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| documented evidence (data) gathered through direct observation rather than a researcher's subjective belief. |
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| A systematic process of investigating problems to gain knowledge about improving care that nurses provide. |
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| The body of knowledge that is unique to the discipline of nursing. |
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| An approach for generating knowledge using methods of inquiry that emphasize subjectivity and the meaning of an experience for the individual. |
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| An approach for generating knowledge based on determining how much of a given behavior, characteristic, or phenomenon is present. |
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| The ability of researchers to repeat a study using the same variables and methods or slight variations of them. |
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| Readers of nursing research whose objective is applying findings to nursing practice or using the findings to conduct further research. |
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| A group that collaborates to conduct a research project, from determining the initial research question through communicating results. |
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| Striving for excellence in research, which involves discipline, scrupulous adherence to detail, and strict accuracy. |
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| The process of analyzing data critically that have been gathered systematically about a particular phenomenon. |
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| A systematic research process that involves the following steps: selecting and defining the problem, formulating research questions or hypotheses or both, collecting data, analyzing data, and reporting results. |
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| Use of quantitative and qualitative methods to collect data about a particular phenomenon. |
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| An assortment of methods used to acquire new knowledge; including tradition, authority, trial and error, and intuition. |
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| A condition in which the identity of subjects remains unknown, even to the researcher, to protect subjects participating in a study, and to promote objective results. |
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| Protecting data that is gathered or learned from patients by not disclosing information without their permission. |
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| A type of study designed to gather knowledge that has direct clinical application. |
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| A type of non-experimental study designed to examine the relationship between and among variables. |
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| A study that collects data at a particular point in time and does not require follow-up. |
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| A type of non-experimental study designed to provide a knowledge base when little is known about a phenomenon; used to describe variables rather than to test a predicted relationship. |
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| A study in which the researcher manipulates and controls one or more variables and observes the effect (an)other variable(s). |
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| The protection of subjects participating in a research study; includes the right to freedom from injury, the right to privacy and dignity, and the right to anonymity and confidentiality. |
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| A study that follows a cohort of subjects and collects data over time. |
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| Non-experimental research |
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| A descriptive study that does not exhibit a great amount of control over variables. |
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| A study that examines data collected in the present. |
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| A study that examines data collected in the past. |
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| The relationship between potential harm to subjects and potential positive outcomes of participating in a research study; an evaluation used by subjects to make voluntary informed consent. |
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| Bibliographic files that can be accessed by the computer through an online search or by CD-ROM. |
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| Databased literature that presents reports of completed research; also called scientific literature. |
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| A critical summary of the most important scholarly literature on a particular topic. Scholarly literature can refer to research-based publications and conceptual or theoretical literature. |
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| Explanations of concepts or variables in terms of how they are defined for a particular study. |
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| Source reported by the person(s) who conducted the research or developed the theory; refers to original data or first-hand facts. |
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| A statement of the topic under study, outlining all relevant variables within the study, providing justification for the choice of topic, and guiding the election of the research design. |
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| A statement that describes why the study has been created. |
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| A journal that determines acceptance of manuscripts based on the recommendations of peer reviews. |
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| A database literature presenting reports of completed research. |
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| Source reported by person(s) other than the individual(s) who conducted the research or developed the theory. |
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| Conceptual articles presenting reports of theories, some of which underlie research studies, and other nonresearch-related material. |
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| Theories taken from other disciplines and applied to nursing questions and research problems. |
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| Symbolic statements describing a phenomenon or a class of phenomena. |
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| A set of abstract and general concepts that are assembled to address a phenomenon of interest. |
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| Higher-level concepts that are derived from theories and that represent non-observable behaviors. |
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| An approach to reasoning that generates theory by beginning with known facts, moving from the general to the specific. It is an approach used to test predictions and validate existing relationships. |
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| Theories that are complex and broad in scope. Grand theories attempt to explain broad areas and include numerous concepts that are not well defined and that have ambiguous relationships. |
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| An approach to reasoning that involves collecting observations that lead to conclusions or hypotheses. This approach moves from specific observations to general statements that can be tested through research. |
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| Refers to primary or central phenomena that are of interest to a particular discipline. |
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| Theories that look at a piece of reality and that contain clearly defined variables in which the nature and direction of relationships are specified. |
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| A specific and concrete set of concepts and propositions that accounts for or characterizes phenomena of interest to the discipline of nursing. |
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| Theories that are more specific than middle-range theories and that produce specific directions or guidelines for practice. |
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| An organized and systematic set of interrelated statements that specify the nature of relationships between two or more variables, with the purpose of understanding a problem or nature of things. |
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| A statement explaining and/or predicting relationships between two or more independent and dependent variables. |
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| A variable that is observed for changes or to assess the possible effect of a treatment or manipulation; may be the effect or outcome of an experimental procedure; also referred to as a criterion variable. Usually symbolized by the letter Y. |
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| A hypothesis that makes a specific prediction about the direction of the relationship between two variables. |
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| A variable that is not controlled for in a study, threatening the internal validity of the study. |
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| A statement about the relationship between the variables that are being investigated. |
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| A variable that is manipulated and controlled by the researcher; also called a predictor variable. Usually symbolized by the letter X. |
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| Non-directional hypothesis |
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| A hypothesis that does not stipulate in advance the direction of the relationship between two variables. |
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| A hypothesis stating that no relationship or difference exists between two variables. Also called statistical hypothesis. |
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| A hypothesis stating a relationship or difference between two variables. Also called an alternative, declarative, or scientific hypothesis. |
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| A concise, interrogative statement written in the present tense including one or more variables. |
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| A statement explaining and/or predicting a relationship between one independent and one dependent variable. |
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| A measurable characteristic that varies among the subjects being studied. |
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| Population that is readily available to the researcher and that represents the target population as closely as possible. |
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| Type of sampling in which the researcher selects groups of subjects rather than individual subjects; also called multistage sampling. |
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| Type of non-probability sampling in which the researcher selects subjects or elements readily available; also called accidental sampling. |
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| Extent to which results of a study can be generalized from the study sample to other populations and settings. |
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| Type of non-probability that takes advantage of social networks. |
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| Type of sampling in which the sample is not selected using random selection. |
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| Entire set of subjects, objects, events, or elements being studied; also called the target population. |
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| Type of sampling in which every subject, object, or element in the population has an equal chance or probability of being chosen. |
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| Type of non-probability sampling in which quotas are filled. |
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| Allocation of subjects to either an experimental or control group. |
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| Type of selection in which each subject has an equal, independent chance of being selected. |
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| The process of selecting a subset from the larger population. |
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| A list of all elements in a population. |
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| Method of selecting subjects for a sample, in which every subject has an equal chance of being chosen. |
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| Type of non-probability sampling that relies on subjects identifying other subjects with similar characteristics. |
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| Stratified random sampling |
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| Type of random sampling in which the population is divided into subpopulations, or strata, on the basis of one or more variables, and a simple random sample is drawn from each stratum. |
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| Type of sampling in which every Kth (where "K" is some convenient number) member of the population is selected into the sample. |
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| Population for which study outcomes are intended. Although the intended (target) population is usually evident, having access to members of this population (accessible) can be difficult. |
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