Statiswha? The basics of statistics

Statistical analysis is often used to investigate theories by different forms of data collection in which management can determine a solution. By collecting data, researchers can use methods of quantitative, qualitative, mixed, or action research. These methods are each different from one another and each provide a specific purpose in the role of the investigation. This also opens new discoveries based on certain areas that can be improved in which researchers are unaware of.

One example of qualitative research, is a survey. The Institute of Medicine’s Committee on the Future of Nursing provided data through surveying nurses in order to support The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health (2011). A part of this study was used to determine healthcare requirements in the workforce. In the study, 3,360 individual RN's were surveyed and this did not necessarily mean there were 3,360 jobs, rather there was 3,000 individual RN's who had one single job and the other 360 had more than one job.

The pro's to using a survey offers a variety of ways to conduct the study. Researchers often conduct surveys through mail, telephone, or by interviewing, (Bluman, 2010). A con to surveying is that some volunteers may not be completely honest, which can affect how the data is determined. To prevent this, researchers may provide incentives to volunteers, such as cash, gift cards, or other creative means to encourage honesty. Another con is that mailed surveys can become a lengthy process due to the slow response time.

Observational data collection is a form of quantitative research in which researchers merely observe subjects in a controlled environment and record the natural existence of each variable. One example 8,176 patients were categorized according to the estimated giomeruiar filtration rate of 4 groups, (El-Menyar, Zubaid, Sulaiman, Singh, Al Thani, Akbar, & Al Suwaidi). The purpose of the study was to observe and determine the affects of Chronic Renal Insufficiency (CRI) on In-hospital major adverse cardiac events across the Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) spectrum.

The pro's to an observational data collection is due to how the data is naturally collected by researchers either personally observing the data, video or audio recording, or both, (Editorial Board, 2011). The con's to observational research is can sometimes rely on live subjects who may act accordingly to how their being watched or recorded. To achieve the best research data, researchers may create an environment where subjects do not know they are being studied.

References:

El-Menyar, A., Zubaid, M., Sulaiman, K., Singh, R., Al Thani, H., Akbar, M., and Al Suwaidi, J. (2010)

In-hospital Major Clinical Outcomes in Patients With Chronic Renal Insufficiency Presenting With Acute

Coronary Syndrome: Data From a Registry of 8176 Patients.Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 85(4), 332-340. doi:10.4065/mcp.2009.0513. From AIU Virtual Library.

Spetz, J., & Kovner, C. T. (2011). How Should We Collect Data on the Nursing Workforce?. Nursing Economic$, 29(2), 97-100. From AIU Virtual Library.

Bluman, A. (2010). Elementary Statistics: A Step by Step Approach. (5^th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall

Editorial Board. (2011). Elementary Statistics. (1^st ed.). Words of Wisdom, LLC

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