When critiquing a research paper, you are evaluating the research and the argument made by the author. To evaluate a research article, one will need to look at what the author is claiming, their research methods, and any problems there might be with the claims made. Are the references in the article reliable? What process did the researchers use? Do the researchers show bias with their findings? There are many questions to ask and many elements to look at when critiquing a research paper.
This paper will critique two different research articles; one qualitative and one quantitative. The quantitative article, The Effects of Crossed Leg on Blood Pressure Measurement, attempts to determine whether a patient crossing their legs at the knee during a reading will have an effect on the reading in any way. The Experience of Patients Undergoing Awake Craniotomy, the qualitative study, interviewed patients before and after having awake craniotomy surgery to gain understanding of their experience, thoughts, and feelings surrounding the surgery. Title
The qualitative research title identifies the key phenomenon and the group they are studying. For this study, they wanted to document the experience of patients who have had an awake craniotomy. The title explains this well. The quantitative study has a title that identifies the key variables, however, the title does not mention a specific population for the study. Abstract “A conceptual definition describes the abstract or theoretical meaning of a concept being studied. An operational definition specifies procedures required to measure a variable” (Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 69).
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The conceptual and operational definitions of the quantitative research article are congruent because the researchers clarify their concept and explain how they will be measures as well as the operations performed to measure the concept. The abstract of this article clearly summarizes the problem, methods, results, and conclusions. The qualitative study has an abstract that clearly and concisely summarizes the main features of the article. The abstract explains that the features of the study will include the patient’s experience prior to, during, and the recovery phase following awake craniotomy.
Both abstracts mention the problem that lead to their study, the purpose of their study, some background information, information surrounding the study, and a thesis statement. Purpose Statement “The purpose statement establishes the study’s general direction and captures its essence. It is usually easy to identify a purpose statement because the word purpose is explicitly statesstated” (Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 79).
Both the qualitative and the quantitative studies have a purpose statement that is clearly and concisely stated.
A quantitative study will have a purpose statement that identifies the study variables, possible relationship, and the population of interest for the study. The quantitative article establishes the purpose statement as determining the effect of a patient having their legs crossed while having their blood pressure measured. The statement does not mention a population of interest. Since the statement uses the word determine in the purpose statement, it indicates this is an experimental type of study. A qualitative study will have a purpose statement that identifies the concept and the group, or setting being studied.
The qualitative studied being critiqued for this paper states outright that the study is a phenomenological one, but that can also be indicated by the purpose statement because it contains the word experience. The article’s purpose statement identifies the concept as being the experience of the patient, and the setting or population being before and after an awake craniotomy. problem statement “A problem statement articulates the problem and describes the need for a study through the development of an argument” (Polit & Beck, 2012, p.
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As a small child I remember trying to make a pyramid of cards and failing repeatedly. What I had always been missing those days was the need to focus on creating a strong base rather than abruptly rushing on to reach the top. With my undergraduate study at an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), the best technological institutes in India with inarguably the toughest selection ratio (~2%) in the ...
73).
Every study needs to have a problem statement for readers to understand what the problem is and why it was important to research. The problem is “an enigmatic or troubling condition” (Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 73).
Problem statements for qualitative studies address the problem, as well as information needed to address the problem. The problem identified in the qualitative study identifies that there is very little documented about a patient’s feelings, thoughts, or approach to a surgery like an awake craniotomy without an anesthetic.
Qualitative studies are often done when a topic is poorly understood and researchers want to develop a better understanding. This problem has significance for nursing because it will help nurses better understand how this type of procedure affects a patient emotionally. The problem statement identifies what is wrong with the current situation, what the reader needs to understand, and knowledge gaps relating to the problem. This knowledge will contribute to the nurse’s ability to provide holistic patient care. Quantitative studies usually focus on concepts that can be measured.
There are six components to a problem statement and quantitative studies usually have most of them covered(Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 82).
The problem statement for this quantitative study identifies that there are many things that can influence a blood pressure reading, but there has been no consistency about whether a patient’s feet should be flat on the floor during measurement. This statement identifies the problem, identifies what the reader needs to understand, how big the problem of inaccurate blood pressure measurement is, the consequence of inaccurate measurements, what is lacking, and what the study could contribute to a solution.
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This problem has significance because accurate blood pressure measurement is crucial to the diagnosis of hypertension, as well as parameters for giving blood pressure medications. Hypothesis/Research Question Research questions are sometimes a rewording of the purpose statement into a question. Some researchers only have research questions without a purpose statement. “Research questions for qualitative studies state the phenomenon of interest and the group or population of interest” (Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 81).
A hypothesis that is worded clearly and in present tense is an ideal hypothesis. Qualitative studies do not have hypotheses because there is not enough information to make a prediction, and because they want the participants to guide the inquiry. There are no hypotheses or research questions in the quantitative study. The study states that they would like to determine if there is a relationship because prior research was inconsistent about keeping feet flat during blood pressure measurement, but there are no actual questions worded in the study.
