NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations Discussion

NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations Discussion

Research problem

Stress and anxiety levels have seemed to increase among the nursing students. One of the main causes of stress is anxiety (Silva & Kurebayashi, 2012).Anxiety does not have a precise meaning but it is thought to be the main cause of stress (Silva&Kurebayashi, 2012). Throughout the nursing course, many students come across situations that give them psychological torture. This reduces the concentration in class and may cause poor performance. This is because high stress and anxiety levels lead to over-attention which lead to errors. Students who take nursing courses need to take part in demanding practical activities. Therefore, one should not be stressed when taking part. The main aim of the research is to determine if there is a relationship between stress and anxiety levels in nursing students. It will major in determining the magnitude of anxiety and stress scores from the correlation coefficients. This study will help in understanding conditions that could be causing stress and anxiety.

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NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations Discussion

Does caffeine cause cancer? Is autism caused by childhood immunizations? What is the relationship between eating sugary sweets at night and weight gain? It is often helpful to determine and explore relationships between variables. This is especially important in health care, a field dedicated to providing quality care for patients and improving health outcomes. Examining relationships between variables forms the basis for correlational statistics.

In this Discussion, you identify a health care or nursing practice problem that can be explored with correlational statistics and formulate a research question for exploring that problem. You also develop a null and alternate hypothesis, determine the variables related to the study, and predict relationships between the variables based on what you know of correlational statistics.NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations

To prepare for NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations Discussion:

  • Review this week’s Learning Resources and the “Correlation” tutorial focusing on the types of research questions that can be answered using a correlational statistic.
  • Brainstorm a number of health care delivery or nursing practice problems that could be explored using correlational statistics. Then, select one problem on which to focus for this Discussion.
  • Formulate a research question to address the problem and that would lead you to employ correlational statistics.
  • Develop a null hypothesis and alternate hypotheses.
  • Ask yourself: What is the expected direction of the relationship?

By Day 3

Post a cohesive response that addresses the following:

  • Identify your selected problem in the first line of your posting and post your research question.
  • Post a null hypothesis and alternate hypotheses for your research question and identify the dependent and independent variables that would be associated with the research study.NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations
  • Provide your prediction for the expected relationship (positive or negative) between the variables. Why do you think that sort of relationship will exist? What other factors might affect the outcome?

Read a selection of your colleagues’ postings.

By Day 6

Respond to at least two of your colleagues, critiquing their research question and hypotheses and pointing out factors that may influence the strength of the correlation of the variables. Be sure to provide a rationale for your responses in one or more of the following ways:

  • Ask a probing question, substantiated with additional background information, evidence, or research.
  • Share an insight from having read your colleagues’ postings, synthesizing the information to provide new perspectives.
  • Offer and support an alternative perspective using readings from the classroom or from your own research in the Walden Library.
  • Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research.
  • Make a suggestion based on additional evidence drawn from readings or after synthesizing multiple postings.
  • Expand on your colleagues’ postings by providing additional insights or contrasting perspectives based on readings and evidence.

Return to this Discussion in a few days to read the responses to your initial posting. Note what you learned and/or any insights you gained as a result of the comments made by your colleagues. NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations.

Be sure to support your work with specific citations from this week’s Learning Resources and any additional sources.

Post your responses to the Discussion based on the course requirements.

Your Discussion postings should be written in standard edited English and follow APA guidelines as closely as possible given the constraints of the online platform. Be sure to support your work with specific citations from this week’s Learning Resources and additional scholarly sources as appropriate. Refer to the Essential Guide to APA Style for Walden Students to ensure your in-text citations and reference list are correct. Initial postings must be 250–350 words (not including references).

NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations Discussion

How many commercials or ads have you seen that state, “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!” or that “Children who eat a nutritious breakfast earn better grades in school”? Research studies do indicate such a correlation; however, how could you as a researcher be certain that eating a balanced breakfast is related tochildren performing well academically? Perhaps parents who make sure their children eat a healthy breakfast are more likely to help their children with their schoolwork. Or perhaps the types of children who choose more wholesome breakfast foods are simply smarter or more motivated in school than their counterparts who prefer inadequate or unhealthy breakfasts. NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations.

This week focuses on statistical methods that examine correlation. You explore how the correlation statistic is utilized in health care and evidence-based nursing practice as a means of examining relationships. You also consider the process of reporting your research results based on statistical significance, correlation, and the risk or possibility of error in your study. NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations.

Learning Objectives

Students will:

  • Construct a meaningful research question and hypothesis appropriate for a correlational statistic
  • Analyze, interpret, and report bivariate statistics

Photo Credit: [Ralf Hiemisch]/[None]/Getty Images

NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations Learning Resources

Required Media

Walden University. (n.d.). Correlations. Retrieved August 1, 2011, from http://streaming.waldenu.edu/hdp/researchtutorials/educ8106_player/educ8106_correlations.html

Required Readings

Gray, J.R., Grove, S.K., & Sutherland, S. (2017). Burns and Grove’s the practice of nursing research: Appraisal, synthesis, and generation of evidence (8th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Saunders Elsevier.

