Assignment task: Quantitative Research Critical Appraisal
Step 1: Read the abstract and the methods sections of:
- Swenson, S., et al. (2016) Parents' use of praise and criticism in a sample of young children seeking mental health services. Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 30, 49-56.
- Wilson, R. et al. (2016). A randomized controlled trial of an individualized preoperative education intervention for symptom management after total knee arthroplasty. Orthopaedic Nursing, 35(1)
Step 2: Read Chapters 8, 9, 13, and 14 of your textbook.
Step 3: Complete the table below and upload it through the assignment tab. Please be sure to view and understand the associated rubric for this assignment. Include rationales for each of your answers to demonstrate concept mastery.
| Questions |
Swenson et al. |
Wilson et al. |
| Research Design |
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| Was the design experimental, quasi-experimental, or nonexperimental? What was the specific design used? |
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| If there was an intervention, were the intervention and the control conditions adequately described? |
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| If the study was nonexperimental, why did the researcher opt not to intervene? |
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| What are the major limitations of the design used? |
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| Sampling Plan |
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| Was the population identified? Were eligibility criteria specified? |
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| What type of sampling plan was used? |
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| How many participants were in the sample? What was the attrition rate? |
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| Were key characteristics of the sample described? |
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| Data Collection |
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| Did the report provide adequate information about data collection procedures? |
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| Did the report offer reliability measures for the instruments used? Was reliability acceptable? |
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| Did the report offer validity of the instrument? |
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| If there was no reliability or validity information, what conclusion can you draw about the study? |
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| Appraising Statistical Analysis |
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| Did the descriptive statistics sufficiently describe the major variables and background characteristics of the sample? |
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| Did the researchers report inferential statistics? What were they? |
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| Were any multivariate procedures used? What were they? |
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| What were the significant results? How does this support or not support the hypothesis? |
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Based on both appraisals, which report do you find more valuable? Provide rationale.