HSS 2381 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Research Question, Dependent And Independent Variables, Descriptive Statistics

• School: University of Ottawa
• Department: Health Sciences
• Course: HSS 2381
• Professor: Eleanor Riesen

Document Summary

Chapter 1: introduction to data analysis in an evidence-based practice environment - Evidence-based practice (ebp): use of best clinical evidence in making patient care decisions. Research: is systematic inquiry that uses orderly, disciplined methods (including statistics) to answer questions or solve problems: the aim of nursing research is to generate evidence that can contribute to ebp for nurses. In quantitative research, data are usually quantitative (numbers) & subject to statistical analysis. Statistics: refers to collection of mathematical methods of organizing, summarizing, analyzing, & interpreting information, drawing conclusion gathered in a study. Research variables: concept : an abstraction inferred from characteristics or behaviors, examples: pain, stress, body temperature. In quantitative studies, concepts are called variables: a variable is something that takes on different values; varies, height, sex, and respiratory rate vary from one person to the next. Independent variable: cause of or influence on the dependent variable.