Making Sense of Research (1st Edition) is an especially helpful resource for the many types of health care providers who recognize that information from scientific research has the potential to enhance their decision-making, to increase their effectiveness, and to advance their professional credibility. Quite often, however, these same practitioners do not have confidence in their research literacy skills and would say that their education in this subject area was limited, perhaps non-existent. Making Sense of Research (1st Edition) takes the reader step by step through the processes involved in locating and comprehending clinical studies, and assessing their relevance and credibility. It explains the research "mindset" and the types of studies that are most pertinent to the health care field. Written with the absolute beginner in mind, it is accessible, understandable, and grounded in the realities of clinical practice. It includes several journal articles and demonstrates how to assess them to glean meaningful information for everyday practice.
Foreword vi
Introduction 1
Chapter 1: A Brief Overview of the Scientific Method 7
Science as a Way of Thinking 8
Falsification and Accumulation of Knowledge 10
Reproducibility of Results 10
Science as a Social Activity 11
Quantitative and Qualitative Methods 11
Basic Concepts Involved in Evaluating Research 13
Threats to Internal Validity 14
Statistical Validity 16
Other Design Considerations in Evaluating Research 17
Chapter 2: Locating Journal Articles 25
What If I Do Not Have a Computer? 26
About PubMed 27
Using PubMed 27
Performing a Search 29
Viewing Search Results 31
Saving Search Strategies 32
Ordering Articles from PubMed 33
Other PubMed Features 35
Other Resources 35
Chapter 3: Types of Journal Articles and Study Designs 39
Letters to the Editor 40 Literature Reviews 40
Guidelines for Evaluating Literature Reviews 43
Clinically Related Health Care Research 44
Classification of Studies 44
Descriptive Studies 44
Explanatory Studies 48
Characteristics of Clinical Trials 53
Chapter 4: The Anatomy of a Journal Article 59
The Abstract 60 The Introduction 62
Methods and Procedures 63 Results 68
Discussion of Results or Conclusion 75
Author and Article Information 77
References 78
Chapter 5: How to Read a Quantitative Article 83
General Considerations 84
The Abstract 84
The Introduction 85
Methods and Procedures 85
Results 89
Discussion or Conclusions 91
References 92
Chapter 6: Critical Evaluation of Two Intervention Studies 95
Study Example #1: Massage and Cancer Pain 96
Study Example #2: Reflexology and PMS 111
Chapter 7: How to Read a Qualitative Article 127
Qualitative Inquiry 128
Types of Qualitative Approaches 129
Trustworthiness in Qualitative Research 130
Evaluating Qualitative Research 131
Study Example: Mastectomy, Body Image and Therapeutic Massage 133
Glossary 151
Index 156
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