DATA

COLLECTION
OBJECTIVES
Evaluate a researcher’s decision to use existing data
or to collect new data

Discuss the dimensions along which data collection

approaches vary

Identify phenomena that lend themselves to self-

reports, observation, and physiologic measurement

Distinguish between and evaluate structured and

unstructured self-reports; open-ended and closed-ended
questions; and interviews and questionnaires

Distinguish between and evaluate structured and

unstructured observations and describe various methods of
collecting, sampling, and recording observational data

Describe the major features and advantages of

biophysiologic measures
EXISTING DATA VERSUS ORIGINAL DATA

• THE MOST SALIENT ADVANTAGE OF RECORDS IS THAT THEY ARE ECONOMICAL; THE
COLLECTION OF ORIGINAL DATA IS OFTEN TIME-CONSUMING AND COSTLY . ON THE OTHER
HAND, WHEN RESEARCHERS ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR COLLECTING DATA, THEY MAY BE
UNAWARE OF THE RECORDS’ BIASES.
THREE TYPES OF DATA COLLECTION

SELF- REPORTS

OBSERVATION

BIOPHYSIOLOGIC MEASURES
THREE TYPES OF DATA COLLECTION

• SELF- REPORTS
• SELF-REPORTS ARE PARTICIPANTS’ RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS POSED BY THE RESEARCHER, AS IN
AN INTERVIEW.

• SELF-REPORTS ARETHE MOST COMMON DATA COLLECTION APPROACH IN BOTH QUALITATIVE

AND QUANTITATIVE NURSING STUDIES.

• OBSERVATION
• DIRECT OBSERVATION OF PEOPLE’S BEHAVIORS, CHARACTERISTICS, AND CIRCUMSTANCES IS
AN ALTERNATIVE TO SELF-REPORTS FOR CERTAIN RESEARCH QUESTIONS.

• BIOPHYSIOLOGIC MEASURES
• NURSES ALSO USE BIOPHYSIOLOGIC MEASURES TO ASSESS IMPORTANT CLINICAL VARIABLES.
KEY DIMENSIONS OF DATA COLLECTION METHODS

Structure

Quantifiability

Obtrusiveness

Objectivity
SELF
REPORT
QUALITATIVE
TECHNIQUES
UNSTRUCTURED INTERVIEWS

• UNSTRUCTURED INTERVIEWS ARE USED WHEN RESEARCHERS HAVE NO PRECONCEIVED VIEW OF

THE CONTENT OR FLOW OF INFORMATION TO BE GATHERED.

• THEIR AIM IS TO ELUCIDATE RESPONDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF THE WORLD WITHOUT IMPOSING

THEIR OWN VIEWS.
SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS

• SEMI-STRUCTURED (OR FOCUSED) INTERVIEWS ARE USED WHEN RESEARCHERS HAVE A LIST OF
TOPICS OR BROAD QUESTIONS THAT MUST BE ADDRESSED IN AN INTERVIEW.

• INTERVIEWERS USE A WRITTEN TOPIC GUIDE (OR INTERVIEW GUIDE) TO ENSURE THAT ALL
QUESTION AREAS ARE COVERED.

• THE INTERVIEWER’S FUNCTION IS TO ENCOURAGE PARTICIPANTS TO TALK FREELY ABOUT ALL THE
TOPICS ON THE GUIDE.
FOCUS GROUP INTERVIEWS

• FOCUS GROUP INTERVIEWS ARE INTERVIEWS WITH GROUPS OF ABOUT 5 TO 10 PEOPLE WHOSE
OPINIONS AND EXPERIENCES ARE SOLICITED SIMULTANEOUSLY.

• THE INTERVIEWER (OR MODERATOR) GUIDES THE DISCUSSION ACCORDING TO A TOPIC GUIDE.
DIARIES

• PERSONAL DIARIES HAVE LONG BEEN USED AS A SOURCE OF DATA IN HISTORICAL RESEARCH.

