Sampling

Order Description

Sampling

The temptation to form premature theories upon insufficient data is the bane of our profession.

—Sherlock Holmes (from The Valley of Fear, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Sherlock Holmes, the great fictional logician, may have made this reprimand in reference to the science of criminal investigation, but the underlying principle holds true for all branches of research. Now that you have identified a research problem and developed hypotheses, the next step is to identify your sample and begin gathering data that will answer your research questions. The process of sampling to gather data is a crucial step in the research process in that you must be sure that the instruments and sample population mesh well with the study’s goals and objectives so that they will produce valid and reliable results.

For this Discussion, you identify a target population and sample appropriate for addressing the research problem you formulated in the Week 2 Discussion.

To prepare:

Review this week’s media presentation and consider Dr. Pothoff’s comments on sampling.

Recall the research problem, question, and hypothesis you developed in Week 2’s Discussion which is about Medical errors and ethical issues. With this in mind, ask yourself: What population is most relevant, and accessible, for exploring my research problem?

Consider how you could reach this target population to gather data. What are some challenges you might encounter?

Determine a data collection approach for your target population. Develop an informed rationale for selecting that approach.

Write a cohesive response that addresses the following questions:

What are the researchable populations in your area of practice? Which would be most appropriate for use in your research study?

What are the challenges of obtaining a sample from this population? How could you address those challenges?

What approach would you use to collect data from the sample? Provide a rationale for the approach you choose based on this week’s Learning Resources.

Readings

Course Text: The Practice of Nursing Research: Appraisal, Synthesis, and Generation of Evidence

Chapter 15, “Sampling”

Chapter 15 introduces key concepts and components of sampling theory and the sampling process. The chapter discusses several important sampling considerations, including target population, hypothetical population, accessible population, elements, subjects, participants, and generalizability of research findings based on sampling methods.

Chapter 20, “Collecting and Managing Data”

Chapter 20 explains how data collection is an integral part of research and presents methods for collecting and managing data.

Article: Corrigan, P. W., Tsang, H. H., Shi, K., Lam, C. S., & Larson, J. (2010). Chinese and American employers’ perspectives regarding hiring people with behaviorally driven health conditions: The role of stigma. Social Science & Medicine, 71(12), 2162–2169. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2010.08.025

Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

This article discusses a mixed-method study of the work opportunities for people with behaviorally driven health conditions such as HIV/AIDS and drug and alcohol abuse. The article describes the results of qualitative interviews and quantitative surveys of employers in China and the United States in an effort to analyze employer perspectives, stigma, and the possibility for stigma change.

Article: Williams, H., Harris, R., & Turner-Strokes, L. (2009). Work sampling: A quantitative analysis of nursing activity in a neuro-rehabilitation setting. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 65(10), 2097–2107.

Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

This article describes a quantitative research study on the amount of time nurses spend on direct patient care in a neuro-rehabilitation setting. The article offers suggestions for future studies that focus on work sampling and discusses how staffing requirement estimates should consider indirect care and non-patient activities in addition to direct patient care needs.

Optional Resources

Book Chapter: Fawcett, J., & Garity, J. (2009). Evaluation of samples. In Evaluating research for evidence-based nursing (pp. 91–131). Philadelphia, PA: F. A. Davis. Retrieved from

http://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=rzh&AN=2010424062&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Tutorial: Walden University. (n.d.). Collecting quantitative data. Retrieved August 1, 2011, from http://streaming.waldenu.edu/hdp/researchtutorials/educ8106_player/educ8106_collecting_quantative_data.html

Sampling

Order Description

Review the article by Westrom, Maiers, Evans, & Bronfort (2010), and use as the basis of your assignment. In your paper:
•Describe the population being researched in this study.
•Summarize the methods used to identify the sample and recruit participants into the study.
•Compare the study sample to the population. Evaluate whether or not the study sample accurately reflects the population.
•Assess whether or not the study findings can be reliably generalized to the population based on the sampling methods.
•Propose one additional strategy that could have been used in the study to effectively sample the population to ensure the study results are generalizable to the population.

