When a researcher writes a proposal for studying the amount of fear preoperative patients experience, which element of the proposal justifies conducting the study in the first place?

Question

a. Identification of a research gap
b. Choice of a framework
c. Selection of an appropriate methodology
d. Conduct of a systematic review

Answer 1

ANS: A
After the review of the literature, the gap in the knowledge base is identified, with a description of how the proposed study is expected to contribute to fill that particular gap. Your proposal should identify the target population to which your study findings will be generalized and the accessible population from which the sample will be selected. Outline the inclusion and exclusion criteria you will use to select a study participant or subject, and present the rationale for these sample criteria. For example, a participant might be selected according to the following sample criteria: female age 18 to 60 years, hospitalized, and 1 day post–abdominal surgery. The rationale for these criteria might be that the researcher wants to examine the effects of a selected pain management intervention on adult females who have recently experienced hospitalization and abdominal surgery. The sampling method and the approximate sample size are discussed in terms of their adequacy and limitations in investigating the research purpose (Thompson, 2002). Usually, a power analysis is conducted to determine an adequate sample size to identify significant relationships and differences in studies.