NURS 6052 Week 5 Discussion: Qualitative Research Designs

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The Discussion Questions

From your prompt about qualitative research designs, the questions you need to answer are essentially:

  1. Select a recent qualitative research article (within the last 3 years) and provide its APA citation.

  2. Provide a brief summary of the article, including its purpose and main findings.

  3. Identify the qualitative research design used in the study and evaluate if it was the best choice.

  4. Discuss ethical issues involved in the study and how they were addressed.

  5. Explain how the study might have differed if a quantitative design had been used, particularly regarding the type of data collected and results.

How to Approach Each Question

1. APA Citation

  • Use a peer-reviewed journal (published in the last 3 years).

  • Format in APA 7th edition: Author(s), Year, Title, Journal, Volume(Issue), Pages.

  • Example:

    Smith, J., & Doe, A. (2022). Experiences of patients using prosthetics: A qualitative study. Journal of Rehabilitation Research, 45(2), 123–134.

2. Article Summary

  • Write a short paragraph covering:

    • Topic of the study

    • Purpose of the research

    • Key participants or sample

    • Main findings

  • Keep it concise but informative.

3. Qualitative Research Design

  • Check the methods section: common designs include:

    • Phenomenology – explores lived experiences

    • Grounded theory – develops theory from data

    • Ethnography – studies culture or social groups

    • Case study – examines a specific case in depth

  • Explain why this design fits the research question.

4. Ethical Issues

  • Look for mentions of:

    • Informed consent

    • Confidentiality

    • IRB approval

    • Voluntary participation

  • Explain how the researchers ensured ethical conduct.

5. Differences if Quantitative Design Were Used

  • Compare qualitative vs. quantitative:

    • Qualitative: narratives, interviews, observations, in-depth insights

    • Quantitative: surveys, experiments, numeric data, statistics

  • Discuss how the type of data and findings would differ.

Sample Solution

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