Chapter 1: Discovering the World of Nursing Research
Test Bank
1. A researcher who desires to determine the cause-and-effect relationship between requiring that
all children under the age of 8 will ride in special care harnesses and the subsequent rate of
children’s spinal cord injury will consequently utilize which form of nursing research?
a. Descriptive research
b. Outcomes research
c. Qualitative research
d. Quantitative research
ANS: D
Quantitative research, the most frequently used method, is a formal, objective, systematic
methodology to describe variables, test relationships, and examine cause-and-effect
interactions. Quantitative research includes experimental research, which is the method for
testing cause-and-effect relationships between and among specific variables. Qualitative
research methods are used for explaining meanings and describing experiences in context.
Descriptive research involves identifying and understanding the nature of phenomena and,
sometimes, the relationships among them. Outcomes research examines the end result of care
in huge populations, most often retrospectively, using a database.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 3
2. Despite the presence of an intraventricular drain, the intracranial pressure of an ICU neuro
patient remains increased. The nurse recalibrates the machine, makes sure the monitor is on
the same level as the drain, checks all connections, and then notifies the physician, who comes
to the unit and inserts a new drain. What type of reasoning prompts the nurse to recalibrate,
ensure proper placement, and check connections?
a. Abstract reasoning
b. Concrete thinking
c. Logistic reasoning
d. Reality testing
ANS: C
Logistic reasoning is used to break a whole into parts that can be carefully examined.
Concrete thinking is oriented toward and limited by tangible things or by events that are
observed and experienced in reality. Abstract reasoning is oriented toward the development of
an idea without application to, or association with, a particular instance. Reality testing is used
to validate what is observed in the empirical world.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 6
3. A nurse with considerable clinical expertise develops a policy for managing agitated patients
in the emergency department. The resultant policy emanates from
,Chapter 1: Discovering the World of Nursing Research
Test Bank
a. Abstract reasoning
b. Concrete thinking
c. Logistic reasoning
d. Reality testing
ANS: A
Abstract reasoning is oriented toward the development of an idea without application to, or
association with, a particular instance. Concrete thinking is oriented toward and limited by
tangible things or by events that are observed and experienced in reality. Logistic reasoning is
used to break a whole into parts that can be carefully examined. Reality testing is used to
validate what is observed in the empirical world.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 7
4. A nurse with considerable clinical expertise develops a policy for managing agitated patients
in the emergency department. The type of reasoning the nurse uses to do this is
reasoning.
a. Problematic
b. Operational
c. Logistic
d. Inductive
ANS: D
Inductive reasoning involves reasoning that moves from the specific to the general, whereby
particular instances are observed and then combined into a larger whole or general statement.
Problematic reasoning involves (1) identifying a problem and factors influencing it, (2)
selecting solutions to the problem, and (3) resolving the problem. Operational reasoning
involves the identification of and discrimination among many alternatives and viewpoints.
Logistic reasoning is used to break the whole into parts that can be carefully examined, as the
relationships among the parts can also be.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Synthesis REF: Page 7
5. What is the best explanation of intuition that forms a legitimate source of knowledge in
nursing?
a. It is based on knowledge thoroughly incorporated into thought but seldom
articulated.
b. It is based on a gift from the universe and should be honored when it arrives.
c. It is never inaccurate.
d. It is a revisiting of old knowledge, accompanied by deep reflection.
ANS: A
Intuition is the revisiting of old knowledge accompanied by deep reflection.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 5
6. Why is operational reasoning necessary for research?
a. Abstract concepts are of no use to nursing.
b. Standard interventions are obtained from operational reasoning.
,Chapter 1: Discovering the World of Nursing Research
Test Bank
c. It allows the researcher to measure the concepts studied.
d. It facilitates the researcher’s rapport with families.
, Chapter 1: Discovering the World of Nursing Research
Test Bank
ANS: C
Operational reasoning involves the identification of and discrimination among many
alternatives and viewpoints. It focuses on the process (debating alternatives) rather than on the
resolution. Nurses use operational reasoning to develop realistic, measurable health goals.
Thus, operational reasoning takes abstract concepts and makes them focused, concrete, and,
therefore, researchable.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 6
MULTIPLE RESPONSE
1. What are the connections between evidence-based practice and nursing research? (Select all
that apply.)
a. Evidence-based care cannot be provided to patients without the nurse
understanding something of research.
b. A synthesis of current research within an area of nursing is used to improve care in
that area.
c. All patients with a given diagnosis should be cared for based solely on research
knowledge.
d. Nursing diagnosis and management depend on a practitioner’s exploration of best
research evidence.
e. Nursing research provides evidence that allows us each to practice with the same
style and capability.
ANS: A, B, D
Evidence-based practice in nursing requires a strong body of research knowledge that nurses
must synthesize and use to promote quality care for their patients, families, and communities.
In order to synthesize and use research appropriately, a nurse must understand it. A nurse must
explore the best research evidence about a practice problem before using his or her clinical
expertise to diagnose and manage an individual patient’s health problem. Not all patients are
treated in the same way, however. Because reality can vary with perception, and because the
facts can be relative, nurses do not impose their views on patients. Rather, nurses help patients
seek health from within the patients’ worldviews. This is a critical component of evidence-
based practice.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Analysis REF: Page 11
MULTIPLE CHOICE
7. Nurses with a bachelor’s degree in nursing can participate in the implementation of evidence-
based protocols in practice. This means that the BSN nurse
a. Develops evidence-based guidelines
b. Designs research studies, on which protocols may be based
c. Evaluates and revises evidence-based protocols
Test Bank
1. A researcher who desires to determine the cause-and-effect relationship between requiring that
all children under the age of 8 will ride in special care harnesses and the subsequent rate of
children’s spinal cord injury will consequently utilize which form of nursing research?
a. Descriptive research
b. Outcomes research
c. Qualitative research
d. Quantitative research
ANS: D
Quantitative research, the most frequently used method, is a formal, objective, systematic
methodology to describe variables, test relationships, and examine cause-and-effect
interactions. Quantitative research includes experimental research, which is the method for
testing cause-and-effect relationships between and among specific variables. Qualitative
research methods are used for explaining meanings and describing experiences in context.
