Rough Draft Qualitative Research Critique and Ethical Considerations. Write a critical appraisal that demonstrates comprehension of two qualitative research studies.
Write a critical appraisal that demonstrates comprehension of two qualitative research studies. Use the “Research Critique Guidelines – Part 1” document to organize your essay. Successful completion of this assignment requires that you provide rationale, include examples, and reference content from the studies in your responses.
Use the practice problem and two qualitative, peer-reviewed research article you identified in the Topic 1 assignment to complete this assignment.
In a 1,000–1,250 word essay, summarize two qualitative studies, explain the ways in which the findings might be used in nursing practice, and address ethical considerations associated with the conduct of the study.
You are required to cite a minimum of three peer-reviewed sources to complete this assignment. Sources must be published within the last 5 years, appropriate for the assignment criteria, and relevant to nursing practice.
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
Was the sample used in the study appropriate to its research question?
One of the critical decisions in a qualitative study is whom or what to include in the sample—whom to
interview, whom to observe, what texts to analyse. An understanding that qualitative research is based in
experience and in the construction of meaning, combined with the specific research question, should guide
the sampling process.
For example, a study of the experience of survivors of domestic violence that
examined their reasons for not seeking help from healthcare providers might focus on interviewing a sample
of such survivors (rather than, for example, healthcare providers, social services workers, or academics in
the field). The sample should be broad enough to capture the many facets of a phenomenon, and limitations
to the sample should be clearly justified.
Since the answers to questions of experience and meaning also relate to people’s social affiliations (culture, religion, socioeconomic group, profession, etc), it is also important that the researcher acknowledges these contexts in the selection of a study sample.
In contrast with quantitative approaches, qualitative studies do not usually have predetermined sample
sizes. Sampling stops when a thorough understanding of the phenomenon under study has been reached,
an end point that is often called saturation. Researchers consider samples to be saturated when encounters
(interviews, observations, etc) with new participants no longer elicit trends or themes not already raised by
previous participants.
Thus, to sample to saturation, data analysis has to happen while new data are still being collected. Multiple sampling methods may be used to broaden the understanding achieved in a study (box 2). These sampling issues should be clearly articulated in the methods section.
Box 2 Qualitative sampling methods for interviews and focus groups9
Examples are for a hypothetical study of financial concerns among adult patients with chronic renal failure
receiving ongoing haemodialysis in a single hospital outpatient unit.
Typical case sampling—sampling the most ordinary, usual cases of a phenomenon
The sample would include patients likely to have had typical experiences for that haemodialysis unit and
patients who fit the profile of patients in the unit for factors found on literature review. Other typical cases
could be found via snowball sampling.
Deviant case sampling—sampling the most extreme cases of a phenomenon
The sample would include patients likely to have had different experiences of relevant aspects of
haemodialysis. For example, if most patients in the unit are 60-70 years old and recently began
haemodialysis for diabetic nephropathy, researchers might sample the unmarried university student in his
20s on haemodialysis since childhood, the 32 year old woman with lupus who is now trying to get pregnant,
and the 90 year old who newly started haemodialysis due to an adverse reaction to radio-opaque contrast
dye. Other deviant cases could be found via theoretical and/or snowball sampling