The independent variable in this study is a participants legs being crossed at the knee. The dependent variable in this study is blood pressure readings. Researchers without a hypothesis are prepared to accept any results, but one can almost always explain superficial findings, no matter what they are. “Hypotheses guard against superficiality and minimize the risk that spurious results will be misconstrued” (Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 84).
Literature Review The literature review for both studies is included at the beginning of each research paper.
“Literature review in the introduction to a report provides readers with an overview of existing evidence, and contribute to the argument for the new study” (Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 95).
With a thorough literature review, researchers can determine how best to make a contribution to evidence already found. This could include finding gaps in current research, or if performing a study again on a new population would be the next step. The literature review for the qualitative study includes two sources. The sources were from 1988 and 2005, while this article came out in 2008. The 2005 source is recent.
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CASE STUDY FIELDWORK Soap Note: 1. S: Pt c c / o SOB and heart failure that comes and goes. Pt c / o poor appetite for the last few months and states she has lost 25 pounds since her surgery in December. Pt states she follows a low salt, low sugar diet and that her husband prepares the meals at home under her direction. Pt denies any CP, N/V. O: 65 y. o. white female, 67 in (170 cm), IBW 147 h (67 ...
The 1988 source is not so recent, but was relevant to the study because it helped to address the fact that there is a lack of exploration for the patient’s feeling surrounding an awake craniotomy. The quantitative study uses mostly primary sources in the literature review. This study was published in 1998 with the literature review sources ranging from 1984-1998. Sources used in this review are studies about the proper technique for measuring blood pressure, things that affect blood pressure readings, and suggestions to help prevent symptomatic orthostatic hypotension.
The literature review provides a basis for the study because it supports the claims that there is inconsistency about whether feet should be kept flat on the floor while measuring blood pressure, and whether it would skew measurements if legs were crossed. Theoretical Framework “A framework is the overall conceptual underpinnings of a study. Not every study is based on a formal theory or conceptual model, but every study has a framework—that is, a conceptual rationale” (Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 128).
If the study is based on a theory, the framework is a theoretical framework.
According to Polit & Beck, 2012, framework in nursing studies are often implied and not acknowledged or explained. “In most qualitative studies, the frameworks are part of the research tradition in which the study is embedded”(Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 130).
Although a phenomenologist tries to keep their preconceptions in check, they are still guided by a framework or philosophy that focuses on a certain aspect of a person’s life. The framework used by phenomenologists is based on the belief that human experience is property of the experience itself, not an outside observer.
This is exactly how this study went. The study focused on the patient and what they were experiencing surrounding their procedure to have an awake craniotomy. The researchers explained that there had been no documentation that someone had tried to explore the experience from the patient’s point of view, so these researchers did that. Quantitative research has many approaches to theoretical frameworks. “The classic approach is to test hypotheses deduced from an existing theory” (Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 140).
The quantitative study does not seem to follow a theoretical framework.
They state in the beginning that there are many things that can affect a blood pressure reading, and then continue on to say that research has not been consistent in whether feet should be flat on the floor. This study could lead to the formation of hypothesis, or even a null hypothesis, regarding the effects of crossed legs on blood pressure readings. Theories derived from this study could include, crossed legs will increase/decrease blood pressure readings, or crossed legs have no effect on a blood pressure reading.
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Quantitative means quantity which implies that there is something that can be counted. Quantitative research has been defined in many ways. It is the kind of research that involves the tallying, manipulation or systematic aggregation of quantities of data (Henning, 1986) John W. Creswell defined quantitative research as an inquiry into a social or human problem based on testing a theory composed a ...
As tests are conducted, these theories would either be confirmed or deconfirmed and new theories can be made based on the results. The quantitative study could have been made stronger by identifying a specific population in the title and purpose statements. It leaves the reader wondering where the study might go. It was not explained how they chose to only use men for the study. It was not explained how they chose to divide up the two groups of 50 participants each. The researchers could have made it clear to the readers as to why they chose the population that they did.
They did, however, point out that further studies would need to be conducted on more populations to conclude a relationship. There were no hypotheses made in this quantitative study. Their argument would have been made stronger having had one, or had a null hypothesis to refute. The literature review didn’t have many recent articles, but it helped to prove their point that there was not enough evidence to support whether feet should be flat on the floor during blood pressure measurement.
With a hypothesis and more detail about some aspects of the research process, this study would have been much stronger. The qualitative study did a great job of hitting the required points. They clearly identified each aspect of the study and how it would be conducted. Since this is a qualitative study, there are no hypotheses to critique. The researchers included an abundance of responses from their interviews with the participants to allow the readers to understand the experience surrounding their surgery through them, because that was the purpose of the study.
Although a weak point in this study is the literature review not being very lengthy, as with the quantitative study, it also made a strong point for the researcher’s point that no one has explored the feelings of these specific patients. Overall, both the qualitative and quantitative were strong research studies. They both possess most of the required aspects needed for a research study to be credible. If important parts of the research process were left out, such as the literature review, process for finding the population of study, process for collecting data, etc, the study’s credibility could be called into question.
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