A researcher conducts a review of relevant literature prior to developing a research study to

1. One reason for conducting a review of the literature other than for purposes of developing a research study is to:

a.

determine the expertise of researchers in the field of study.

b.

identify current theoretical frameworks.

c.

implement evidence-based practice guidelines.

d.

work in a Magnet-certified hospital setting.

ANS: C

Although a literature reviews are commonly associated with development of research studies, they are also conducted when developing projects to establish evidence-based-practice (EBP).

2. What is the purpose of a limited research review?

a.

To allow the reader to become familiar with the research problem

b.

To develop an initial pilot study prior to a more in-depth study

c.

To direct the planning and execution of a study

d.

To identify studies published after a study is performed

ANS: D

A limited research review is often conducted after an initial literature review in order to describe any studies performed after the study has been performed. The results of both the original literature review and the limited literature review are included in the report.

3. A reviewer reading a proposal for a qualitative research study notes that the author has not included a literature review. The reviewer understands that a literature review may have been omitted in this case because:

a.

it is not necessary to conduct a literature review for qualitative research.

b.

qualitative research is conducted to study areas where there is no previous knowledge.

c.

some researchers feel that previous studies may bias data collection in qualitative studies.

d.

the researcher was not adequately prepared to conduct this research study.

ANS: C

Many times literature reviews are omitted from qualitative research to avoid causing expectations that might bias findings, data collection, and data analysis.

4. Which type of study is least likely to include a review of the literature prior to initiating the study?

a.

Grounded theory

b.

Phenomenological

c.

Qualitative

d.

Quantitative

ANS: B

Phenomenological researchers are most likely to delay literature review until after a study is completed in order to avoid bias.

5. What is the main purpose of a literature review in grounded theory research?

a.

To explain, extend, and support the framework used for the study

b.

To identify gaps in current knowledge about the research topic

c.

To place research findings in context of what is already known.

d.

To support the need to study the selected research topic

ANS: A

In grounded theory research, the researcher uses the literature review primarily to explain, support, and extend the framework used in the study, and not to direct data collection or study methods. It is usually completed at the end of the analysis rather than before the proposal development

6. Why might Wikipedia be a questionable reference for a study citation?

a.

It does not contain factual information.

b.

It does not provide ideas for other resources.

c.

It is an online resource..

d.

It is an open, editable format.

ANS: D

Wikipedia is an open, editable format; the information may not always be accurate because it is not peer reviewed and scientifically based.

7. Which source of information is rarely cited in academic publications?

a.

Conference proceedings

b.

Dissertation or thesis

c.

Encyclopedia

d.

Textbooks

ANS: C

Encyclopedias tend to provide background information and some information leading to other resources, but generally not scholarly or primary source information.

8. When determining the reliability of a website resource in a literature review, it is important to determine:

a.

accessibility of the website information.

b.

costs of retrieving website information.

c.

sponsorship of website information.

d.

whether website information is also published conventionally.

ANS: C

Not all websites are valid and appropriate for citation in a literature review. Those that are sponsored by companies that sell certain products under study may not be appropriate resources because their information may be biased.

9. A review of empirical literature will yield information obtained from:

a.

concept analyses.

b.

descriptions of models and frameworks.

c.

research studies.

d.

theories.

ANS: C

Empirical literature refers to knowledge derived from research and is based on data from research.

10. What is an important limitation of secondary sources in literature reviews?

a.

The authors do not have high levels of expertise.

b.

They are usually not peer-reviewed sources.

c.

They do not contain unique or original information.

d.

They may contain misinterpreted information.

ANS: D

A secondary source summarizes or quotes content from primary sources. Because authors of secondary sources paraphrase the works of researchers and theorists and interpret what the primary author wrote, this information may be misinterpreted.

11. When reviewing articles in a peer-reviewed publication, the reader is assured that the articles are:

a.

landmark studies.

b.

primary sources.

c.

seminal studies.

d.

trustworthy sources.

ANS: D

Research reports detailing study events, including results and analysis of findings included in refereed professional journals, are considered one of the most credible types of evidence and are typically considered one of the most useful sources for researchers as they conduct a literature review for a current study. Articles found in refereed journals have been evaluated in an anonymous process by unbiased reviewers and received favorable review, not only for the integrity of the research itself, but because the topic of interest has been deemed significant to the profession.

12. For a study to be considered current, it should be published within the last:

a.

year.

b.

2 years.

c.

5 years.

d.

