Qualitative Research Critique

Qualitative research is subjective data and is often used in the social sciences (Sarantakos 2013, p. 48). Qualitative research is devoted to gathering facts, this can be completed through personal experiences, behaviours, and observations (Sarantakos 2013, p. 46). The purpose of qualitative research is to gather an in depth understanding of human behaviour and the explanations for the behaviour (Martijn & Sharpe 2006, p. 1). An issue with only using a qualitative method is efficacy, qualitative studies cannot address relationships between variables with the degree of accuracy that is required to establish social trends (Sarantakos 2013, p. 46).

Power point slide Qualitative research is a difficult term to define…. Nevertheless, it is important to be familiar with some definitions in the field. The definition provided by Creswell 2009 is enlightening because it incorporates ……….. most important part of definition for me were reports detailed views of informants and natural setting.

Nurses are responsible in providing holistic, quality care to their clients. In order to effectively provide such care Boswell and Cannon (2009, p. 2 & 7) states that nurses must base their provision of care on the most current, up-to-date health information available and sound nursing knowledge. This is where evidence-based practice (EBP) comes in. Polit and Beck (2010, p. 4) defined EBP as "the use of the best clinical evidence in making patient care desicions". This usually comes from research conducted by nurses and other healthcare professionals. Thus it is pertinent that research reports are critically analyzed.

The qualitative approach to research is anchored in the ideographic tradition and seeks to focus on the insider's world and the meanings that are attached to behaviour. While this is a general view of qualitative studies each qualitative design has unique foci. Hudacek (2008) examined the concept of caring in the work of nurses using a phenomenological design. Phenomenology gives attention to the subjective social reality. It gives value to the individual experience of the actor even within highly structured organizations. It is through the everyday experiences that meaning is constructed. The use of phenomenology is therefore highly consistent with the attempt to understand the meaning of caring. The design and the stated purpose of the researcher are highly congruent. The researcher noted that the purpose of the study was to "describe the dimensions of caring." Phenomenology is useful for unearthing the individuals understanding of their own behavior and consequently the meaning they attach to particular actions.

Mor, V., Mukamel, D.B., & Spector, W. D. (2009). The costs of turnover in nursing homes. The Costs of Turnover in Nursing Homes. Retrieved from www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/... National Cent

This is an academic critique of a qualitative article published in 2012, by Maj-Britt Raholm, RN, MNsc, PhD. In the article, “The ethics of presence when bathing patients in a nursing home”, the researcher intends to create a more profound understanding of the ethics of presence from the nurses perspective (Raholm, 2012, p. 30). The study will be analyzed for the credibility, conformability, and dependability to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the article. Based on the analysis a recommendation for evidence-based practice will be advised or rejected.

This is a non-experimental study. A non-experimental study is one that measures variables to determine if variables are related to one another. In this case the variables being measured are the guidelines of treatment and also the responses from the professionals that implement said guidelines. Using a non-experimental design is appropriate for this topic of study because a

Informed consent is an important ethical principle which is applicable to medicine and research. By definition it should be given freely, without coercion (1). All the relevant information which might influence or inform the participant’s decision such as the nature of the study, the risks and benefits must be provided by the researcher (1). Participants should be informed that they can withdraw their consent at any time and withdraw from the study.

Qualitative research is concerned with meanings of experiences and interactions. Qualitative research is very common in the social sciences, although it is often used in market research as well (Alasuutari, 2010; Nieswiadomy, 2011). There has been quite a rise in qualitative research in the last 30 years. It first started to emerge in journals in the 1960’s, and an increase in the number of qualitative research can be seen in research journals in the 1980’s (Alasuutari, 2010). Instead of looking at the statistical numbers within research, the researcher in interested in getting within the research, and understanding the phenomenon (Leedy, 2011; LoBionod-Wood & Haber, 2013).

Critique of a Research Article on the Relationship between Self-care and Obesity among Rural Midlife Women

Informed consent was obtained by nursing staff when subsequent interviews were undertaken after notice of failure to comply with the guidelines and they did so voluntarily (Knoll, Lautenschlaeger, & Borneff-Lipp, 2010). Benefits of participation were not addressed by the researchers.

Qualitative research is conducted in a natural setting and attempts to understand a human problem by developing a holistic narrative and reporting detailed views of informants about the culture of a problem. It forms a report with pictures and words. One of the most important distinctions that sets qualitative research apart from more traditional types of research is that qualitative research is holistic in that researchers study phenomena in their entirety rather than narrowing the focus to specific defined variables” (p. 93). Similarly, Cresswell (1984) indicated that qualitative research “is defined as an inquiry process of understanding a social or human problem, based on building a holistic picture, formed with words, reporting detailed views of informants, and conducted in a natural setting” (p. 2). Cresswell’s definition clearly delineates the major characteristics of qualitative research. Pg. 50 (Smith & Davis, 2010).

Gilmartin, J. (2003). Day surgery: Patients’ perceptions of a nurse-led preadmission clinic. Journal of Clinical Nursing 13, 243-250.

When utilizing a qualitative approach, the task becomes one of determining the qualitative method to be used. Additionally, Stake (2010) used purpose, research design, and methodical data techniques as a way of classifying types of qualitative research. Similarly, Cresswell & Cresswell (2007) spoke of five practices of qualitative research. These five practices consist of biography, phenomenological study, grounded theory study, ethnography, and case study. This researcher chose a phenomenological study for this research project.

Qualitative research is the technique that is used as a part of exploratory research and to derive the independent variables. There are different methods through which we can conduct the qualitative research. As a part of this study we have adopted the following methods: