Nursing Research in Canada 4th Edition by Geri LoBiondo – Test Bank

Nursing Research in Canada 4th Edition by Geri LoBiondo – Test Bank

Chapter 09: Introduction to Quantitative Research

LoBiondo-Wood: Nursing Research in Canada, 4th Edition

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. Which of the following aspect of the study is considered a measure to maintain the uniformity of conditions of a quantitative study?

a.

Accuracy

b.

Methods

c.

Control

d.

Validity

ANS: C

Feedback

A

Accuracy refers to all aspects of a study that systematically and logically follow the research question.

B

Methods refers to sections of the research study that include sampling, data collection, and data analysis.

C

The term control refers to measures used by the researcher to keep the conditions of the study uniform.

D

Validity refers to the truthfulness or soundness of a study.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Remembering (Knowledge)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

2. What is the overall purpose of research design in a quantitative research study?

a.

To determine sample size

b.

To identify the problem statement

c.

To provide a plan for answering the research question

d.

To assist the researcher in identifying gaps in the knowledge base

ANS: C

Feedback

A

Sample size is determined by the chosen design and power analysis.

B

The problem statement describes the general focus of the research study.

C

The purpose of the research design is to provide the plan for finding answers to the research question(s).

D

Gaps in knowledge should be identified and synthesized in the literature review.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

3. In which of these ways does the nurse researcher’s literature review help select the appropriate study design?

a.

By enlarging the scope of the study’s hypotheses

b.

By objectively assessing available knowledge of the area

c.

By comparing current findings with previous study findings

d.

By ensuring faithfulness to the study’s purpose

ANS: B

Feedback

A

The literature review gives the researcher clues about the direction and nature of the hypotheses but not necessarily their scope.

B

Objectivity in the conceptualization of the research question is derived from a thorough review of the literature.

C

The literature review does give information about past studies, but the research design is obtained by considering the best approach to answer the research question.

D

The literature review does not ensure fidelity to study purpose; the research design serves this role.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

4. When reviewing a research report, the nurse determines that all aspects of a study systematically and logically follow from the research problem. Which condition has been met?

a.

Accuracy

b.

Legitimacy

c.

Internal validity

d.

External validity

ANS: A

Feedback

A

Accuracy indicates that all aspects of a study systematically and logically flow from the research question.

B

Legitimacy refers to the plausibility or validity of an item, variable, or study.

C

Internal validity refers to whether the independent variable made the change in the dependent variable.

D

External validity refers to the generalizability of the investigation’s findings to additional populations and other environmental conditions.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

5. A nurse is designing a study to determine whether a videotape or a written pamphlet is more effective in teaching young women how to perform breast self-examination (BSE). Which of these actions would provide the best control for a mediating variable?

a.

Include identical content in both BSE teaching methods

b.

Exclude participants who already perform BSE on a regular basis

c.

Limit the study participants to women who are heterosexual

d.

Determine what breast cancer means to the individual participants

ANS: B

Feedback

A

Identical content would help control the experimental variables by standardizing content, but it would not control mediating variables.

B

Participants who were already performing BSE would not be appropriate to include in the study.

C

Sexual orientation does not affect a woman’s need to perform BSE; it is not a mediating variable.

D

The meaning of breast cancer to participants would not control a mediating variable in this situation.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Applying (Application)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

6. How would a nurse researcher ensure that the sample used in a quantitative study is homogeneous?

a.

Use eligibility criteria to limit extraneous variables relevant to the study.

b.

Randomly assign participants to either the experimental or the control group.

c.

Assign one research assistant to collect data from all participants.

d.

Collect data from all participants at the same time of day.

ANS: A

Feedback

A

Homogeneity of a sample is ensured by restricting eligibility criteria.

B

Random assignment to experimental or control groups helps avoid bias but does not ensure homogeneity of the sample.

C

Data collection by one researcher helps ensure consistency in data collection but does not ensure a homogenous sample.

D

Uniform timing of data collection helps ensure consistency of data collection but does not ensure a homogeneous sample.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

7. How could a nurse researcher’s use of a homogeneous sample weaken a research study?

a.

By decreasing the reliability of the findings

b.

By decreasing the generalizability of the findings

c.

By increasing the number of participants needed to reach statistical significance

d.

By increasing the risk that the findings were the result of chance alone

ANS: B

Feedback

A

Homogeneity of a sample would not necessarily affect reliability.

B

Homogeneity of a sample can decrease the generalizability of the findings to other populations.