The assignment must be four to five pages in length, excluding the title and reference pages, and formatted according to APA guidelines as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Use at least two scholarly sources, in addition to the workbook article, to support your discussion. The scholarly sources should be from a peer-reviewed journal found in the Ashford University Library.

The Sampling paper
•Must be written in your own words and may not include quotations. Papers including quotes will not be accepted. All content from outside sources must be paraphrased and cited appropriately.
•Must be four to five double-spaced pages in length (not including title and reference pages) and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
•Must include a separate title page with the following:
?Title of paper
?Student’s name
?Course name and number
?Instructor’s name
?Date submitted
•Must use at least two scholarly sources in addition to the course text.
•Must include a separate reference page that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
MUST USE RESOURCES NO OLDER THAN 5 YEARS. MUST USE TEXTBOOK.

Required Resources

Book Chapter

Hebl, N. & Lane, D. M. (n.d.) Inferential statistics. In Lane, D. M. Online statistics education: An interactive multimedia course of study (Chapter 1.5). Retrieved from https://onlinestatbook.com/2/introduction/inferential.html

World Health Organization and University of Amsterdam. (2004). Sampling. How to Investigate the Use of Medicines by Consumers (Chapter 5). Retrieved from https://apps.who.int/medicinedocs/en/d/Js6169e/7.html

Articles

Peltzer, K., Preez, N. F., Ramlagan, S., & Fomundam, H. (2008). Use of traditional complementary and alternative medicine for HIV patients in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. BMC Public Health, 8, 255. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-8-255. Retrieved from the PubMed Central database online at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2503977/
•This article describes a cross-sectional study that assessed the use of Traditional Complementary and Alternative Medicine for HIV patients prior to initiating antiretroviral therapy in three public hospitals in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and is one of the options to use for this week’s assignment.

Suresh, K., Thomas, S. V., and Suresh, G. (2011). Design, data analysis and sampling techniques for clinical research. Annals of Indian Academy Neurology, 14(4), 287-290. Retrieved from the PubMed Central database at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3271469/
•This article explains various sampling methods that can be appropriately used in medical research with different scenarios and challenges.

Westrom, K. K., Maiers, M. J., Evans, R. L., & Bronfort, G. (2010). Individualized chiropractic and integrative care for low back pain: The design of a randomized clinical trial using a mixed-methods approach. Trials, 11, 24. doi:10.1186/1745-6215-11-24. Retrieved from the PubMed Central database at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2841162/
•This article describes a study that aims to determine the relative clinical effectiveness of monodisciplinary chiropractic care and multidisciplinary integrative care in adults with non-acute low back pain, and is one of the options to use for this week’s assignment.

Website

Herek, G. M. (2012). A brief introduction to sampling. Retrieved from https://psychology.ucdavis.edu/rainbow/html/fact_sample.html
•This article provides an overview of sampling and how it is applied to health research.

Recommended Resources

Article

Chaturvedi, N. & McKeigue, P. M. (1994). Methods for epidemiological surveys of ethnic minority groups. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 48(2), 107-111. doi:10.1136/jech.48.2.107
•This article reviews the available sources of mortality and morbidity data in the UK, and assesses their uses and limitations for research involving ethnic minority groups.

Multimedia

Chaturvedi, K. (n.d.) Sampling methods [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from www.pitt.edu/~super7/43011-44001/43911.ppt
•This slideshow provides an overview of the reasons for sampling, sampling methods, differences between probability and non-probability sampling, and advantages and disadvantages of the different methods.

Websites

The Pennsylvania State University. (2015). Stat 100: Statistical concepts and reasoning. Retrieved from https://onlinecourses.science.psu.edu/stat100/
•Lesson 3.2: The beauty of sampling. Retrieved from https://onlinecourses.science.psu.edu/stat100/node/16
•Lesson 3.4: Relationship between sample size and margin of error. Retrieved from https://onlinecourses.science.psu.edu/stat100/node/17
•Lesson 3.5: Simple random sampling and other sampling methods. Retrieved from https://onlinecourses.science.psu.edu/stat100/node/18