• IT IS ALSO POSSIBLE TO GENERATE NEW DATA FOR A STUDY BY ASKING PARTICIPANTS TO

MAINTAIN A DIARY OR JOURNAL OVER A SPECIFIED PERIOD.

• DIARIES CAN BE USEFUL IN PROVIDING AN INTIMATE DESCRIPTION OF A PERSON’S EVERYDAY

LIFE
CRITICAL INCIDENTS TECHNIQUE

• THE CRITICAL INCIDENTS TECHNIQUE IS A METHOD OF GATHERING INFORMATION ABOUT

PEOPLE’S BEHAVIORS IN SPECIFIC CIRCUMSTANCES.

• THE TECHNIQUE FOCUSES ON A FACTUAL INCIDENT—AN OBSERVABLE AND INTEGRAL EPISODE

OF HUMAN BEHAVIOR; CRITICAL MEANS THAT THE INCIDENT MUST HAVE HAD A DISCERNIBLE
IMPACT ON SOME OUTCOME.
THINK ALOUD METHOD

• THE THINK ALOUD METHOD HAS BEEN USED TO COLLECT DATA ABOUT COGNITIVE PROCESSES,
SUCH AS THINKING, PROBLEM-SOLVING, AND DECISION-MAKING.

• THIS METHOD INVOLVES HAVING PEOPLE USE AUDIO-RECORDING DEVICES TO TALK ABOUT
DECISIONS AS THEY ARE BEING MADE OR WHILE PROBLEMS ARE BEING SOLVED, OVER AN
EXTENDED PERIOD (E.G. THROUGHOUT A SHIFT).

• THE METHOD PRODUCES AN INVENTORY OF DECISIONS AND UNDERLYING PROCESSES AS THEY

OCCUR IN A NATURALISTIC CONTEXT.
THINK ALOUD METHOD

• THE THINK ALOUD METHOD HAS BEEN USED TO COLLECT DATA ABOUT COGNITIVE PROCESSES,
SUCH AS THINKING, PROBLEM-SOLVING, AND DECISION-MAKING.

• THIS METHOD INVOLVES HAVING PEOPLE USE AUDIO-RECORDING DEVICES TO TALK ABOUT
DECISIONS AS THEY ARE BEING MADE OR WHILE PROBLEMS ARE BEING SOLVED, OVER AN
EXTENDED PERIOD (E.G. THROUGHOUT A SHIFT).

• THE METHOD PRODUCES AN INVENTORY OF DECISIONS AND UNDERLYING PROCESSES AS THEY

OCCUR IN A NATURALISTIC CONTEXT.
SELF
REPORT
QUANTITATIVE
TECHNIQUES
 QUESTION FORMS
Closed- ended question
Closed-ended questions (or fixed-
alternative questions) are ones in which
the response alternatives are
prespecified by the researcher. The
alternatives may range from a simple
yes or no to complex expressions of
opinion. The purpose of such questions is
to ensure comparability of responses
and to facilitate analysis.
Open-ended question
Many structured instruments, however,
also include some open-ended
questions, which allow participants to
respond to questions in their own words.
When open-ended questions are
included in questionnaires, respondents
must write out their responses. In
interviews, the interviewer writes down
responses verbatim or uses a tape-
recorder for later transcription.
INSTRUMENT CONSTRUCTION
• IN DRAFTING (OR BORROWING) QUESTIONS FOR A STRUCTURED INSTRUMENT, RESEARCHERS
MUST CAREFULLY MONITOR THE WORDING OF EACH QUESTION FOR CLARITY , SENSITIVITY TO
RESPONDENTS’ PSYCHOLOGICAL STATE, ABSENCE OF BIAS, AND (IN QUESTIONNAIRES)
READING LEVEL.

• QUESTIONS MUST BE SEQUENCED IN A PSYCHOLOGICALLY MEANINGFUL ORDER THAT

ENCOURAGES COOPERATION AND CANDOUR.

• DRAFT INSTRUMENTS ARE USUALLY CRITICALLY REVIEWED BY PEERS OR COLLEAGUES AND THEN
PRETESTED WITH A SMALL SAMPLE OF RESPONDENTS.

