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Methodological Characteristics (methodological + characteristic)
Selected AbstractsMethodology of clinical research: an overviewDRUG DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH, Issue 3 2006Irene Floriani Abstract The goal of clinical research is to establish safety efficacy and effectiveness of treatments or intervention. In order to obtain it, different clinical studies are needed, with a quite definite hierarchy of research objectives, in order to gather all information needed for appraising the clinical role of the intervention being tested. Clinical trials are generally considered as the best tool for learning whether a new treatment is safe and effective in patients. They are conducted in all areas of medicine but represent only a small part of the research for developing a new treatment. In particular, even after providing evidence for the approval of treatment, further research is needed on the implementation of results of clinical research into clinical practice and health policy. This is the place of outcome research that investigates the impact of various influences, especially interventions, on final endpoints that matter to decision makers with special emphasis on the use of patient-reported outcomes. This article reviews the methodological characteristics of each research phase, with particular emphasis on comparative trials and effectiveness studies. Drug Dev. Res. 67:183,187, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Mapping the organizational culture research in nursing: a literature reviewJOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING, Issue 5 2006Shannon Scott-Findlay PhD RN Aim., This paper reports a critical review of nursing organizational culture research studies with the objectives of: (1) reviewing theoretical and methodological characteristics of the studies and (2) drawing inferences specific to the state of knowledge in this field. Background., Organizational culture is regarded as significant in influencing research use in clinical practice yet it is not understood how culture shapes practitioners' behaviours. Only one review of this empirical literature in nursing has been completed. Method., Using selected computerized databases, published nursing research studies in English that examine organizational culture were accessed. Organizational culture studies were categorized using Hatch's three perspectives on organizational culture: (1) modern, (2) symbolic-interpretive and (3) postmodern. The review was conducted in 2005. Results., Twenty-nine studies were in the final data set. Results pointed to variations in cultural definitions and incorporation of organizational sciences theory. In classifying the studies, modern perspectives dominated (n = 22), symbolic-interpretive approaches were an emerging group (n = 6) and one study was unclassifiable. Our results expand current cultural instrument reviews by pinpointing tools that have been previously overlooked and by identifying ongoing theoretical and methodological challenges for researchers. Conclusion., An exclusive reliance on modernistic approaches in organizational culture research cannot yield a complete understanding of the phenomenon. Rather, the field could benefit from a variety of cultural approaches. In a similar vein, researchers need to be mindful of the terminology and the unit of analysis they use in their research, as these are the two largest research challenges. [source] Cross-survey analysis of school violence and disorderPSYCHOLOGY IN THE SCHOOLS, Issue 2 2001Mark B. Coggeshall School psychologists and administrators are often asked to respond to student violence and disorder based on incomplete or inaccurate information about the nature and scope of these problems in their schools. Records of disciplinary actions and incidents may reflect only the tip of the proverbial iceberg. In national surveys, school administrators report rates of violence and disorder that are only a small fraction of the rates reported by students in national self-report surveys. Student self-report surveys on school violence and disorder may offer school officials a means of more accurately appraising the prevention needs of their students. This article compares the methods and findings of three national surveys of students in an effort to understand what methodological characteristics have the most salient impact on their findings. The article examines measures of school-related weapon carrying and fear from all three national surveys contrasting their modes of administration and question phrasing. Estimates from even the most expertly designed and administered survey will include some error. However, the stability and comparability of the national surveys across time and across surveys suggest that student self-report surveys are valuable tools for school-level needs assessment. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [source] Characteristics and Trends of Published Emergency Medicine ResearchACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 7 2007Michael P. Wilson MD Objectives:Despite its importance in improving patient care, the state of published emergency medicine (EM) research is poorly understood. The countries of origin, methodological characteristics, sources of funding, and ongoing trends in this research are unknown. Knowledge of these characteristics has important policy, research, and clinical implications for academic EM. Methods:The National Library of Medicine's PubMed database was searched for all articles published from 1996 to 2005 that originated from EM departments. The date and journal of publication, country of origin, study methodology, and, in the case of U.S. articles, acknowledgment of National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant support were noted. Journal impact factors of the publishing journal were assigned to each article. The aggregated data were then analyzed for country, journal of origin, and trend. Results:Of the 14,605 articles originating from EM departments, the United States published 8,550 (58.54%), followed by the United Kingdom with 1,222 (8.37%) and Japan with 663 (4.54%). Significant publication growth was detected worldwide (116.6 articles per year; 95% confidence interval = 101.1 to 132.1; p < 0.0001) and in 17 of the top 20 EM research,producing countries. Among published U.S. studies, the NIH funded 388 (4.5%). Of all articles, 6,152 (41.8%) were published in dedicated EM journals. Conclusions:Emergency medicine research output is increasing worldwide. The United States is the largest producer of EM research, only a small fraction of which is supported by the NIH. The majority of research published by emergency researchers is published in non-EM journals. [source] | ||||||||||