Polit LN Ch01

Statistics and Data Analysisfor
Nursing Research
Second Edition
CHAPTER
1
Introduction to Data Analysis in an
Evidence-Based Practice Environment
Statistics and Data Analysis for Nursing Research, Second Edition Copyright ©2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Denise F. Polit Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458
All rights reserved.
Research and Evidence-Based
Nursing
Evidence-based practice (EBP): Use of best
clinical evidence in making patient care
decisions
Best source of evidence: Systematic

research
What is Research?
Research is systematic inquiry that uses

orderly, disciplined methods (including
statistics) to answer questions or solve
problems
The aim of nursing research is to generate

evidence that can contribute to EBP for
nurses
EBP Questions
How reliable is the evidence?

What is the magnitude of effects?
How precise is the estimate of effects?
Answering these questions requires an

understanding of statistics
What is Statistics?
Statistics is the term for a collection of

mathematical methods of organizing,
summarizing, analyzing, and interpreting
information gathered in a study
Data and Data Analysis
In the context of a study, the information

gathered to address research questions is data
In quantitative research, data are usually

quantitative (numbers)
Quantitative data are subjected to statistical

analysis
Where Do Data Come From?
Example 1: Interviews/questionnaires
Question: On a scale from 0 to 10, please rate your
level of fatigue
Answer (Data):
Person 1: 7
Person 2: 3
Person 3: 10
Etc.
Where Do Data Come From? (cont’d)
Example 2: Observation
Observer: What is the patient’s pressure ulcer stage
(1-4)?
Rating (Data):
Person 1: 1 (Stage 1)
Etc.
Where Do Data Come From? (cont’d)
Example 3: Biophysiologic measurements

Recorder: Patient’s oxygen saturation
Measurement via pulse oximeter (Data):
Person 1: 98%
Person 2: 95%
Person 3: 89%
Etc.
From Problem to Data Analysis
Research problem identified (e.g., high stress
in hospitalized children) 
Research question asked: Will a music
intervention reduce stress? 
Concepts defined/measured 
Data collected 
Data analyzed through statistics
Of course, a lot of things happen in between each
step!
Concepts and Variables
Concept: An abstraction inferred from

characteristics or behaviors
Examples: height, sex, respiratory rate
In quantitative studies, concepts are called
variables
A variable is something that takes on
different values
Height, sex, and respiratory rate vary from one
person to the next
Types of Variables
Important distinction in most studies (with

implications for analysis):
Independent variable: The hypothesized cause
of, or influence on, an outcome
Dependent variable: The outcome of interest,
hypothesized to depend on, or be caused by, the
independent variable
Examples of Independent and
Dependent Variables
Independent variable (IV): Smoking
Dependent variable (DV): Lung cancer
IV  DV ?
Independent Variables
Some IVs are existing characteristics (like
people’s smoking behavior)
Others are created by researchers when they
introduce an intervention to some people (e.g.,
a nursing intervention for smoking cessation)
IV  DV?
R.N.
Research Questions
Research questions are the queries researchers
seek to answer through the collection and
analysis of data
Research questions communicate the research
variables and the population (the entire group
of interest)
Example: In hospitalized children (population)
does music (IV) reduce stress (DV)?
Variable Definition
In studies, variables need to be defined

Conceptual definition: The theoretical meaning
of the underlying concept
Operational definition: The precise set of
operations and procedures used to measure the
variable
Discrete Versus Continuous Variables
Variables have different qualities with regard to

measurement potential
Discrete variables
Continuous variables
Discrete Variables
Discrete variable: Categories are
indivisible, with a finite number of values
between two points
Examples:
Number of siblings: 0, 1, 2,
etc. (1.2 is not possible)
Number of hospital beds
(129.034 beds is not possible)
Continuous Variables
Continuous variable: Can (in theory) assume
an infinite number of values between two
points
Examples:
Time elapsed since birth
(e.g., 55.0359 years)
Measurement
Measurement: Involves assigning numbers to

qualities of people or objects to designate the
quantity of the attribute, according to a set of
rules
Levels of Measurement
Level of Measurement: A system of

classification with four types of measurement
rules that affect the kind of statistical analysis
that is appropriate:
Nominal
Ordinal
Interval
Ratio
Nominal Measurement
Nominal Measurement:
Lowest form of measurement
Numbers are used simply as labels to name categories
Example: Sex, coded with 2 arbitrary numbers
0 1 0 1 2 4
It does not matter what the codes are, the numbers have no
quantitative meaning (although codes like 0 and 1 are more sensible)
Numbers cannot be treated mathematically
Ordinal Measurement
Ordinal Measurement:
Uses numbers to designate ordering on an attribute
Conveys some information about amount
But does not indicate distance between values
Example: Degree of pain
1 = None 2 = Some 3 = A lot
_|__________|_______________________________|_
1 2 3
Distances are not equal, and are not known

