research question An interrogatory statement
describing the variables and population of the
research study
research topic A clinical problem of interest
research utilization Changing practice based on
the results of a single research study
respect for persons Principle that individuals
should be treated as autonomous and that those with
diminished autonomy are entitled to protection
results section Component of a research article
that reports the methods used to analyze data and
characteristics of the sample
retrospective designs Research designs in which
researchers look back in time to determine pos-
sible causative factors; ex post facto
review of literature An unbiased, comprehen-
sive, synthesized description of relevant previ-
ously published studies
role model One who demonstrates desired
characteristics and skills
Rule of 68–95–99.7 Rule stating that for every
sample 68% of the data will fall within one stan-
dard deviation of the mean; 95% will fall within
two standard deviations of the mean; 99.7% of the
data will fall within three standard deviations of
the mean
sample A select group of elements that is repre-
sentative of all eligible elements
sample statistics Numerical data describing
characteristics of the sample
sampling bias A threat to external validity
when a sample includes elements that over- or
underrepresent characteristics when compared to
elements in the target population
sampling distribution A theoretical distribution
representing an infinite number of samples that
can be drawn from a population
sampling error Error resulting when elements
in the sample do not adequately represent the
population
sampling frame A list of all possible elements in
the accessible population
sampling interval The interval (k) between each
element selected when using systematic random
sampling
sampling plan Plan to determine how the sam-
ple will be selected and recruited
scales Used to assign a numeric value or score
on a continuum
scholarly literature Works written and edited by
professionals in the discipline for other colleagues
scientific literature publication cycle A model
describing how research becomes disseminated in
publications
screening Testing people without known disease
to determine whether they have a disease; used to
reduce morbidity and mortality in populations
search field Where each piece of information
contained in the record is entered
secondary sources Commentaries, summaries,
reviews, or interpretation of primary sources; of-
ten written by those not involved in the original
work
selection bias A threat to internal validity when
the change in the dependent variable is a result
of the characteristics of the subjects before they
entered a study
self-awareness Knowing yourself
semiquartile range The range of the middle 50%
of the data
sense of inquiry Curiosity
sensitivity The ability of the test to correctly
identify people with the disease by positive test
results
short-term outcomes Results achieved in a brief
period of time
significance level The alpha level established be-
fore the beginning of a study
simple hypothesis A hypothesis describing the
relationship among two variables
simple random sampling Randomly selecting
elements from the accessible population
skewed An asymmetrical distribution of dataGLOSSARY 527