NURS 5366 module1reading

Chapter 1 This chapter introduces you to the world of nursing research. • Nursing research is defined as a scientific process that validates and refines existing knowledge and generates new knowledge that directly and indirectly influences the delivery of EBP. • This chapter presents a framework that links nursing research to the world of nursing and organizes the content presented in this textbook (see Figure 1-1). The concepts in this framework range from concrete to abstract and include concrete and abstract thinking, the empirical world (EBP), research, abstract thought processes, science, theory, knowledge, and philosophy. • The empirical world is what we experience through our senses and is the concrete portion of our existence where nursing practice occurs. • Research is a way to test reality, and nurses use a variety of research methodologies (quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods, and outcomes) to test their reality and generate knowledge. • All nurses have a role in research— some are developers of research and conduct studies to generate and refine the knowledge needed for nursing practice, and others are consumers of research and use research evidence to improve their nursing practice. • Three major abstract thought processes— introspection, intuition, and reasoning— are important in nursing. • A theory is a creative and rigorous structuring of ideas that includes defined concepts, existence statements, and relational statements that are interrelated to present a systematic view of a phenomenon. • Reliance on tradition, authority, trial and error, and personal experience is no longer an adequate basis for sound nursing practice. • The goal of nurses and other healthcare professionals is to deliver evidence-based health qualitative, mixed methods, and outcomes) to test their reality and generate knowledge. • All nurses have a role in research— some are developers of research and conduct studies to generate and refine the knowledge needed for nursing practice, and others are consumers of research and use research evidence to improve their nursing practice. • Three major abstract thought processes— introspection, intuition, and reasoning— are important in nursing. • A theory is a creative and rigorous structuring of ideas that includes defined concepts, existence statements, and relational statements that are interrelated to present a systematic view of a phenomenon. • Reliance on tradition, authority, trial and error, and personal experience is no longer an adequate basis for sound nursing practice. • The goal of nurses and other healthcare professionals is to deliver evidence-based health care to patients and their families. • EBP evolves from the integration of best research evidence with clinical expertise and patient needs and values (see Figure 1-2). • The best research evidence is the empirical knowledge generated from the synthesis of quality studies to address a practice problem. • The clinical expertise of a nurse is determined by years of clinical experience, current knowledge of the research and clinical literature, and educational preparation. • The patient brings values— such as unique preferences, expectations, concerns, cultural beliefs, and health needs— to the clinical encounter, which are important to consider in providing evidence-based care. • The knowledge generated through research is essential for describing, explaining, predicting, and controlling nursing phenomena.