Tools of Research

2. Based on the scale of measurement for each variable listed below, which measure of central tendency is most appropriate for describing the data?

Research can be defined as the search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, with an open mind, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories. Research can be divided into different steps in order to understand the whole process more in depth. The first step towards conducting research is to observe. Consistst of the subject area of ones interest and following that subject area to conduct subject related research. The subject area should not be randomly chosen since it requires reading a vast amount of

Research methods are “the various specific tools or ways data can be collected and analysed, e.g. a questionnaire, interview, etc.” (Neville, C, 2007).

Interval-Level: Indicates the levels between categories, ranks them and specifies the amount between each rank; does not have a true zero (Ex: IQ

2. Based on the scale of measurement for each variable listed below, which measure of central tendency is most appropriate for describing the data?

It is one of the most popular and well known measures of central tendency. It can be used with both discrete and continuous data, although its use is most often with continuous data

Research Methods- refers to specific ways or techniques of conducting research on A topic. Example: two people do a study on dog anxiety. One uses existing data. The other uses data from research they have conducted through interviews of dog owners. Social Darwinism- The theory that people and groups can be thought to be under the same laws of natural selection as all plants and animals. Example: Believing that one race is superior to another. As if it were thought that one race or ethnic group was superior so they claim dominance over others. Reliability- The point to which an instrument of measure give recurrent answers and/or results each time it is used as long as the thing being measured stays the same. Example: The temperature in your vehicles engine stayed the same everyday. A reliable temperature gauge would give you the same temperature reading everyday. Note however, the temperature in the car could be different each day but if the gauge read seventy-five every day it would still be considered reliable. Ethnography- The study of different cultures and the people of the cultures. Example: A college student is visiting a school in a different county to study and take note of the different things going on in the school. Questionnaire- A research instrument including questions in an attempt to gather information. Example: A local gym has had a lot of complaints lately about cleanliness, but the members of the gym have not specified to the staff what needs to change.

The four levels of measurements are nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio. I work on a pediatric hematology/ oncology floor where we have a bed capacity of 18. At times our pediatric census is low and we will have adults transferred to our unit as overflow. We use the nominal measurement to determine how many adult (A) patients we have and pediatric (P) patients we have. We use this measurement to classify the patients and the letters in this case are used to classify the data. It also helps the nurses know what our patient load is should an emergency arise. Ordinal level of measurement is used to determine the charge nurse on our floor. The most senior nurse on the floor working that day is in charge because she/ he have been there the longest. It is a ranking system that is not evenly spaced out but there is clear reasoning behind it. An interval measurement is the difference between two values and we use this measurement at work while taking temperatures on our patients. For example, if the temperature is 39.5 Celsius and 36.5 Celsius they have the same difference as between 39.0 Celsius and 36 Celsius. This measurement shows a scale from a low interval to a high interval. Ratios are also done when we weigh our patients. There is always an absolute zero when working with ratios, meaning that the can be no number that falls below zero. If we have a patient who weighs 15kg and weigh them again and they weigh

Validity deals with determining “how well the instrument reflects the abstract concept being examined.” (Burns & Grove, 2011) In critiquing the validity of the Brunner et al. (2012) article, they used a quasi-experimental, two-group study without a control group to conduct their study. Their study examined two skin care products used to prevent skin breakdown in acute and critical care patients with various lengths of stay. According to Brunner et al. (2012), nurses approach skin care in various

The reliability of an instrument contributes to the level of usability for empirical research (Whiston, 2009). Further, it refers to the replicability andstability of a measurement and whether it will result in the same assessment in the same individuals when repeated (Frankfort-Nachmias & Nachmias, 2008). When determining the reliability of an assessment, a reliability coefficient of at least .80 indicates a trustworthy level of reliability (Trochim, 2006).

Reliable - The data must to be depended on to be reliable. It should be exact, steady with actualities and obvious. Lacking or inaccurate data for the most part prompts choices of low quality.

Reliability refers to coherence, stability and dependability in test results, generally using internal consistency to express the levels of reliability in the test. The higher reliability indicates the higher level of accordance, stabilization and dependability in test results. Reliability is the precondition of validity (Guba and Lincoln, 1981). The same findings may not generate if the same research is repeated, because many influencing factors may work in the process of research. The process of establishment in reliability research includes: the research rigorously collect and explain data in consistent investigation (internal checks); the process is transparent (sample design, field work, inquiry and rational data). Patton (1987) suggests that the use of triangulation in multiple approaches can increase the reliability in results.

Research paradigms are ‘the entire constellation of beliefs, values, techniques, and so on shared by members of a given community’ (Kuhn, 1970, p.175). The three most common paradigms are positivism, constructivism or interpretivism and pragmatism. Each of these can be categorised further by examining their: ontology, epistemology and methodology. Fundamentally, ontology is the nature of reality, epistemology describes the relationship the investigator has with their version of reality, and methodology is the various techniques and tools used to analysis their research.

Nominal scales are the most commonly used in marketing research. Nominal scales are used for labeling variables, without any quantitative value. In fact, Nominal scales could be called “labels”. Nominal are categories with numbers assigned to them to facilitate analysis. “A nominal scale partitions data into categories that are mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive, implying that every bit of data will fit into one and only one category and that all data will fit somewhere on the

Our book states that there are many kinds of descriptive statistics. Calculating measures of central tendency and measures of variability are two we focused on. As their names suggest, measures of central tendency indicate what is most typical in a data set. Measures of variability gauge how much difference there is in a set of measures (Tanner &Youseef-Morgan, 2013). Descriptive statistics aid in sorting through large amounts of data and making them understandable. In order to measure central tendency we utilize the mean, median, and mode. These are used to find the most frequent value (mode), the middle most value (median), and the average (mean). These would be useful if you wanted to use age as a data point in a marketing campaign to target the age