Question 1

Which is most important in a critical appraisal of a body of literature?

Accepted Answer

Critiquing the literature review of a published study involves examining the quality of the content and sources presented.This is more important than achieving an accurate count of available resources.The literature search is important and must be thorough,but the critical appraisal depends on an evaluation of the quality and not the quantity of the available resources.Reviewing the reference lists may be useful for determining whether other relevant studies exist,but it is not the most important aspect of a critical appraisal,which is an evaluation of the quality of studies available.Searching the literature thoroughly using appropriate keywords to ensure that all relevant literature is included may be useful for determining whether other relevant studies exist,but it is not the most important aspect of a critical appraisal,which is an evaluation of the quality of studies available.

Question 2

The concluding sentence of each paragraph in a literature review

Accepted Answer

The concluding sentence in a paragraph in the literature review should transition to the ideas expressed in the following paragraph.The opening sentence identifies the main themes of the paragraph.The sentences between the opening sentence and the concluding sentence describe relevant studies and provide evidence to support the paragraph topic.

Question 3

In a literature review,the author identifies themes present in articles under review and describes connections among these themes.This is an example of

Accepted Answer

Synthesis of sources involves thinking deeply about what has been found and identifying the main themes of the information.Analysis requires manipulation of what is found,literally making it the author's own.Appraisal involves identifying relevant content and determining the credibility or validity of the information.Theorizing is part of developing the research question.

Question 4

A nurse researcher reviews several articles about coping skills among parents of children with chronic illness and notes that half of the studies involved single-parent families.The researcher decides to examine whether coping skills differ in single-parent versus dual-parent households.The researcher is engaging in

Accepted Answer

Synthesis of sources involves thinking deeply about what has been found and identifying the main themes of the information.In this case,the reviewer has discovered a variable that may affect the outcome of the studies.Analysis requires manipulation of what is found,literally making it the author's own.Appraisal involves identifying relevant content and determining the credibility or validity of the information.Evaluation involves reviewing the literature content and determining its relevance to the topic.

Question 5

When conducting a literature review for a thesis or dissertation and deciding how far back in the available literature to search,what will the student do?

Accepted Answer

When beginning a thesis or dissertation,the graduate student should look for seminal or landmark studies as a place to begin a literature review.The breadth and currency of the literature review should be based on the topic and the purpose of the research and not on an assigned number or a particular number of years.

Question 6

To analyze a body of literature in a literature review,the reviewer will

Accepted Answer

Analysis requires synthesis and summarization of findings of the studies listed and an ability to manipulate the information by the reviewer.It is not enough to merely describe the findings or to list the information in each one.Making value judgments is part of the appraisal process.

Question 7

When citing sources in a literature review,it is best if the author

Accepted Answer

When citing the work of other authors,the author of a literature review should paraphrase their words whenever possible-clearly,and in the reviewer's own words.It is important,in an analysis of the literature,to identify defects in other authors' works,but this should be done with respect and without being highly critical.Synthesis of others' work is an important part of the literature review as well and involves paraphrasing and analysis.Direct quotations should be avoided unless the author states something in a unique way.

Question 8

Which database describes biomedical journals relevant to healthcare professionals deemed reputable by the National Library of Medicine and includes abstracts with links to some full-text sources?

Accepted Answer

MEDLINE database describes biomedical journals relevant to healthcare professionals deemed reputable by the National Library of Medicine and includes abstracts with links to some full-text sources.PubMed database content includes free access to MEDLINE available to patients and other consumers.CINAHL is the database content that includes nursing and allied health journals that publish clinical,theoretical,and research articles,including many full-text articles.Academic Search Complete includes multidisciplinary databases,including articles from many disciplines.

Question 9

A nurse researcher understands that a search may identify thousands of references.In an effort to refine the search,which of the following are accurate statements? Select all that apply.

Accepted Answer

Combining terms or searching for the terms only in the abstract will decrease the number of articles identified.Some electronic databases allow you to limit the search to certain types of articles,such as scholarly,peer-reviewed articles.One strategy is to decrease the range of years you are searching.It is appropriate to limit the search to only full-text articles for undergraduate students; graduate students should avoid limiting searches to full-text articles because doing so might result in missing sources that are needed.

