Recruitment, retention, preparation for collecting data, and interviewing.

This module focuses on the implementation phase of research, beginning with an overview of participant recruitment and data collection. Topics covered include recruitment, retention, preparation for collecting data, and interviewing. Structured, semi-structured, and unstructured interviews are also covered. We then focus on Internet sources, secondary analysis, historical research, and intervention. Recruitment and retention are two tremendous hurdles faced by any researcher. In this module we explored the process of participant recruitment and enrollment, what motivates people to participate in a research study—the incentives, and why they may decline—what barriers to participation exist. We also considered the question of retention, which becomes important if you need to maintain contact and retest or re-interview participants. The type of data you decide to collect and how you go about collecting it will have a great impact on its value in the analysis, reporting, and application phases of your research study. We began with the initial planning and preparation for data collection, including selection of measures, and then consider procedures for specific data collection modes. Specific approaches to testing and observation were discussed, as well as interviewing, and online, secondary, and archival sources. In this module we discussed online research, secondary analysis of existing databases, and historical research. Each of these methods of data collection has its advantages but also poses some challenges for the researcher. There is still a lot to be learned about the strengths and weaknesses of Internet-based research and questions to be answered about the ethics of using existing data that are felt to be private yet are publicly available. Secondary data analysis probably should be done more often than is currently the case. Although there are challenges to using data collected for another purpose, secondary data analyses often generate a rich yield for the effort expended. Historical research addresses entirely different questions and uses different data collection methods. It requires a sense of context and continuity unlike that of the other data collection strategies. As different as they are, each contributes to our understanding of the patients, clients, their families, and the environment in which nurses provide care. The intervention phase of research requires active involvement of the investigator and members of the research team. A carefully designed intervention based upon previous research and an underlying theoretical framework are the basis for undertaking this phase of the study. Those providing the intervention need to be well trained, the provision of the intervention needs to be monitored and recorded meticulously, and safety of participants needs to be assured throughout the study. Assignment: Provide three example questions, one for each category that can be defined as a structured, semi-structured, and unstructured interview question. Provide a short justification for each choice. What are some issues you are likely to encounter with a study that focuses on childhood disease and illness? For example, what ethical and legal issues must you consider, and how can you cope with such issues as retention? Describe three techniques, methods, or recommendations you can use to promote retention in a study. Are there some additional personal examples you can lend that might not already be in the course materials?