• A PRETEST IS A TRIAL RUN TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE INSTRUMENT IS USEFUL IN GENERATING

DESIRED INFORMATION.

• THE DEVELOPMENT AND PRETESTING OF SELF-REPORT INSTRUMENTS CAN TAKE MANY MONTHS
TO COMPLETE.
SCALE AND OTHER FORMS OF STRUCTURED SELF-
REPORT

SCALE

VIGNETTES

Q-SORTS
1. SCALE

LIKERT SCALE
• THE MOST COMMON SCALING TECHNIQUE IS THE LIKERT SCALE, WHICH CONSISTS OF SEVERAL
DECLARATIVE STATEMENTS (ITEMS) THAT EXPRESS A VIEWPOINT ON A TOPIC. RESPONDENTS ARE
ASKED TO INDICATE HOW MUCH THEY AGREE OR DISAGREE WITH THE STATEMENT.
SEMANTIC DIFFERENTIAL
• ANOTHER TECHNIQUE FOR MEASURING ATTITUDES IS THE SEMANTIC DIFFERENTIAL (SD).
• WITH THE SD, RESPONDENTS ARE ASKED TO RATE CONCEPTS (E.G., DIETING, EXERCISE) ON A SERIES
OF BIPOLAR ADJECTIVES, SUCH AS GOOD/BAD, EFFECTIVE/INEFFECTIVE, IMPORTANT/UNIMPORTANT.
• RESPONDENTS PLACE A CHECK AT THE APPROPRIATE POINT ON A SEVEN-POINT SCALE THAT
EXTENDS FROM ONE EXTREME OF THE DIMENSION TO THE OTHER.
• SDS ARE FLEXIBLE AND EASY TO CONSTRUCT, AND THE CONCEPT BEING RATED CAN BE VIRTUALLY
ANYTHING— A PERSON, CONCEPT, CONTROVERSIAL ISSUE, AND SO ON.
• THE SCORING PROCEDURE FOR SD RESPONSES IS SIMILAR TO THAT FOR LIKERT SCALES. SCORES
FROM 1 TO 7 ARE ASSIGNED TO EACH BIPOLAR SCALE RESPONSE, WITH HIGHER SCORES GENERALLY
ASSOCIATED WITH THE POSITIVELY WORDED ADJECTIVE.
• RESPONSES ARE THEN SUMMED ACROSS THE BIPOLAR SCALES TO YIELD A TOTAL SCORE.
VISUAL ANALOG SCALE (VAS)
• ANOTHER TYPE OF PSYCHOSOCIAL MEASURE IS THE VISUAL ANALOG SCALE (VAS), WHICH
CAN BE USED TO MEASURE SUBJECTIVE EXPERIENCES, SUCH AS PAIN, FATIGUE, AND DYSPNEA.

• THE VAS IS A STRAIGHT LINE, THE END ANCHORS OF WHICH ARE LABELED AS THE EXTREME
LIMITS OF THE SENSATION OR FEELING BEING MEASURED.

• PARTICIPANTS MARK A POINT ON THE LINE CORRESPONDING TO THE AMOUNT OF SENSATION

EXPERIENCED.

• TRADITIONALLY , A VAS LINE IS 100 MM IN LENGTH, WHICH MAKES IT EASY TO DERIVE A

SCORE FROM 0 TO 100 BY SIMPLY MEASURING THE DISTANCE FROM ONE END OF THE SCALE
TO THE MARK ON THE LINE.
RESPONSE SET BIAS

• SOCIAL DESIRABILITY RESPONSE SET BIAS—A TENDENCY TO MISREPRESENT ATTITUDES OR TRAITS

BY GIVING ANSWERS THAT ARE CONSISTENT WITH PREVAILING SOCIAL VIEWS

• EXTREME RESPONSE SET BIAS—A TENDENCY TO CONSISTENTLY EXPRESS EXTREME ATTITUDES OR

FEELINGS (E.G., STRONGLY AGREE), LEADING TO DISTORTIONS BECAUSE EXTREME RESPONSES
MAY BE UNRELATED TO THE TRAIT BEING MEASURED

