Mixed Methods Studies Assignment

Mixed Methods Studies Assignment

NOW FOR AN ORIGINAL PAPER ASSIGNMENT: Mixed Methods Studies Assignment

Week 7 assignment

Assignment: Critiquing Quantitative, Qualitative, or Mixed Methods Studies

Critiquing the validity and robustness of research featured in journal articles provides a critical foundation for engaging in evidence-based practice. In Weeks 5 and 6, you explored quantitative research designs. In Week 7, you will examine qualitative and mixed methods research designs. For this Assignment, which is due by Day 7 of Week 7, you critique a quantitative and either a qualitative or a mixed methods research study and compare the types of information obtained in each.

To prepare:

Select a health topic of interest to you that is relevant to your current area of practice. The topic may be your Course Portfolio Project or a different topic of your choice.

Using the Walden Library, locate two articles in scholarly journals that deal with your portfolio topic: 1) Select one article that utilizes a quantitative research design and 2) select a second article that utilizes either a qualitative OR a mixed methods design. These need to be single studies not systematic or integrative reviews (including meta-analysis and metasynthesis). You may use research articles from your reference list. If you cannot find these two types of research on your portfolio topic, you may choose another topic.

Locate the following documents in this week’s Learning Resources to access the appropriate templates, which will guide your critique of each article:

Critique Template for a Qualitative Study

Critique Template for a Quantitative Study

Critique Template for a Mixed-Methods Study

Consider the fields in the templates as you review the information in each article. Begin to draft a paper in which you analyze the two research approaches as indicated below. Reflect on the overall value of both quantitative and qualitative research. If someone were to say to you, “Qualitative research is not real science,” how would you respond?

To complete this Assignment:

Complete the two critiques using the appropriate templates.

Write a 2- to 3-page paper that addresses the following:

Contrast the types of information that you gained from examining the two different research approaches in the articles that you selected.

Describe the general advantages and disadvantages of the two research approaches featured in the articles. Use examples from the articles for support.

Formulate a response to the claim that qualitative research is not real science. Highlight the general insights that both quantitative and qualitative studies can provide to researchers. Support your response with references to the Learning Resources and other credible sources.

As you complete this Assignment, remember to:

Submit your paper to Grammarly and SafeAssign through the Walden Writing Center. Based on the Grammarly and SafeAssign reports, revise your paper as necessary.

Reminder: The School of Nursing requires that all papers submitted include a title page, introduction, summary, and references. The School of Nursing Sample Paper provided at the Walden Writing Center provides an example of those required elements (available from the Walden University website found in this week’s Learning Resources). All papers submitted must use this formatting.

Combine all three parts of this assignment into one Word document including both critique templates and the narrative with your references. Submit this combined document.

By Day 7 of Week 7

Week 10 course project

Course Project: Part 3—Translating Evidence Into Practice

In Part 3 of the Course Project, you consider how the evidence you gathered during Part 2 can be translated into nursing practice.

Now that you have located available research on your PICOT question, you will examine what the research indicates about nursing practices. Connecting research evidence and findings to actual decisions and tasks that nurses complete in their daily practice is essentially what evidence-based practice is all about. This final component of the Course Project asks you to translate the evidence and data from your literature review into authentic practices that can be adopted to improve health care outcomes. In addition, you will also consider possible methods and strategies for disseminating evidence-based practices to your colleagues and to the broader health care field.

To prepare:

Consider Parts 1 and 2 of your Course Project. How does the research address your PICOT question?

With your PICOT question in mind, identify at least one nursing practice that is supported by the evidence in two or more of the articles from your literature review. Consider what the evidence indicates about how this practice contributes to better outcomes.

Explore possible consequences of failing to adopt the evidence-based practice that you identified.

Consider how you would disseminate information about this evidence-based practice throughout your organization or practice setting. How would you communicate the importance of the practice?

To complete:

In a 3- to 4-page paper:

Restate your PICOT question and its significance to nursing practice.

Summarize the findings from the articles you selected for your literature review. Describe at least one nursing practice that is supported by the evidence in the articles. Justify your response with specific references to at least 2 of the articles.

Explain how the evidence-based practice that you identified contributes to better outcomes. In addition, identify potential negative outcomes that could result from failing to use the evidence-based practice.

Outline the strategy for disseminating the evidence-based practice that you identified throughout your practice setting. Explain how you would communicate the importance of the practice to your colleagues. Describe how you would move from disseminating the information to implementing the evidence-based practice within your organization. How would you address concerns and opposition to the change in practice?