Averages do not make sense
Interval Measurement
Interval Measurement:
Also uses numbers to designate ordering on an attribute and conveys
information about amount
Distance between values are assumed to be equal
Averages can be computed
Example: Ambient temperature (Fahrenheit)

|___|___|___|___|___|___|___|___|___|___|
70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80
The difference between 70 and 75 degrees is the same as the difference

between 75 and 80 degrees
Ratio Measurement
Ratio Measurement:
Uses numbers to designate ordering, conveys information
about amount, distances are equal
AND there is a real, rational zero
Averages can be computed
Example: Medication dose (e.g., number of
milligrams, number of pills)
Measurement Level Comparison
At each successive measurement level, there
is more information, and greater analytic
flexibility
If you start with ratio measures, you can

collapse information to a lower-level
measure, but the reverse is not true
Higher-level scales are usually (though not

always) preferred
Comparison of Levels
Types of Statistical Analysis
Calculation
Manual versus computerized
Purpose
Descriptive versus inferential
Complexity
Univariate, bivariate, multivariate
Descriptive Statistics
Researchers collect their data from a sample of

study participants—a subset of the population
of interest
Descriptive statistics describe and summarize

data about the sample
Examples: Percent female in the sample, average

weight of participants
Inferential Statistics
Researchers obtain data from a sample but often want
to draw conclusions about a population
Parameter: A descriptive index for a population
Example: Average daily caloric intake of all 10-year-old
children in New York
Statistic: A descriptive index for a sample
Example: Average daily caloric intake of 300 10-year-old
children from three particular NY schools
Inferential Statistics (cont’d)
Researchers use statistics to make inferences
about parameters
Inferential statistics, based on laws of

probability, help researchers draw objective
conclusions about a population, using data from
a sample
Inferential statistics are often used to test

hypotheses (predictions) about relationships
between variables
Data Analysis Plan
Many activities must occur between the

collection of data and analyses to address
research questions
Researchers need to develop a careful data

analysis plan that lays out the analytic steps to
be taken
Preanalytic Steps
Researchers typically begin by:
Making decisions about how to code their data—
including codes to use to designate missing values
Entering data into a computer file (e.g. an SPSS
file)
Then giving variables abbreviated variable names,
and inputting additional information about the
variables (e.g., what the codes mean)
Preanalytic Steps (cont’d)
Many additional steps remain before
substantive analyses begin, including efforts to:
Clean the data (correct errors)
Examine the extent of missing data
Correct problems relating to missing data
Assess whether assumptions for advanced analyses
are met
Assess whether there are biases
Understand the data and characterize the study
sample
SPSS and Statistical Analysis
SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social

Sciences) is among the most popular statistical
software packages for analyzing research data
It is user friendly and menu driven
The datasets offered with this textbook are set
up as SPSS files
The Data Editor in SPSS
The data editor in SPSS offers a convenient

spreadsheet-like method of creating, editing,
and viewing data
There are two “views” within the data editor:
Data View: Shows the actual data values
Variable View: Shows variable information for all
variables
Data View in the Data Editor
The columns represent one

variable each; unique variable
names (no more than eight
characters long) are shown at
the top of each column
Each row is a case,
representing an individual
participant
The data view tab is at the
bottom
Variable View in the Data Editor
Variable View shows a

wealth of information
about how variables
are coded, how they
will be labeled in
output, level of
measurement, and so
on
The Variable View tab
is at the bottom
Versions of SPSS
New versions of SPSS are created regularly, to
offer improved options for analysis and
presentation
Examples in this book were created in SPSS
Version 16.0
The student version of SPSS is available for
analyzing relatively small datasets (no more
than 50 variables and no more than 1,500
cases)

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Statistics and Data Analysisfor

Best source of evidence: Systematic

Research is systematic inquiry that uses

The aim of nursing research is to generate

How reliable is the evidence?

Answering these questions requires an

Statistics is the term for a collection of

In the context of a study, the information

In quantitative research, data are usually

Quantitative data are subjected to statistical

Example 3: Biophysiologic measurements

Concept: An abstraction inferred from

Important distinction in most studies (with

In studies, variables need to be defined

Variables have different qualities with regard to

Measurement: Involves assigning numbers to

Level of Measurement: A system of

Distances are not equal, and are not known

Example: Ambient temperature (Fahrenheit)

The difference between 70 and 75 degrees is the same as the difference

If you start with ratio measures, you can

Higher-level scales are usually (though not

Researchers collect their data from a sample of

Descriptive statistics describe and summarize

Examples: Percent female in the sample, average

Inferential statistics, based on laws of

Inferential statistics are often used to test

Many activities must occur between the

Researchers need to develop a careful data

SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social

The data editor in SPSS offers a convenient

The columns represent one

Variable View shows a

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