• ACQUIESCENCE RESPONSE SET BIAS—A TENDENCY TO AGREE WITH STATEMENTS REGARDLESS

OF THEIR CONTENT BY SOME PEOPLE (YEA-SAYERS). THE OPPOSITE TENDENCY FOR OTHER
PEOPLE (NAY -SAYERS) TO DISAGREE WITH STATEMENTS INDEPENDENTLY OF THE QUESTION
CONTENT IS LESS COMMON.
2. VIGNETTES
• ANOTHER SELF-REPORT APPROACH INVOLVES THE USE OF VIGNETTES, WHICH ARE BRIEF
DESCRIPTIONS OF EVENTS OR SITUATIONS TO WHICH RESPONDENTS ARE ASKED TO REACT. THE
DESCRIPTIONS, WHICH CAN EITHER BE FICTITIOUS OR BASED ON FACT, ARE STRUCTURED TO
ELICIT INFORMATION ABOUT RESPONDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS, OPINIONS, OR KNOWLEDGE ABOUT
A PHENOMENON

• SOMETIMES THE UNDERLYING PURPOSE OF VIGNETTE STUDIES IS NOT REVEALED TO

PARTICIPANTS, ESPECIALLY IF THE TECHNIQUE IS USED AS AN INDIRECT MEASURE OF ATTITUDES,
PREJUDICES, AND STEREOTYPES USING EMBEDDED DESCRIPTORS, AS IN THE FOLLOWING
EXAMPLE.
3. Q-SORTS
• IN A Q SORT, PARTICIPANTS ARE PRESENTED WITH A SET OF CARDS ON WHICH WORDS OR
STATEMENTS ARE WRITTEN.

• PARTICIPANTS AREASKED TO SORT THE CARDS ALONG A SPECIFIED BIPOLAR DIMENSION, SUCH
AS AGREE OR DISAGREE.

• TYPICALLY, THERE ARE BETWEEN 50 AND 100 CARDS TO BE SORTED INTO 9 OR 11 PILES, WITH
THE NUMBER OF CARDS TO BE PLACED IN EACH PILE PREDETERMINED BY THE RESEARCHER.

• THE SORTING INSTRUCTIONS AND OBJECTS TO BE SORTED IN A Q SORT CAN VARY.

EVALUATING SELF-REPORT METHODS

• SELF-REPORT TECHNIQUES—THE MOST COMMON METHOD OF DATA COLLECTION IN NURSING

STUDIES—ARE STRONG WITH RESPECT TO THEIR DIRECTNESS.

• SELF-REPORT METHODS HAVE SOME WEAKNESSES. THE MOST SERIOUS ISSUE CONCERNS THE
VALIDITY AND ACCURACY OF SELF-REPORTS

• YOU SHOULD ALSO BE AWARE OF THE MERITS OF UNSTRUCTURED AND STRUCTURED SELF-
REPORTS.

• QUALITATIVE SELF-REPORTS ARE

EXTREMELY TIME-CONSUMING AND DEMANDING, HOWEVER,
AND THEY ARE NOT APPROPRIATE FOR CAPTURING THE MEASURABLE ASPECTS OF A
PHENOMENON, SUCH AS INCIDENCE.

• STRUCTURED SELF-REPORTS ARE ALSO APPROPRIATE WHEN RESEARCHERS WANT TO TEST

HYPOTHESES CONCERNING RELATIONSHIPS.
OBSERVATION

QUALITATIVE
TECHNIQUES
IMPORTANT DIMENSIONS IN OBSERVATIONAL
STUDIES

Focus of the observation.

Concealment.

Duration.

Method of recording observations.