Descriptive research involves identifying and understanding the nature of phenomena and,
sometimes, the relationships among them. Outcomes research examines the end result of care
in huge populations, most often retrospectively, using a database.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 3
2. Despite the presence of an intraventricular drain, the intracranial pressure of an ICU neuro
patient remains increased. The nurse recalibrates the machine, makes sure the monitor is on
the same level as the drain, checks all connections, and then notifies the physician, who comes
to the unit and inserts a new drain. What type of reasoning prompts the nurse to recalibrate,
ensure proper placement, and check connections?
a. Abstract reasoning
b. Concrete thinking
c. Logistic reasoning
d. Reality testing
ANS: C
Logistic reasoning is used to break a whole into parts that can be carefully examined.
Concrete thinking is oriented toward and limited by tangible things or by events that are
observed and experienced in reality. Abstract reasoning is oriented toward the development of
an idea without application to, or association with, a particular instance. Reality testing is used
to validate what is observed in the empirical world.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 6
3. A nurse with considerable clinical expertise develops a policy for managing agitated patients
in the emergency department. The resultant policy emanates from
,Chapter 1: Discovering the World of Nursing Research
Test Bank
a. Abstract reasoning
b. Concrete thinking
c. Logistic reasoning
d. Reality testing
ANS: A
Abstract reasoning is oriented toward the development of an idea without application to, or
association with, a particular instance. Concrete thinking is oriented toward and limited by
tangible things or by events that are observed and experienced in reality. Logistic reasoning is
used to break a whole into parts that can be carefully examined. Reality testing is used to
validate what is observed in the empirical world.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 7
4. A nurse with considerable clinical expertise develops a policy for managing agitated patients
in the emergency department. The type of reasoning the nurse uses to do this is
reasoning.
a. Problematic
b. Operational
c. Logistic
d. Inductive
ANS: D
Inductive reasoning involves reasoning that moves from the specific to the general, whereby
particular instances are observed and then combined into a larger whole or general statement.
Problematic reasoning involves (1) identifying a problem and factors influencing it, (2)
selecting solutions to the problem, and (3) resolving the problem. Operational reasoning
involves the identification of and discrimination among many alternatives and viewpoints.
Logistic reasoning is used to break the whole into parts that can be carefully examined, as the
relationships among the parts can also be.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Synthesis REF: Page 7
5. What is the best explanation of intuition that forms a legitimate source of knowledge in
nursing?
a. It is based on knowledge thoroughly incorporated into thought but seldom
articulated.
b. It is based on a gift from the universe and should be honored when it arrives.
c. It is never inaccurate.
d. It is a revisiting of old knowledge, accompanied by deep reflection.
ANS: A
Intuition is the revisiting of old knowledge accompanied by deep reflection.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 5
6. Why is operational reasoning necessary for research?
a. Abstract concepts are of no use to nursing.
b. Standard interventions are obtained from operational reasoning.
,Chapter 1: Discovering the World of Nursing Research
Test Bank
c. It allows the researcher to measure the concepts studied.
d. It facilitates the researcher’s rapport with families.
, Chapter 1: Discovering the World of Nursing Research
Test Bank
ANS: C
Operational reasoning involves the identification of and discrimination among many
alternatives and viewpoints. It focuses on the process (debating alternatives) rather than on the
resolution. Nurses use operational reasoning to develop realistic, measurable health goals.
Thus, operational reasoning takes abstract concepts and makes them focused, concrete, and,
therefore, researchable.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Application REF: Page 6
MULTIPLE RESPONSE
1. What are the connections between evidence-based practice and nursing research? (Select all
that apply.)
a. Evidence-based care cannot be provided to patients without the nurse
understanding something of research.
b. A synthesis of current research within an area of nursing is used to improve care in
that area.
c. All patients with a given diagnosis should be cared for based solely on research
knowledge.
d. Nursing diagnosis and management depend on a practitioner’s exploration of best
research evidence.
e. Nursing research provides evidence that allows us each to practice with the same
style and capability.
ANS: A, B, D
Evidence-based practice in nursing requires a strong body of research knowledge that nurses
must synthesize and use to promote quality care for their patients, families, and communities.
In order to synthesize and use research appropriately, a nurse must understand it. A nurse must
explore the best research evidence about a practice problem before using his or her clinical
expertise to diagnose and manage an individual patient’s health problem. Not all patients are
treated in the same way, however. Because reality can vary with perception, and because the
facts can be relative, nurses do not impose their views on patients. Rather, nurses help patients
seek health from within the patients’ worldviews. This is a critical component of evidence-
based practice.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Analysis REF: Page 11
MULTIPLE CHOICE
7. Nurses with a bachelor’s degree in nursing can participate in the implementation of evidence-
based protocols in practice. This means that the BSN nurse
a. Develops evidence-based guidelines
b. Designs research studies, on which protocols may be based
c. Evaluates and revises evidence-based protocols