C

Homogeneity of a sample does not mandate a larger sample size.

D

Homogeneity does not increase the likelihood of chance findings.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

8. Why should a nurse researcher want to limit or eliminate extraneous variables in a study?

a.

More research questions would be required to account for the extraneous variables.

b.

Extensive statistical analysis would be required to justify the presence of extraneous variables.

c.

Extraneous variables compete with the independent variables as explanations of the study’s outcome.

d.

Manipulation of the extraneous variables increases the risk for researcher bias in the study’s outcomes.

ANS: C

Feedback

A

Research questions are not necessarily linked to or controlling of extraneous variables.

B

Statistical analysis cannot justify the presence of extraneous variables, although it may be able to estimate the magnitude of their effect.

C

Extraneous or mediating variables interfere with analyzing the effect of the independent variables on the dependent variable.

D

Manipulation of extraneous variables does not necessarily increase (or decrease) the risk for researcher bias.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

9. When should a nurse researcher include an extraneous variable as part of a study’s design?

a.

When excluding the variable would limit the study’s generalizability

b.

When the variable is an important consideration for the study’s outcome

c.

When the researcher is limited by time or monetary constraints

d.

When it would not make a difference in the overall study outcome

ANS: B

Feedback

A

Excluding extraneous variables frequently limits a study’s generalizability to a larger population. This is often necessary in order to have meaningful, unambiguous study outcomes.

B

If the researcher believes that an extraneous variable is important to the outcome, it should be included in the design.

C

Time and financial demands should not solely influence the inclusion of extraneous variables in a study’s design.

D

Extraneous or mediating variables are a concern only if they may influence the outcome of a study. If a variable has no relationship to the study’s outcome, it would be superfluous to include it in the study design.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

10. A study is examining the effect of a new antilipemic drug, compared with placebo, on lipoprotein levels in postmenopausal women. Which of these actions represents the researcher’s attempt at constancy in data collection to control extraneous variables?

a.

Drawing the serum lipoprotein levels of all participants at the same time of day

b.

Having the same phlebotomist draw serum lipoprotein levels of all participants

c.

Using the same room for drawing blood for lipoprotein levels of all participants

d.

Ensuring that all participants are postmenopausal women taking lipid-lowering medication

ANS: A

Feedback

A

Constancy in data collection (e.g., identical timing of collecting blood samples) helps maintain control in the research design because lipid levels may fluctuate throughout the day.

B

In this scenario, it is not necessary for the same person drawing blood samples to maintain constancy of measurement.

C

The same room for blood draws is not necessary to maintain constancy of measurement.

D

If participants were already receiving antilipemic medication, it would be extremely difficult to distinguish the effects of the new treatment.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Applying (Application)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

11. A nurse researcher assigns half a study sample to an experimental group and the other half to a control group. What does this action represent?

a.

Instrumentation of the independent variable

b.

Manipulation of the mediating variable

c.

Elimination of the mediating variable

d.

Manipulation of the independent variable

ANS: D

Feedback

A

Separating participants into treatment and control groups does not represent instrumentation of the independent variable.

B

A mediating or extraneous variable is usually controlled rather than manipulated.

C

Separation of study participants into treatment and control groups does not by itself eliminate mediating variables.

D

Administration of a treatment or intervention to an experimental (treatment) group and not to a control group represents manipulation of the independent variable.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

12. For which of these reasons would a nurse researcher choose to assign participants randomly to groups in a study?

a.

To help ensure that all groups within a study are representative of the larger population

b.

To increase the chance that the study groups will be different from each other with regard to extraneous variables

c.

To help ensure that current events do not influence the outcomes of the study

d.

To eliminate the need for establishing specific study criteria and participant eligibility

ANS: A

Feedback

A

The purpose of randomization is to help ensure that participants in the study’s groups represent the larger population.

B

Randomization helps to ensure that study groups will be approximately equal, not different with regard to extraneous variables.

C

Randomization cannot control current historical events.

D

Randomization does not eliminate the need for study criteria and participant eligibility factors.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

13. A nurse researcher assigns participants to experimental and control groups in such a manner that each participant in a population has an equal chance of being selected. What is the researcher using?

a.

Selection bias

b.

Convenience sampling

c.

Randomization

d.

Internal validity

ANS: C

Feedback

A

Selection bias occurs when precautions are not used to gain a representative sample.

B

Convenience sampling refers to the sampling method in which participants who are available are used. These participants do not necessarily represent the population.