Question 10

After a literature search has yielded a list of articles,an efficient way to identify relevant studies during a literature search is to review

Accepted Answer

The abstract provides pertinent information about the article in a condensed,easy to peruse format so that the researcher can determine whether the article is pertinent to the topic.The electronic database search history lists only articles searched for but does not yield information about whether or not they are relevant.Experimental studies are not always relevant to a particular study,and other types of studies may be relevant.Reference lists in other studies may give information about other articles to review,but do not give information about the content of these articles.

Question 11

When developing evidence-based-practice guidelines,if a researcher wishes to identify studies that evaluate a specific intervention in quantitative research,the literature review should include

Accepted Answer

To synthesize evidence related to a practice problem and to evaluate a specific intervention in quantitative research,replication studies,meta-analyses,and meta-syntheses are used.Grounded theory research is performed to test theory.While current research is desired,researchers may review older studies,particularly if they are seminal or landmark studies,although these are not necessary for this type of literature review.

Question 12

When initially reading the relevant literature for comprehension,the researcher will

Accepted Answer

Comprehending a source begins by reading and focusing on understanding the main points of the article and can be achieved by highlighting the main points of the article.Critical appraisal involves making value judgments about the validity or credibility of the study content.Deciding what to paraphrase occurs later,just before writing the review.Reviewing the abstract helps the researcher determine which articles are relevant but does not help with comprehension.

Question 13

In the following APA-formatted reference,what is indicated by the italicized words/numbers? Koehn,A.R.,Ebright,P.R.,& Draucker,C.B.(2016).Nurses' experiences with errors in nursing.Nursing Outlook,64(6),566-574.

Accepted Answer

When citing a periodical (journal),the title and volume number are both italicized.The article title is not italicized in a journal.When citing a book,the title is italicized.The issue number is not italicized.

Question 14

When conducting a literature search,which electronic product would a nurse researcher use to track and store reference information?

Accepted Answer

EndNotes is reference management software that helps to track and store information on all search fields and allows the researcher to file this information with comments about each reference.CINAHL is an electronic database used to search literature.Google Scholar is an electronic search engine.Science Direct is an electronic search engine.

Question 15

A researcher performs a critical appraisal of a group of studies measuring the effects of a home care education program on confidence levels of caregivers of older family members.The critical appraisal will include

Accepted Answer

To critically appraise an article,relevant content is identified and value judgments are made about the validity and credibility of key concepts.While identifying theoretical frameworks,identifying sampling techniques and inclusion criteria,and recording pertinent quotations are important,they are not part of the critical appraisal of studies.

Question 16

When developing the outline for a literature review,the nurse researcher's first step is to

Accepted Answer

An initial outline is the first step in writing the literature review and begins with determining the major sections for the paper and identifying the sources that will be used in each one.The introduction section includes the focus or purpose of the literature review.The conclusion contains the statement about what is known in the literature.The discussion section format will vary based on the topic.

Question 17

Once relevant studies have been identified,the researcher's next step is to

Accepted Answer

Although the abstract information helps to determine a study's relevance,it is essential to read the full-text article to conduct a literature review.Once relevant studies are found,the researcher must obtain either electronic or print full-text articles.During the literature review,the researcher will examine the authors' expertise and will review the study design and methodology.The literature review cannot be written based on abstract information only.

Question 18

In the following APA-formatted reference,what is indicated by the italicized words? Maxwell,S.E.,& Delaney,H.D.(2004).Designing experiments and analyzing data: A model comparison perspective (2nd ed.).Mahway,NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Accepted Answer

When citing a book,the title is italicized.The abstract information is not included in a reference citation.A journal title is italicized if the citation is from a journal.The publishing company information is listed last.

Question 19

An author uses an electronic source in portable document format (PDF).Which is true about citing this source in a literature review?

Accepted Answer

When retrieving a PDF document,the source is cited as if a copy of the print version of the article had been used.Providing the URL for such an article is not helpful in this case.It is not necessary to locate the original print article when a PDF article is used.A PDF article is the same as a print article and will have page numbers for citation.

Question 20

A step just prior to beginning a literature search using an electronic database is to

Accepted Answer

To narrow the number of articles in a search and refine the search to more relevant articles,identifying keywords is necessary.The number of articles needed for a literature review depends on the content of the articles and will not be known ahead of time.The study type is not typically determined just prior to an electronic search.A Google search may or may not be helpful for leading a researcher to other articles,but it is not a scientific database.

Quiz 6: Understanding and Critically Appraising the Literature Review