Study designs and their advantages and limitation

Research (Nursing)

1. Study Designs and their Advantages and Limitation Prepared by Arati G Mishra PhD Scholar Principal SET SON Junagadh

2. Study Design- Introduction A research study design is a step-by-step approach used by a researcher to conduct a scientific study. It includes various methods and techniques to conduct research so that a research problem can be handled efficiently. A researcher has a series of questions that needs to find answers by conducting research. Research method provides a logical sequence to conduct experiments so that all questions can be assessed in proper order. An impactful research design makes sure the least bias in the data collected and increases trust in analyzed research information. A research design which leaves the least margin of errors can be considered the best research design.

3. Important Elements of Study Design Research Approach Population Sample and sampling technique Tools and methods of data collection Time, place and sources of data collection Methods of Data analysis

4. 4 Key characteristics of Study Design Neutrality Reliability Validity Generalization The results collected in research should be free from bias and neutral . Discuss and get evaluated your conclusion with experienced multiple individuals and consider those who agree with your research’s results. Research design should be able to ensure the standards results by indicating how research questions can be formed. Because a researcher will always want the same results every time, he performs an experiment. The validity of a research design is used to calculate the expected results and to estimate the truthfulness of the result. In most cases, researchers opt for their own definition when it comes to what is considered valid. The questionnaire prepared from the research design is considered valid. Generalization is one of the most important key characteristics of research design. The results obtained from the research should be applicable to a population and not just to a limited sample.

5. Classification Main 3 type of Research study design Qualitative Research Design Quantitative Research Design Mixed Methods.

6. Qualitative research study design Phenomenological Research Ethnographic Research Grounded Theory Historical Research Design Action Research Case Study

7. Quantitative research study design Experimental Research Design True Experimental Research Design Basic True Experimental Research Design Post test only control group Research Design Pre test Post test control group Research Design Solomon four group Research Design

8. Quantitative research study design Experimental Research Design True Experimental Research Design Specific True Experimental Research Design Parallel group Research Design Split body Research Design Factorial Research Design Randomization Block Research Design Cross over Research Design Latin square Research Design

9. Quantitative research study design Experimental Research Design b) Quasi Experimental Research Design Non Randomization control Experimental Research Design Non Equivalent control group post test only Experimental Research Design Time Series Non equivalent control group Design Time Series Design Time Series Design with withdrawal and reinstitution treatment design One Group Pre test post test design

10. Quantitative research study design 2. Non Experimental Research Design Correlation Research Design Cohort Research Design Prospective cohort Research Design Historical cohort Research Design Ambispective cohort Research Design Case control Research Design Analytical cross section

11. Quantitative research study design 2. Non Experimental Research Design b) Descriptive Research Design Univariant Research Design Prevalence Incidence Comparative Research Design Exploratory Research Design Survey

12. Quantitative research study design 3) Specific Research Design Clinical trial Evaluation Research Design Outcome Research Design Operational Research Design Methodological Research Design Secondary data Analysis Meta Analysis Ecological Research

13. Mixed method research study design Convergent Research Design Explanatory sequential Research Design Exploratory sequential Research Design Embedded Design 3.tudy desig3.n

14. Different types of research study design 1) Case-study design A case-study research design is used for the in-depth and detailed study of a subject. This technique is usually used to narrow down a big problem into small discrete easily researchable problems. The case study research design is useful to test the applicability of specific theory or model on the real-life phenomena . A case-study research design is useful in those scenarios where there is not much information is known or available about the phenomena. The case-study research design has an important place in various disciplines and professions such as sociology, political science, clinical science social science, administrative science, and psychology.

15. Advantages of Case study design Limitation of Case-study research design The case-study research design delivers a thorough description of the explicit and rare case. The case-study research design is widely used by social scientists to test modern real-life situations and provides an extension of the existing concepts. The case-study research design can modify what is already known through previous research. It gives the freedom to the researchers to apply various methodologies and include any number of resources to investigate the problem. The case study research design excels at establishing a relationship between a limited number of events or conditions and also helps us to understand complex issues. Sometimes research done on a small sample cannot be applied on a large population. Therefore, a case study research design is difficult to establish reliability and generalize. The researcher can be biased about the finding of the case because of the intense exposure to the study. Case study research design does not enable the assessment of cause and effect relationship. Missing important information can make the case hard to interpret. Sometimes the case may not be the representation of the larger case being investigated. If research is being done on a specific situation or phenomenon then results might be applicable to that particular case.

16. 2) Case control study design A case-control study is a type of medical research investigation often used to help determine the cause of a disease, particularly when investigating a disease outbreak or rare condition. A case-control study is a way of carrying out a medical investigation to confirm or indicate what is likely to have caused a condition. They are usually retrospective , meaning that the researchers look at past data to test whether a particular outcome can be linked back to a suspected risk factor and prevent further outbreaks. In prospective case-control studies are less common. These involve enrolling a specific selection of people and following that group while monitoring their health.