NATURALISTIC OBSERVATIONS OFTEN ARE MADE IN FIELD SETTINGS
THROUGH PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION. A PARTICIPANT OBSERVER
PARTICIPATES IN THE FUNCTIONING OF THE GROUP UNDER STUDY
AND STRIVES TO OBSERVE AND RECORD INFORMATION WITHIN THE
CONTEXTS AND EXPERIENCES THAT ARE RELEVANT TO
PARTICIPANTS.
1. THE OBSERVER-PARTICIPANT ROLE IN
PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION
• LEININGER AND MCFARLAND (2006) DESCRIBE A PARTICIPANT OBSERVER’S ROLE AS
EVOLVING THROUGH A FOUR-PHASE SEQUENCE:

1. PRIMARILY OBSERVATION AND ACTIVE LISTENING

2. PRIMARILY OBSERVATION WITH LIMITED PARTICIPATION
3. PRIMARILY PARTICIPATION WITH CONTINUED OBSERVATION
4. PRIMARY REFLECTION AND RECONFIRMATION OF FINDINGS WITH INFORMANTS
 2. GATHERING PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION DATA
• 1. THE PHYSICAL SETTING—“WHERE” QUESTIONS. WHERE IS THE ACTIVITY HAPPENING? WHAT ARE THE MAIN
FEATURES OF THE SETTING? WHAT IS THE CONTEXT WITHIN WHICH BEHAVIOUR UNFOLDS?

• 2. THE PARTICIPANTS—“WHO” QUESTIONS. WHO IS PRESENT? WHAT ARE THEIR CHARACTERISTICS AND
ROLES? WHO IS GIVEN ACCESS TO THE SETTING?

• 3. ACTIVITIES—“WHAT” QUESTIONS. WHAT IS GOING ON? WHAT ARE PARTICIPANTS DOING? WHAT
METHODS DO THEY USE TO COMMUNICATE, AND HOW FREQUENTLY DO THEY DO SO?

• 4. FREQUENCY AND DURATION—“WHEN” QUESTIONS. WHEN DID THE ACTIVITY BEGIN AND END? IS THE
ACTIVITY A RECURRING ONE AND, IF SO, HOW REGULARLY DOES IT RECUR?

• 5. PROCESS—“HOW” QUESTIONS. HOW IS THE ACTIVITY ORGANIZED? HOW DOES THE EVENT UNFOLD?
• 6. OUTCOMES—“WHY” QUESTIONS. WHY IS THE ACTIVITY HAPPENING, OR WHY IS IT HAPPENING IN THIS
MANNER? WHAT DID NOT HAPPEN (ESPECIALLY IF IT OUGHT TO HAVE HAPPENED) AND WHY ?
2. GATHERING PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION DATA

• RESEARCHERS GENERALLY USE A COMBINATION OF POSITIONING APPROACHES.

• SINGLE POSITIONING MEANS STAYING IN A SINGLE LOCATION FOR A PERIOD TO OBSERVE

TRANSACTIONS IN THAT LOCATION.

• MULTIPLE POSITIONING INVOLVES MOVING AROUND THE SITE TO OBSERVE BEHAVIORS FROM
DIFFERENT LOCATIONS.

• MOBILE POSITIONING INVOLVES FOLLOWING A PERSON THROUGHOUT A GIVEN ACTIVITY OR

PERIOD.
 3. RECORDING OBSERVATION
• A LOG (OR FIELD DIARY) IS A DAILY RECORD OF EVENTS AND CONVERSATIONS. FIELD NOTES ARE
BROADER AND MORE INTERPRETIVE.

• FIELD NOTES REPRESENT THE OBSERVER’S EFFORTS TO RECORD INFORMATION AND TO SYNTHESIZE AND
UNDERSTAND THE DATA.

• DESCRIPTIVE NOTES (OR OBSERVATIONAL NOTES) ARE OBJECTIVE DESCRIPTIONS OF EVENTS AND
CONVERSATIONS, AND THE CONTEXTS WITHIN WHICH THEY OCCURRED.

• REFLECTIVE NOTES DOCUMENT RESEARCHERS’ PERSONAL EXPERIENCES, REFLECTIONS, AND PROGRESS IN THE
FIELD, AND CAN SERVE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT PURPOSES.

• THEORETIC NOTES DOCUMENT INTERPRETIVE EFFORTS TO ATTACH MEANING TO OBSERVATIONS.