10 years.

ANS: C

Current sources are those published within 5 years before publication of the manuscript.

13. Some studies cited in a literature review may be decades old. The researcher may decide to use studies from this far back because these studies:

a.

are groundbreaking or landmark studies.

b.

are particularly well-written studies.

c.

are peer-reviewed, relevant studies.

d.

are still considered current studies.

ANS: A

Studies that are groundbreaking or landmark studies are those that were significant to the development of knowledge on the topic being reviewed. In this case, it is appropriate to cite these studies, even if they are very old.

14. A researcher conducts a study using dependent and independent variables used in a previous study but uses a different population of subjects. What type of study is this?

a.

Landmark

b.

Pilot

c.

Replication

d.

Seminal

ANS: C

A replication study is a reproduction or repetition of a study that a researcher conducts to determine whether the findings of the original study can be consistently found in different settings with different subjects.

15. A nurse appraising a research article should perform which action in order to critically evaluate the literature review?

a.

Locate and review sources and abstracts listed in the research article

b.

Note the number of data-based and theoretical sources cited in the reference list

c.

Perform a meta-analysis or meta-synthesis on the cited references

d.

Search the literature to determine whether other relevant sources exist

ANS: B

Because it would be very time consuming to search the literature and determine whether the listed sources are relevant, the reviewer should review the reference list and determine the focus of the sources, the number of data-based and theoretical sources cited, and where and when the sources were published.

16. When appraising a literature review, one aspect of determining the breadth of the review is:

a.

whether the review provides direction for the proposed study.

b.

the number and percentages of sources from the past 5 to 10 years.

c.

whether landmark or seminal studies have been used.

d.

the disciplines of the study authors and journals cited in the review.

ANS: D

When assessing the breadth of a literature review, the reviewer should identify the disciplines of the authors cited and the journals in which they published their studies.

17. An initial step when preparing to conduct a literature review is to:

a.

choose the types of sources to use.

b.

clarify the purpose of the review.

c.

determine how many articles to review.

d.

select electronic data bases and keywords.

ANS: B

Because the approach will vary according to the purpose of the review, the first step in conducting a literature review is to identify the purpose of the review.

18. When conducting a literature review for a thesis or dissertation and deciding how far back in the available literature to search, what will the student do?

a.

Ask the instructor to specify necessary publication years for articles cited.

b.

Base the decision on the number of articles necessary for the assigned task.

c.

Locate any seminal or landmark studies on the topic of research.

d.

Look for sources no older than 10 years prior.

ANS: C

When beginning a thesis or dissertation, the graduate student should look for seminal or landmark studies as a place to begin a literature review.

19. When developing evidence-based-practice guidelines, if a researcher wishes to identify studies that evaluate a specific intervention in quantitative research, the literature review should include:

a.

grounded theory research.

b.

only current research from the last 5 years.

c.

replication studies and meta-analyses.

d.

seminal and landmark studies about the topic.

ANS: C

To synthesize evidence related to a practice problem and to evaluate a specific intervention in quantitative research, replication studies, meta-analyses, and meta-syntheses are used.

20. In the following APA-formatted reference, what is indicated by the italicized words?
a.

Abstract information

b.

Article title

c.

Book title

d.

Publishing company

ANS: C

When citing a book, the title is italicized.

21. A step just prior to beginning a literature search using an electronic database is to:

a.

decide how many articles are needed.

b.

determine the type of study.

c.

identify keywords for the search.

d.

perform a Google search.

ANS: C

To narrow the number of articles in a search and refine the search to more relevant articles, identifying keywords is necessary.

22. When conducting a literature search, which electronic product would a nurse researcher use to track and store reference information?

a.

Cumulative Index of Nursing and Health Literature (CINAHL)

b.

EndNotes or Ref Works

c.

Google Scholar

d.

Science Direct

ANS: B

EndNotes is reference management software that helps to track and store information on all search fields and allows the researcher to file this information with comments about each reference.

23. After a literature search has yielded a list of articles, an efficient way to identify relevant studies during a literature search is to review:

a.

an electronic database search history.

b.

only experimental studies.

c.

reference lists in other studies.

d.

study abstracts.

ANS: D

The abstract provides pertinent information about the article in a condensed, easy to peruse format so that the researcher can determine whether the article is pertinent to the topic.

24. Once relevant studies have been identified, the researchers next step is to:

a.

determine the expertise of each studys authors.

b.

obtain full-text copies of each of these articles.

c.

review the study design and methodology of each article.

d.

write the literature review based on abstract information.