17. Advantages of Case control study design Limitation of Case control research design Quicker, cheaper and require less time and effort than cohort studies. Case-control studies can study rare diseases. Case-control studies can study multiple risk factors/exposures. They are useful for studying outcomes (diseases) that take a long time to develop, e.g. cancer. Case-control studies are prone to selection and recall bias (i.e. better recollection of exposure amongst cases than among controls. They are inefficient for examining rare exposures. It may be difficult to establish temporality (when the person was actually exposed to the disease/risk factor). It can be difficult to choose an appropriate control group. Unlike cohort studies, case-control studies cannot calculate incidence rates, relative risks or attributable risks. Instead odds ratio are the measure of association used (when outcome is uncommon, e.g. most cancers, it can be a good proxy for the true relative risk)

18. 3) Action research design The action research design follows a characteristics-based path , where initially an exploratory stance has opted and understanding is developed about the problem and made some type of strategies for intervention. While carrying out the interventions, various forms of relevant observations are collected. The same path followed again with the new interventional strategies and continued until a sufficient understanding of the problem is not realized. The path followed is cyclic or iterative in nature to provide a deeper understanding of the situation, initializing with hypothesizing and specifying the given problem and moving ahead making numerous interventions and assessments.

19. Advantages of Action research design Limitation of Action research design It is a research design which can be used in work or community situations, because of its cooperative and adaptive research nature. Action research design focuses on practical and solution-driven research rather than testing various theories. Action research design increases the chances of learning consciously from their experience, therefore, it is also viewed as a learning cycle. The Outcomes of the action research design have obvious relevance to practice. No information can be hidden or controlled by the researcher. It is difficult to perform conventional studies because it is the responsibility of the researcher to boost change for study. Over-involvement of the researcher may bias the test results. There is no standard format to write action research, therefore, it is hard to document. Because of its cyclic nature action research is difficult and time consuming to conduct.

20. 4) Cohort Research design A cohort study is generally conducted on a certain population (have some commonality or similarity) over a period of time. A cohort study is usually applied in medical sciences and social sciences. A cohort study makes note of statistical occurrence with a specialized subsection of the population, which is unified by similar characteristics that are relevant with the problem being investigated, instead of studying statistical occurrence with the general population. A cohort can either be open or closed but not both at the same time. Cohort studies collect data applying the method of observation using a qualitative framework.

21. Open cohort studies involve dynamic population which is separated by the state of being studied in the problem. The size of a cohort study is not constant because the date of entry and exit is defined by an individual. Rate-based data is gathered in open cohort studies. Closed cohort study involves a specific population , where all the participants enter the study at a specific point and no new participants are allowed to take part in later. Therefore, the number of participants in a closed cohort study remain constant and in a few rare cases, it can only decrease.

22. Advantages of Cohort study Limitation of Cohort study In risk-based studies, using action research study is mandatory, because it is unethical to involve random people. Both original and secondary data can be used in cohort research. A cohort study is flexible in its nature and can be used to provide insights into effects over time and different types of changes for example, social, political, economic, and cultural. Cohort studies can gauge probable cause before the outcome has occurred. It can establish that these causes led to the result. Therefore, avoid the debate determining which is the cause and which is the effect. Because of lack of randomization, the external legitimacy of a cohort study is lower than the other researches which select random participants. Cohort studies usually take a long time because the researcher has to wait for certain conditions within the group. Therefore, there are chances that variables may change with time, hence, impacting the credibility of the results. In the case of comparison of two cohort groups, the factors which differ between the two groups can’t be controlled.

23. 5) Descriptive design This type of research design is used to describe the characteristics of a population or phenomena being researched. This study provides the answer to “what” and does not provide the answers to “how”, “when”, and “why”.  Descriptive research does not require an internal validity to describe the characteristics of a population. This type of research is used to calculate frequencies, averages, and statistic of data.

24. Advantages of Descriptive design Limitation of Descriptive design This approach gathers a large amount of data for the study. With the help of this study rich data can be yielded for future references. A more focused study can be developed by using the limitations of the study as a useful tool. The descriptive design gives a general overview of the study which is helpful to determine useful pointers for which variables are worth studying. This study entirely depends on the instrumentation for observation and measurement. The outcome of a descriptive design can’t be used to disprove a hypothesis. Outcomes of descriptive designs can’t be replicated as outcomes of this design is collected using the observational method.

25. 6) Cross-sectional design This type of research design can only calculate among or from a variety of people, phenomena or subjects at the place of change. It has three distinguishing features such as no time dimensions, a dependence on the existing differences, and selection of groups based on differences rather than random selection.

