After the data are collected, it is time to analyze the results!
Discuss one of the four basic rules for understanding results in a research study.
Compare clinical significance and statistical significance. Which one is more meaningful
when considering applying evidence to your practice?
Compare descriptive statistics and inferential statistics in research. Please give an
example of each type that could be collected in a study that would be done on your
nursing clinical issue you identified in previous weeks.
Instructor and class,
The four basic rules for understanding research study results are:
1. Understand the purpose of the study
2. Identify variables (dependent and independent)
3. Identify how variables are measured
4. Look at measures of central tendency and measures of variability for the study of
variables (Chamberlain, 2016).
In my opinion, one of the most important rules is to understand the purpose of the study. If you
do not know why something is being researched, then nothing else really matters. The variables
will mean nothing to you, how they are measured will carry no weight, and looking at central
tendency measures will just confuse. So you must ask yourself when looking at research studies:
what is the researcher trying to say? What are they looking for or trying to accomplish? This will
give the purpose of the study (Chamberlain, 2016).
When comparing clinical significance and statistical significance, the definitions must be known.
Clinical significance is expected to, in general, give an idea as to how much some type of
intervention can actually make a significant difference in patients’ lives. Statistical significance is
said to have been present if the probability was small that the results were due to standard
error (p value), which also means that the probability was small that the results were due to
chance (Houser, 2015). According to Houser (2015), both statistical and clinical significance are
necessary in order to ensure that changing any clinical practice based on study results is actually
warranted and safe. If I absolutely had to choose which was more meaningful, I would
hesitantly say that statistical significance would be more important, only because it sounds as if
something has to be tested to see if it works statistically and then it can be applied to actual life
instances. I could absolutely be wrong in my assumption and I stand to be corrected.
Inferential analysis is when tests are conducted to see if the results that were discovered in a
study represent a larger population (Houser, 2015). Descriptive statistics is basically the
numbers in a set of data that have been gathered to represent research variables (Houser,
2015). In my nursing clinical issue of whether or not scrubbing a venipuncture site for 30
seconds with Chlorhexadine and then letting it dry completely before obtaining blood cultures
This study source was downloaded by 100000824189183 from CourseHero.com on 02-28-2022 04:17:51 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/25343122/EBP-Week-6docx/
Discuss one of the four basic rules for understanding results in a research study.
Compare clinical significance and statistical significance. Which one is more meaningful
when considering applying evidence to your practice?
Compare descriptive statistics and inferential statistics in research. Please give an
example of each type that could be collected in a study that would be done on your
nursing clinical issue you identified in previous weeks.
Instructor and class,
The four basic rules for understanding research study results are:
1. Understand the purpose of the study
2. Identify variables (dependent and independent)
3. Identify how variables are measured
4. Look at measures of central tendency and measures of variability for the study of
variables (Chamberlain, 2016).
In my opinion, one of the most important rules is to understand the purpose of the study. If you
do not know why something is being researched, then nothing else really matters. The variables
will mean nothing to you, how they are measured will carry no weight, and looking at central
tendency measures will just confuse. So you must ask yourself when looking at research studies:
what is the researcher trying to say? What are they looking for or trying to accomplish? This will
give the purpose of the study (Chamberlain, 2016).
When comparing clinical significance and statistical significance, the definitions must be known.
Clinical significance is expected to, in general, give an idea as to how much some type of
intervention can actually make a significant difference in patients’ lives. Statistical significance is
said to have been present if the probability was small that the results were due to standard
error (p value), which also means that the probability was small that the results were due to
chance (Houser, 2015). According to Houser (2015), both statistical and clinical significance are
necessary in order to ensure that changing any clinical practice based on study results is actually
warranted and safe. If I absolutely had to choose which was more meaningful, I would
hesitantly say that statistical significance would be more important, only because it sounds as if
something has to be tested to see if it works statistically and then it can be applied to actual life
instances. I could absolutely be wrong in my assumption and I stand to be corrected.
Inferential analysis is when tests are conducted to see if the results that were discovered in a
study represent a larger population (Houser, 2015). Descriptive statistics is basically the
numbers in a set of data that have been gathered to represent research variables (Houser,
2015). In my nursing clinical issue of whether or not scrubbing a venipuncture site for 30
seconds with Chlorhexadine and then letting it dry completely before obtaining blood cultures
This study source was downloaded by 100000824189183 from CourseHero.com on 02-28-2022 04:17:51 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/25343122/EBP-Week-6docx/
