Validity in Quantitative Research Designs

Validity in Quantitative Research Designs

Introduction

There are number of benefits of the researches conducted by different theorists and scientist. However, there are certain numbers concerns that affect the results of the researches. Mainly, there are two types of concerns such as reliability and validity of the research. This report will focus on internal validity of the research conducted on “Effectiveness of an Aspiration Risk-Reduction Protocol” and illustrated by Metheny, Davis, and Stewart in their research journal. This paper will also provide recommendations for strengthening the internal validity of the study. The internal validity can be defined as the confidence that we can place in the cause and effect relationship in a study (Polit et.al, 2008).

Concerns of Internal Validity

There are number of concerns that are related to internal validity of the study. These concerns are described below in details:

Selection of Patients

It is mentioned in the study that those patients who suffered from pneumonia before tube feeding started were excluded from the research. It is not mention in the study that the patients were tested to check the presence of pneumonia or the researchers just relayed on the information provide by patients. It declines the internal validity of the study (Metheny et.al, 2010).

Frequent Testing

The patients were tested by same instruments every time. There are chances that their bodies have developed an internal mechanism which is reacting to those instruments. The reaction against the use of those instruments varies from patients to patients. There is no prove in the study that researcher has incorporated this fact or not. This again declines the internal validity of the research (Metheny et.al, 2010).

Registered Nurses

The nurses were assigned a task to be with patients for sixteen hours a day and seven days a week. The efforts that each nurse put for taking ...