26. Advantages of Cross-sectional study Limitation of Cross-sectional study Cross-sectional research design is inexpensive to perform because this is done using surveys. Results are more reliable because it is performed on a population. This study provides the characteristics of the result at a point in time. Grouping of the population is done based on their difference and are not selected randomly. A cross-sectional study can use a large number of subjects, unlike many other research designs. It is difficult to find people, phenomena or subjects of same interest. Outcomes are time-bound and do not provide any reliability for historical occurrences. This study can’t be used to determine the cause and effect relationship. As outcomes are time bound, therefore, there are chances of getting different outcomes in different time-frame.

27. 7) Exploratory design This type of research design is used for the researches on which no research is done before and have no studies to refer to. The focus of exploratory design is to get understandings and knowledge for later investigations. This study determines if a future study is possible or not and later techniques can be developed for more research. Advantages of Exploratory design Limitation of Exploratory design It helps to determine research priority. It is useful to gather background data for a particular topic. This research answers all questions like “what”, “why”, “how”. Findings of the exploratory group are not generalized on the whole population. Outcomes of this study are tentative, because of its unstructured style of research.

28. 8) Experimental design This type of research design is often used when there is a priority of time such as cause will always precede effect and when there is steadiness in a causal relationship such as a particular cause will always lead to the same effect and the degree of association is great. Experimental design is the blueprint of the procedure that permits researchers to control all factors of the experiment. Experimental designs use more groups and more measurements for a longer period of time.

29. Advantages of Experimental design Limitation of Experimental design It delivers a high level of evidence for a single study. This study determines what is the cause of something to take place. It helps researchers to determine placebo effects from treatment effects. Experimental research is not real and it might not fit into the real world. The settings of the experiment may change the behavior of the subjects. The experimental researches are sometimes costly, because of the use of special equipment and facilities. There are a few types of problems which can’t be experimented because of ethical or technical reasons.

30. 9) Longitudinal design Longitudinal research design makes repetitive experiments and makes multiple observations . In this type of research design, the same group of people is interviewed at regular intervals. In this way, the researcher tracks their behavior and identify variables that have caused the change in their behaviors. This research study is a type of observational study and is also known as a panel study.

31. Advantages of Longitudinal design Limitation of Longitudinal design Observation can be made during a particular phenomenon. Future outcomes can be predicted on the basis of earlier factors. Let the research to establish a causal relationship between various variables. Provide an explanation for the pattern of change. Methods of conducting experiment might change over time. Original sample might change over time. More than one variable can’t be shown in this type of research. In this type of research, the researcher assumes that the present trends will remain the same in future also. It takes a long time to conduct this type of research.

32. 10) Historical design In this type of research data from the past is collected, evaluate and the hypothesis is defended based on the outcomes. To make this type of research a lot of resources like logs, documents, notes, diaries, reports, official records, archives, and no textual data like maps, images, drawings, audios) are used. This research is difficult to conduct because documents should be authentic and authorized.

33. Advantages of Historical design Limitation of Historical design It is useful for trend analysis. It can provide a contextual background to understand a research problem better. There are no chances of emotional involvement of the researcher with the subject. Historical resources can be used multiple times. The success of research completely relies on the quality of historical resources. External variables can’t be controlled in this type of research; thus, research remains weak. Gaps in the study are difficult to acknowledge because of the missing pieces of historical resources. Interpretation of historical resources consumes a lot of time.

34. 11) Observational research design This type of research design is used to draw results by comparing subjects under research with a controlled group. An observational study can be of two types. In the first type, your subjects know that you are observing them and in the second type, you observe your subjects without letting them know.  Observational study  design let you get the insights of a particular phenomenon without getting into the trouble of setting up a large project.

35. Advantages of Observational design Limitation of Observational design It is a flexible type of research and doesn’t require to stick to a hypothesis. In-depth information can be collected about the phenomenon. Results can be generalized to real life events. It can act as a pre-research before starting any other experiment. It accounts for the complexity of group behavior. Subjects under study are not equally credible. There are high chances for this research turned out to be biased because the researcher might notice what he wants to notice. The outcome of this research is limited to a small group and can’t be generalized. Subjects might behave differently because of the presence of the researcher.

36. 12) Sequential research design This type of research is designed in a staged approach , where you can move to the next stage only after completing research at the first stage. The results from one stage are used in the next stage and this process continues until enough data is collected to test the hypothesis. The sample size can vary throughout the research. After analyzing each stage, research can admit the null hypothesis or can choose a different hypothesis or even can choose to perform the experiment again, that means in this type of research design there is no limit on a number of subjects selected by a researcher.

37. Advantages of Sequential research design Limitation of Sequential research design There is no limit on the size of the sample of research. Repetitive nature of the research let you make initial changes. A sequential research design is not expensive. Fewer efforts from the researcher’s side. Because of its sequential nature, results of one sample are analyzed and tested before taking the second sample into the study. It is difficult to maintain consistency in the research from one sample to another. Samples aren’t randomized. Hence outcomes can’t be generalized on the whole population. Moving the results of one sample to another is difficult work.

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