Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC CHAPTER 4 Scientific Method

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Scientific Method Well conceived curiosity Research is repeated which leads to validation by other researchers

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Scientific Method  Science does not prove  Can never prove the truth of an assumption  Scientific theories are never “true”

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Step 1-Formulate Problem Statement Move from general perception to concise statement Think in terms of: What you see happening? Why it is important?

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Step 2-Generate a Hypothesis Hypothesis describes your belief about a particular research problem  Testable

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Algorithm illustrating the scientific method

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Step 3-Define Rejection Criteria Based on data, the hypothesis is rejected or accepted Reject hypothesis if experimental data do not meet criteria Clarify what can be measured

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Step 4- Make a Prediction Make a prediction based on our hypothesis that specifies the rejection values

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Steps 5 &6 Perform the Experiment and Test Hypothesis Rejection criteria determine the measurements that are required in the experiment The hypothesis is tested by comparing the experimental data with the rejection criteria

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Conducting Scientific Research: Initial Steps Develop study idea-based experiences, colleagues, etc Review the literature-know what has already been done Consult an expert-helps refine idea Design experiment-case study, the device or method evaluation, the clinical study

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Conducting Scientific Research: Next Steps Write protocol-set of instructions for investigators Obtain permission-need permission from your immediate supervisor and from any others who will be affected Collect data-think about how data will be collected, what forms will be used to record the data, and who will be responsible for it.

Handbook for Health Care Research, Second Edition Chapter 4 © 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC Conducting Scientific Research: Final Steps Analyze data- data summarized, advanced statistical techniques performed, and interpret findings Publish findings-communicate findings through reports and manuscripts