ANS: B

Although the abstract information helps to determine a studys relevance, it is essential to read the full-text article to conduct a literature review. Once relevant studies are found, the researcher must obtain either electronic or print full-text articles.

25. When initially reading the relevant literature for comprehension, the researcher will:

a.

critically appraise the studies.

b.

highlight the main points of the studies.

c.

make decisions about paraphrasing quotes.

d.

review the abstract only.

ANS: B

Comprehending a source begins by reading and focusing on understanding the main points of the article and can be achieved by highlighting the main points of the article.

26. A researcher performs a critical appraisal of a group of studies measuring the effects of a home care education program on confidence levels of caregivers of elderly family members. The critical appraisal will include:

a.

determining the theoretical frameworks used for defining confidence.

b.

identifying sampling and inclusion criteria used in the studies.

c.

making value judgments about the credibility and validity of concepts.

d.

recording quotations relevant to the concept of confidence.

ANS: C

To critically appraise an article, relevant content is identified and value judgments are made about the validity and credibility of key concepts.

27. To analyze a body of literature in a literature review the reviewer will:

a.

describe the findings of each study in the literature review.

b.

list the studies and itemize the findings of each one.

c.

make value judgments about the credibility of each study.

d.

synthesize and summarize findings from various studies.

ANS: D

Analysis requires synthesis and summarization of findings of the studies listed and an ability to manipulate the information by the reviewer.

28. Which is most important in a critical appraisal of a body of literature?

a.

Counting the available resources to determine whether more information is necessary.

b.

Examining the quality and content of the resources to determine the credibility and validity of each.

c.

Reviewing the reference lists in each study to find other relevant studies and landmark studies.

d.

Searching the literature thoroughly using appropriate keywords to ensure that all relevant literature is included.

ANS: B

Critiquing the literature review of a published study involves examining the quality of the content and sources presented. This is more important than achieving an accurate count of available resources.

29. In a literature review, the author identifies themes present in articles under review and describes connections among these themes. This is an example of:

a.

analysis.

b.

appraisal.

c.

synthesis.

d.

theorizing.

ANS: C

Synthesis of sources involves thinking deeply about what has been found and identifying the main themes of the information.

30. A researcher reviews several articles about coping skills among parents of children with chronic illness and notes that half of the studies involved single-parent families. The researcher decides to examine whether coping skills differ in single-parent versus dual-parent households. The researcher is engaging in:

a.

analyzing.

b.

appraising.

c.

evaluating.

d.

synthesizing.

ANS: D

Synthesis of sources involves thinking deeply about what has been found and identifying the main themes of the information. In this case, the reviewer has discovered a variable that may affect the outcome of the studies.

31. When developing the outline for a literature review, the researchers first step is to:

a.

describe the focus or purpose of the review in the discussion section.

b.

include a statement about what is known in the literature.

c.

make notes about which sources to site in each section.

d.

use a standardized format to outline subsections in the discussion section.

ANS: C

An initial outline is the first step in writing the literature review and begins with determining the major sections for the paper and identifying the sources that will be used in each one.

32. The concluding sentence of each paragraph in a literature review:

a.

describes relevant studies that support the theme of the paragraph.

b.

identifies the main themes of the paragraph.

c.

provides evidence to support the topic of the paragraph.

d.

transitions to the ideas expressed in the following paragraph.

ANS: D

The concluding sentence in a paragraph in the literature review should transition to the ideas expressed in the following paragraph.

33. When citing sources in a literature review, it is best if the author:

a.

paraphrases other authors ideas.

b.

points out any defects in other authors work.

c.

synthesizes the work of a group of authors.

d.

uses direct quotations as much as possible.

ANS: A

When citing the work of other authors, the author of a literature review should paraphrase their words whenever possibleclearly, and in the reviewers own words.

34. An author uses an electronic source in portable document format (PDF). Which is true about citing this source in a literature review?

a.

It is necessary to provide the URL used to retrieve the article electronically.

b.

It is not treated differently than a print version of the article.

c.

The original print article must be located.

d.

The page numbers will not be available for citation.

ANS: B

When retrieving a PDF document, the source is cited as if a copy of the print version of the article had been used.

Why does a researcher conduct a review of relevant literature prior to developing a research study?

What is the purpose of a review of relevant literature within a research study?

Why does a researcher conduct review of literature?

What does a researcher conduct a literature review?