• METHODOLOGIC NOTES ARE REMINDERS ABOUT HOW SUBSEQUENT OBSERVATIONS SHOULD BE MADE.
• PERSONAL NOTES ARE COMMENTS ABOUT THE RESEARCHER’S OWN FEELINGS DURING THE RESEARCH PROCESS.
• PHOTOGRAPHS AND VIDEOTAPES
OBSERVATION
QUANTITATIVE
TECHNIQUES
1. CATEGORIES AND CHECKLIST

• THE MOST COMMON APPROACH TO MAKING STRUCTURED OBSERVATIONS IS TO USE A

CATEGORY SYSTEM FOR CLASSIFYING OBSERVED PHENOMENA.

• A CATEGORY SYSTEM REPRESENTS A METHOD OF RECORDING IN A SYSTEMATIC FASHION THE

BEHAVIORS AND EVENTS OF INTEREST THAT TRANSPIRE WITHIN A SETTING.

• CATEGORY SYSTEMS ARE THE BASIS FOR CONSTRUCTING A CHECKLIST, WHICH IS THE
INSTRUMENT OBSERVERS USE TO RECORD OBSERVED PHENOMENA.

• THE CHECKLIST IS USUALLY FORMATTED WITH THE LIST OF BEHAVIORS OR EVENTS FROM THE
CATEGORY SYSTEM ON THE LEFT AND SPACE FOR TALLYING THE FREQUENCY OR DURATION OF
OCCURRENCE OF BEHAVIORS ON THE RIGHT
1. CATEGORIES AND CHECKLIST

NONEXHAUSTIVE SYSTEM
• NONEXHAUSTIVE SYSTEMS ARE ADEQUATE FOR MANY PURPOSES, BUT ONE RISK IS THAT
RESULTING DATA MIGHT BE DIFFICULT TO INTERPRET. WHEN A LARGE NUMBER OF BEHAVIORS
ARE NOT CATEGORIZED, THE INVESTIGATOR MAY HAVE DIFFICULTY PLACING CATEGORIZED
BEHAVIOR INTO PERSPECTIVE.
2. RATING SCALES

• IS A TOOL THAT REQUIRES OBSERVERS TO RATE SOME PHENOMENA IN TERMS OF POINTS ALONG
A DESCRIPTIVE CONTINUUM.

• THE OBSERVER MAY BE REQUIRED TO MAKE RATINGS OF BEHAVIOUR AT INTERVALS

THROUGHOUT THE OBSERVATION OR TO SUMMARIZE AN ENTIRE EVENT OR TRANSACTION AFTER
THE OBSERVATION IS COMPLETED.
3. OBSERVATIONAL SAMPLING
TIME SAMPLING
• ONE SYSTEM IS TIME SAMPLING, WHICH INVOLVES THE SELECTION OF TIME PERIODS DURING
WHICH OBSERVATIONS WILL OCCUR. TIME FRAMES MAY BE SELECTED SYSTEMATICALLY (E.G.,
EVERY 30 SECONDS AT 2-MINUTE INTERVALS) OR AT RANDOM.

EVENT SAMPLING
• WITH EVENT SAMPLING, RESEARCHERS SELECT INTEGRAL BEHAVIORS OR EVENTS TO OBSERVE.
EVENT SAMPLING REQUIRES RESEARCHERS TO EITHER HAVE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE
OCCURRENCE OF EVENTS OR BE IN A POSITION TO WAIT FOR THEIR OCCURRENCE.

• EXAMPLES OF INTEGRAL EVENTS THAT MAY BE SUITABLE FOR EVENT SAMPLING INCLUDE SHIFT
CHANGES OF NURSES IN A HOSPITAL AND CARDIAC ARRESTS IN THE EMERGENCY ROOM.
 EVALUATING THE OBSERVATIONAL METHODS

• CERTAIN RESEARCH QUESTIONS ARE BETTER SUITED TO OBSERVATION THAN TO SELF-REPORTS

• OBSERVATIONAL METHODS HAVE AN INTRINSIC APPEAL FOR DIRECTLY CAPTURING BEHAVIORS AND
EVENTS.