  • Chapter 23, “Using Statistics to Examine Relationships”. Chapter 23 explains how to use statistics to examine relationships between groups using correlational analyses, scatter diagrams, Spearman rank-order correlation coefficient, and Kendall’s tau.

Statistics and Data Analysis for Nursing Research

    • Chapter 4, “Bivariate Description: Crosstabulation, Risk Indexes, and Correlation” (pp. 59–61 and 68–78). This chapter describes components of bivariate descriptive statistics, including crosstabulation, risk indexes, and correlation. The chapter also discusses the concepts of absolute risk, relative risk, odds ratio, and correlation matrices.
  • Chapter 9, “Correlation and Simple Regression” (pp. 197–209). This portion of Chapter 9 continues the discussion of inferential statistics and explores correlation and simple linear regression.

NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations Discussion SAMPLE

Research problem

Stress and anxiety levels have seemed to increase among the nursing students. One of the main causes of stress is anxiety (Silva & Kurebayashi, 2012).Anxiety does not have a precise meaning but it is thought to be the main cause of stress (Silva&Kurebayashi, 2012). Throughout the nursing course, many students come across situations that give them psychological torture. This reduces the concentration in class and may cause poor performance. This is because high stress and anxiety levels lead to over-attention which lead to errors. Students who take nursing courses need to take part in demanding practical activities. Therefore, one should not be stressed when taking part. The main aim of the research is to determine if there is a relationship between stress and anxiety levels in nursing students. It will major in determining the magnitude of anxiety and stress scores from the correlation coefficients. This study will help in understanding conditions that could be causing stress and anxiety.

Research Question

Is there a correlation between stress and anxiety levels in nursing students?

Hypothesis

Null hypothesis: There is no relationship between stress and anxiety levels in nursing students.

Alternative hypothesis: There is a relationship between stress and anxiety levels in nursing students.

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Dependent and independent variables

A dependent variable is the one that undergoes the test in an experiment. While an independent variable is the one that can be changed or controlled. In this case, anxiety is the independent variable and stress is the dependent variable.

Prediction for the expected relationship

The expected results are that there will be high stress levels among the students and that there will be a positive correlation between stress and anxiety levels. This is because Stress is mostly associated with discomfort and results in reduced performance.

NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations References

Kurebayashi, L. F. S., Do Prado, J. M., & Da Silva, M. J. P. (2012). Correlations between stress and anxiety levels in nursing students. Journal of Nursing Education and Practice2(3), 128.

NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations Rubric Detail

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Name: NURS_8200_ Week6_Discussion_Rubric

  Exemplary Proficient Sufficient Developing
Discussion Postings and Responses 4 (100%) – 4 (100%) • Discussion postings and responses are responsive to the requirements of the Discussion instructions and are posted by the due date. • Discussion postings and responses significantly contribute to the quality of interaction by providing rich and relevant examples, applicable research support, discerning ideas, and/or stimulating thoughts/probes and are respectful when offering suggestions, constructive feedback, or opposing viewpoints. • Discussion postings and responses demonstrate an in-depth understanding of concepts and issues presented in the course (e.g., insightful interpretations or analyses, accurate and perceptive parallels, and well-supported opinions) and are well supported, when appropriate, by pertinent research. • Discussion postings and responses provide evidence that the student has read and considered a sampling of colleagues’ postings and synthesized key comments and ideas, as applicable. 3 (75%) – 3 (75%) • Discussion postings and responses are responsive to the requirements of the Discussion instructions and are posted by the due date. • Discussion postings and responses contribute to the quality of interaction by providing examples, research support when appropriate, ideas, and/or thoughts/probes, and are respectful when offering suggestions, constructive feedback, or opposing viewpoints. • Discussion postings and responses demonstrate some depth of understanding of the issues and show that the student has absorbed the general principles and ideas presented in the course, although viewpoints and interpretations are not always thoroughly supported. • Discussion postings and responses provide evidence that the student has considered at least some colleagues’ postings and synthesized some key comments and ideas, as applicable. 2 (50%) – 2 (50%) • Discussion postings and responses are posted by the due date but are not always responsive to the requirements of the Discussion instructions. • Discussion postings and responses do little to contribute to the quality of interaction or to stimulate thinking and learning. • Discussion postings and responses demonstrate a minimal understanding of concepts presented, tend to address peripheral issues, and, although generally accurate, display some omissions and/or errors. • Discussion postings and responses do not provide evidence that the student has considered at least some colleagues’ postings or synthesized at least some key comments and ideas, as applicable. 0 (0%) – 1 (25%) • Discussion postings and responses are posted past the late deadline, defined as 11:59 p.m. on the due date, and/or do not address the requirements of the Discussion instructions. • Discussion postings and responses do not contribute to the quality of interaction or stimulate thinking and learning. • Discussion postings and responses do not demonstrate an understanding of the concepts presented in the course, and/or do not address relevant issues, and/or are inaccurate and contain many omissions and/or errors. • Discussion postings and responses do not provide evidence that the student has read or considered colleagues’ postings, as applicable. NURS 8200 Week 6: Quantitative Methods: Correlations Discussion
Total Points: 4