phenomenon?
B) Can the reader follow the researcher's thinking?
C) Does the researcher document the research process?
D) Are the findings applicable outside of the study situation?

Question 5

The nurse researcher is analyzing a report of the Schreiber et al.study titled "Being strong: How black West-Indian Canadian women manage depression and its stigma." What would indicate that it used a grounded theory approach rather than a phenomenologic approach?

A) It is indicated that data were collected by more than one person.
B) Participants reviewed and evaluated the transcripts for accuracy.
C) Some of the participants were first-generation Canadians.
D) The findings were reported as a theoretical model.

Question 6

The nurse researcher is critiquing a research study.Which outcome or overall purpose would be considered most appropriate for a qualitative study?

A) Creating solutions to practical problems
B) Teaching members of a specific subculture how to control anger
C) Assisting patients to be more participatory in health care decisions
D) Preparing high school students to reduce anxiety in testing situations

Question 7

Which activity represents attention to credibility in a qualitative study?

A) Ensuring that all participants self-identified with a specific racial or ethnic group
B) Providing direct quotations from participants
C) Identifying the basic psychological process (BSP)
D) Asking professional colleagues for comment

Question 8

The nurse researcher is appraising a qualitative research study.Which title would be most appropriate for a qualitative study?

A) Predicting the treatment choice for women over age 50 experiencing breast cancer
B) Evaluating nursing interventions for complex clinical phenomena
C) Using virtual reality as a distraction method during chemotherapy
D) Transcending pain during bone marrow aspiration

Question 9

What process should the nurse researcher engage in before attempting to apply the results of a qualitative study in his or her own practice?

A) Use triangulation to compare the study findings with those obtained by other investigations of the same phenomenon.
B) Validate the findings through interaction with groups similar to the study participants.
C) Examine the credentials of the person who conducted the study.
D) Replicate the study.

Question 10

What is qualitative research designed to describe?

A) Results of hypothesis testing
B) Definitive conclusions to research questions
C) Findings generated from large, randomly selected samples
D) Insiders' view of a phenomenon

Question 11

The nurse researcher reporting in a qualitative study indicates that audiotapes,transcriptions,and field notes are being stored in a locked filing cabinet.What criterion is being met?

A) Credibility
B) Data analysis
C) Data collection
D) Fittingness of findings

Question 12

During the critique of the research study,the nurse researcher notes the statement,"Saturation was achieved at the completion of 20 interviews." Which is the significance of this statement?

A) The investigator must collect additional data.
B) The data collection period has ended.
C) Purposive sampling is now needed.
D) Prolonged engagement occurred with subjects.

Question 13

The nurse researcher can expect basic social psychological processes to emerge from the data analysis of which type of qualitative studies?

A) Phenomenologic
B) Case study
C) Grounded theory
D) Ethnography

Question 14

What determines whether the results of a qualitative study can be applied beyond the study sample or population?

A) If transferability is documented; there is a fit between the sample and the corresponding individuals or groups who experienced the same phenomenon.
B) The credentials and experience of the person applying the findings
C) The characteristics of the population to which the findings will be applied
D) The time between when the findings were reported and the time of application to another population

Question 15

The nurse researcher is appraising a theme for a qualitative research project.What should a theme represent in the presentation of a qualitative research study?

A) The actual written report
B) The operational definition of the study's conceptual framework
C) The labeling of similar ideas shared by the study participants
D) The relationship between the hypotheses and the research questions

Question 16

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study.Which question would most appropriately analyze the sampling?

A) What is the projected significance of the work to nursing?
B) If a particular approach is used to guide the inquiry, does the researcher complete the study according to the processes described?
C) Are the informants who were chosen appropriate to inform the research?
D) Is protection of human participants addressed?

Question 17

Why is the theme important for the results for a qualitative study?

A) It reflects congruence between the questions asked and the method of study used.
B) It allows description of a large quantity of data in a condensed format.
C) It demonstrates both the emic and the etic views of a topic.
D) It explains the nature of the differences reported by participants experiencing a similar phenomenon.

Question 18

The nurse researcher is critiquing a research study.Which purpose would be characteristic of a qualitative study?

A) Auditability
B) Member check
C) Metasynthesis
D) Instrument development

Question 19

Which process should be avoided by a nurse researcher when appraising qualitative research?

A) Comparing the descriptions and analyses from your own experiences
B) Assessing the power analysis to determine the adequacy of the sample size
C) Determining whether the author's conclusions reflect the study findings
D) Identifying the purpose of the research

Question 20

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study.Which question would most appropriately analyze the purpose of the study?

A) What is the projected significance of the work to nursing?
B) If a particular approach is used to guide the inquiry, does the researcher complete the study according to the processes described?
C) Are the informants who were chosen appropriate to inform the research?
D) Is protection of human participants addressed?

Question 21

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study and asks,"Does the researcher place the report in the context of what is already known about the phenomenon? " What area of the study would this question critique?

A) Conclusions, implications, and recommendations
B) Findings
C) Data analysis
D) Data collection

Question 22

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study and asks,"Has the researcher remained true to the data? " Which area of the study does this question critique?

A) Conclusions, implications, and recommendations
B) Findings
C) Data analysis
D) Data collection

Question 23

What are the conceptual analysis points included in DeWitt and Ploeg's proposed framework for assessment of rigor in interpretive phenomenology? ( Select all that are applicable ).

A) Creditability
B) Balanced integration
C) Auditability
D) Fittingness
E) Openness
F) Concreteness
G) Transferability
H) Confirmability

Question 24

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study and asks,"Are the researcher's conceptualizations true to the data? " Which area of the study does this question critique?

A) Conclusions, implications, and recommendations
B) Findings
C) Data analysis
D) Data collection

Question 25

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study and asks,"How has the researcher made explicit the significance of the study to nursing theory,research,or practice? " What area of the study would this question critique?

A) Conclusions, implications, and recommendations
B) Findings
C) Data analysis
D) Data collection

Question 26

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study.Which question would most appropriately analyze fittingness?

A) Has adequate time been allowed to fully understand the phenomenon?
B) Can the reader follow the researcher's thinking?
C) Does the researcher document the research process?
D) Are the findings applicable outside of the study situation?

Question 27

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study and asks," Is saturation of the data described? " What area of the study would this question critique?

A) Conclusions, implications, and recommendations
B) Findings
C) Data analysis
D) Data collection

Question 28

The nurse researcher is critiquing a qualitative research study.Which question would most appropriately analyze auditability?

A) Has adequate time been allowed to fully understand the phenomenon?
B) Can the reader follow the researcher's thinking?
C) Are the results meaningful to individuals not involved in the research?
D) Are the findings applicable outside of the study situation?

Question 29

What concepts are generally used to assess trustworthiness in qualitative research? ( Select all that are applicable ).

A) Creditability
B) Balanced integration
C) Auditability
D) Fittingness
E) Openness
F) Concreteness
G) Transferability
H) Confirmability

Question 30

Which of the following elements of a research study is characteristic of qualitative studies? (Select all that apply.)

A) Inferential statistics
B) Participant interviews
C) Narrative descriptions
D) Scaled instruments