• POSSIBLE ETHICAL PROBLEMS AND REACTIVITY OF THE OBSERVED WHEN THE OBSERVER IS
CONSPICUOUS.

• A NUMBER OF FACTORS INTERFERE WITH OBJECTIVE OBSERVATIONS, INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING:

• EMOTIONS, PREJUDICES, AND VALUES OF THE OBSERVER MAY LEAD TO FAULTY INFERENCE.
• PERSONAL VIEWS MAY COLOR WHAT IS SEEN IN THE DIRECTION OF WHAT OBSERVERS WANT TO SEE.
• ANTICIPATION OF WHAT IS TO BE OBSERVED MAY AFFECT WHAT IS PERCEIVED.
• HASTY DECISIONS MAY RESULT IN ERRONEOUS CLASSIFICATIONS OR RATINGS.
BIOPHYSIOLOGIC
MEASURES
QUANTITATIVE
TECHNIQUES
IN VITRO IN VIVO
1. IN VIVO

• IN VIVO MEASURES ARE THOSE PERFORMED DIRECTLY WITHIN OR ON LIVING ORGANISMS,

SUCH AS BLOOD PRESSURE, BODY TEMPERATURE, AND VITAL CAPACITY MEASUREMENT.

• IN VIVO INSTRUMENTS ARE AVAILABLE TO MEASURE ALL BODILY FUNCTIONS, AND

TECHNOLOGIC ADVANCES CONTINUE TO IMPROVE THE ABILITY TO MEASURE BIOPHYSIOLOGIC
PHENOMENA MORE ACCURATELY , AND CONVENIENTLY.
2. IN VITRO

• WITH IN VITRO MEASURES, DATA ARE GATHERED FROM PARTICIPANTS BY EXTRACTING

BIOPHYSIOLOGIC MATERIAL FROM THEM AND SUBJECTING IT TO ANALYSIS BY SPECIALIZED
LABORATORY TECHNICIANS.

• IN VITRO MEASURES INCLUDE CHEMICAL MEASURES (E.G., THE MEASUREMENT OF HORMONE,

SUGAR, OR POTASSIUM LEVELS); MICROBIOLOGIC MEASURES (E.G.,BACTERIAL COUNTS AND
IDENTIFICATION); AND CYTOLOGIC OR HISTOLOGIC MEASURES (E.G., TISSUE BIOPSIES).
 EVALUATING BIOPHYSIOLOGIC MEASURES

• BIOPHYSIOLOGIC MEASURES ARE RELATIVELY ACCURATE AND PRECISE, ESPECIALLY COMPARED WITH
PSYCHOLOGICAL MEASURES, SUCH AS SELF-REPORT MEASURES OF ANXIETY , PAIN, AND SO FORTH.

• BIOPHYSIOLOGIC MEASURES ARE OBJECTIVE. TWO NURSES READING FROM THE SAME SPIROMETER OUTPUT
ARE LIKELY TO RECORD IDENTICAL TIDAL VOLUME MEASUREMENTS, AND TWO SPIROMETERS ARE LIKELY TO
PRODUCE THE SAME READOUTS. PATIENTS CANNOT EASILY DISTORT MEASUREMENTS OF BIOPHYSIOLOGIC
FUNCTIONING.

• BIOPHYSIOLOGIC INSTRUMENTATION PROVIDES VALID MEASURES OF TARGETED VARIABLES;

THERMOMETERS CAN BE RELIED ON TO MEASURE TEMPERATURE AND NOT BLOOD VOLUME, AND SO
FORTH. FOR NON-BIOPHYSIOLOGIC MEASURES, THERE ARE TYPICALLY CONCERNS ABOUT WHETHER AN
INSTRUMENT IS REALLY MEASURING THE TARGET CONCEPT.
IMPLEMENTING DATA COLLECTION PLAN

• WHO WILL COLLECT THE DATA?

• THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH DATA ARE GATHERED?
CRITIQUING DATA COLLECTION METHOD
THANK YOU!