C

Randomization is the process of obtaining participants so that each has an equal chance of being selected for experimental or control groups.

D

Internal validity refers to confidence that the independent variable made the difference in the dependent variable, not some extraneous, intervening variable.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

14. The issue of control would be less important in a quantitative study with which type of research design?

a.

Exploratory

b.

Experimental

c.

Correlational

d.

Randomized clinical trial

ANS: A

Feedback

A

Control is less important in exploratory studies because the researcher is investigating an area in which little literature exists.

B

Control is critical to optimal experimental design.

C

Control is important to correlational studies because relationships between variables are being studied.

D

Control is essential to randomized clinical trials because their outcomes have direct implications for patient treatments.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

15. Which situation represents a threat to internal validity in an experimental study measuring the effect of a videotape of discharge instructions for patients who underwent coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery?

a.

Both men and women undergoing CABG surgery were included as participants in the study.

b.

Two new surgeons began performing CABG surgery during the study period.

c.

Patients in the experimental group discussed aspects of the videotape with patients in the control group.

d.

Data collection for the videotape and control groups took 1 year.

ANS: C

Feedback

A

Including both genders would strengthen the design and would not threaten internal validity.

B

Personnel factors like surgeons’ newly performing the procedure should not directly affect the treatment and threaten internal validity.

C

Sharing aspects of the videotape with control group members interferes with interpretation of the true effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable(s).

D

Duration of data collection does not threaten internal validity, provided the control processes were standardized.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Applying (Application)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

16. The nurse researcher designed a study examining anxiety among elementary school children. If a widely publicized murder of a child occurred in the city during the time frame of the study, what type of threat to internal validity would the murder represent?

a.

Maturation

b.

Instrumentation

c.

Selection bias

d.

Historical

ANS: D

Feedback

A

Maturation represents developmental, biological, or psychological processes within individuals occurring or changing as a function of time.

B

Instrumentation threats refer to changes in the measurement of variables or observational techniques that may change obtained measurement.

C

Selection bias occurs when precautions are not used to obtain a representative sample.

D

The murder would represent a historical event threatening internal validity.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Applying (Application)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

17. A nurse researcher should consider mortality a threat to the study’s internal validity for which of these reasons?

a.

There is concern that the intervention may have harmful effects on participants.

b.

Those who dropped out of the study may be different than those who remained in the study.

c.

Those who participated in the study may have died as a result of being in the study.

d.

There is concern that the design is inappropriate for the study question if a large number of participants dropout of a study.

ANS: B

Feedback

A

Mortality does not refer to harmful aspects of an intervention but to attrition of participants in a study.

B

Participants who dropout or who are otherwise lost from a study may differ in some important way from remaining participants and therefore threaten internal validity.

C

Mortality does not refer to treatment-related negative consequences in a study.

D

Loss of a large number of participants does not necessarily make a design inappropriate for the study question.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

18. A nurse researcher can control for selection bias in a study by taking which of these actions?

a.

Allow participants to self-select into an experimental or a control group.

b.

Handpick the participants for group assignment.

c.

Use defined selection criteria for approaching potential participants.

d.

Have someone other than the researcher select the participants for the study.

ANS: C

Feedback

A

Self-selection could worsen selection bias, rather than control it.

B

Researcher bias in selection participants could worsen selection bias.

C

Selection criteria (inclusive and exclusive) that are consistently applied help obtain a representative sample and decrease the risk of selection bias.

D

The researcher can select participants, providing participants meet specified selection criteria.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance

19. Which of these situations describes a reactive (Hawthorne) effect?

a.

Control participants in an intervention study to reduce anxiety also experience a reduction in anxiety.

b.

The participants in an intervention support group continue the support group after the study has ended.

c.

Participants become concerned after learning that they received a placebo, not the treatment, during the study.

d.

Study participants want to know the outcomes of the study after it is completed.

ANS: A

Feedback

A

Reactivity occurs when control participants respond to the investigator not because of the treatment but because of the fact they were being studied.

B

Continuing a treatment after a study is over is not necessarily related to reactive effects.

C

After a treatment is finished and the study is over, concern about the use of a placebo would not be a reactive effect.

D

The desire to know about study outcomes after the study is finished is not a reactive effect.

DIF: Cognitive Level: Applying (Application)

MSC: NCLEX Client Care Needs Category: Safe and Effective Care Environment; Health Promotion and Maintenance