Nursing: NURS 3044: Research methodologies

Assignment Help

NURS 3044: Research Methodologies

This assignment help is designed to assist you with your  Assignment 2 Part 2:
Reflective piece and to find peer-reviewed and scholarly sources of literature.

image of information icon   For full assessment details, please see your course outline

Understand your task

Begin by clarifying the assessment requirements. Read the assignment instructions and marking criteria supplied on your course site. The video below explains more about writing assignments at uni.

If you need to develop a research topic/question, visit the Formulate a Question tab on this guide to learn how.

  • Doing an assignment isn't a linear process.
  • Start by reading the task in detail, so you know what you need to do.
  • The assignment instructions and feedback sheet will explain the structure of your assignment.
  • You can find out more about different assignment types on the Study Help website.
  • You might need to revise your assignment plan as you go - this might happen a few times before you write your final draft!
  • As you read more, your argument should evolve to incorporate new information.
  • Make sure you use reliable resources to support your argument.
  • To interpret your task you will need to identify the content words and phrases - these show what you have to focus on.
  • The instruction words tell you how to approach the content, for example, describing something is different to comparing.
  • Identify the limits of your assignment by looking at keywords, word limits and other instructions.
  • Start the process early to get ahead.
  Read: Understanding assignments and instructions words

Plan your search

  • Searching for your whole assignment is not very effective
  • Mapping out your search is a good place to start
  • Identify the key concepts in your question or topic
  • You don't need to search for task words
  • Use double quotation marks (" ") to search for two or more words together as a phrase
  • Think about what other words (synonyms and alternative terms) might be used to describe the key concepts
  • You can use acronyms, but you should search for the full terms as well
  • To find fewer results, add different concepts using AND (e.g. rural AND Australia)
  • To find more results, add synonyms or alternative terms, to your search using OR (e.g. "renewable energy" OR solar OR wind)
  • You can change your search as you find more information
  • For more information, read the How to plan your search document

Apply the PICO Framework

It is best practice to identify concepts and keywords from your assignment topic prior to searching.

Use the PICO or PIO framework to break down your concepts into more precise groups by identifying your Population of Interest; Intervention; Comparison; and Outcomes. If you have not specified a Comparison, just leave it out- this is a PIO framework.

Lets use the PICO or PIO framework to break down this example question:

Are there any evidence of adverse effects following the administration of the influenza vaccinations to healthcare workers?

P    (Population) Healthcare workers                              
I     (Intervention) Influenza vaccines
C    (Comparison) No comparator
O    (Outcomes) Adverse effects    

Concepts with Synonyms:

P
  • healthcare workers
  • healthcare professional
  • health personnel
I
  • Influenza vaccine
  • flu vaccine
  • influenza immunization
  • flu immunization
C
  • No comparator
O
  • Adverse effects
  • negative impact
  • side effects
  • negative outcome

Combined search string with:
AND / OR / truncation * / phrases ("word + word")

"healthcare worker*" OR "healthcare professional*" OR "health personnel"
AND
"influenza vaccin*" OR  "flu vaccin*" (* also for vaccinations) OR immuni* OR "influenza immuni*"
AND
"adverse effect*" OR "negative impact*" OR "side effect*" OR "negative outcome*"  

 

Start your search

You can search for information using a range of tools, including the Library Collection and databases, Google Scholar, and internet search engines. Choose the sources that are best suited to your need.

Select the plus symbols below to learn more.

Basic search
This is the default option when searching in the Library Collection.

1. Add in one keyword for each concept, combining them with AND.
    Note: Searching for more general terms will find more results. 
2. Select Search.
3. Swap your keywords with your alterative terms to see different results.

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Advanced search
If you would like to do a more comprehensive search, use the Advanced search.

1. Put each concept on a new line
2. Add your alternative words, combining them with OR.
3. Select Search.

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Filters

Use the filters on the left to limit and refine your results.
You could try limiting to:

Tick box Peer-reviewed journals
Tick box Full text online
Tick box Resource types
Tick box Publication date range

Emcare
Searching in Emcare is different to searching in the Library Collection.

1. Type your first concept and alternative words into the search box.
2. Untick the box labeled Map to Subject Heading.

3. Select Search.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 for your next concepts.
5. Tick the boxes next to each of your concept lines.
6. Select Combine with AND.

 

 

7. Scroll down to see your results.
 

Scopus
You can do a basic or advanced search, just like in the Library Collection.

1. Type all your keywords for your first concept into the search box.
2. Select the plus symbol to the right to add a line for your next concept.
3. Add all your keywords for your second concept into the search bar.
4. Repeat steps 2-3 until you have used all your concepts.
5. Select Search.


More useful databases:

Google Scholar
You can search Google Scholar in the same way as a basic search on the Library homepage.

  1. Access Google Scholar through the Library website
  2. Follow the instructions to link your session to UniSA
  3. Use the basic search on the Library website
  4. Look for the PDF links or Fulltext at UniSA links to access the resource

Google 
You can use Google to search for information from professional bodies, governments, and non-government organisations. This might include reports, clinical guidelines, professional standards, codes of conduct, and more.

Google has a number of useful search features that can make your searching more efficient:

Relevant websites

To find relevant websites that are recommended for your area of study, have a look at the Find evidence: government and organisation information tab in this guide.

The following websites may contain useful information for your assessment:

LibKey Nomad

If you are looking for information on the internet, it's worth downloading LibKey Nomad. It's a browser extension for Chrome that will look for full text PDFs of journal articles from websites outside of the Library Catalogue. This is helpful when looking on pages such as Wikipedia, because you can easily access and read the articles from the reference list. Instructions to download LibKey Nomad are available here.

More help:

Select appropriate references

You should critically evaluate all resources found to determine their appropriateness for your assignment. The video below explains more.

  • Having access to a lot of information can be overwhelming.
  • Evaluating information helps you decide what resources you should use.
  • One technique you can use is the CRAAP test.
  • Currency: How recent is the information? Does it suit your needs?
  • Relevance: Is the information relevant to your assignment?
  • Authority: Who wrote the information? Are they an expert?
  • Accuracy: Is the information accurate? Is it supported by evidence?
  • Purpose: Why was the resource created? Is there any bias?
  • You can use the CRAAP tool to think about these issues when evaluate your resources.

Write your assignment

The Student Engagement Unit has created a suite of resources called Study Help that can help you understand different assignment types. 

Have a look at:

Correctly reference your sources

Referencing roadmap banner. Navigate to the referencing roadmap resource.

You must appropriately cite (‘acknowledge’) all references used in your assignment to avoid plagiarism.

Try: Learn to Reference - Part 1 interactive tutorial
Try: Learn to Reference - Part 2 interactive tutorial

 

Useful resources

Have you seen the Evidence Based Practice Guide?

If you need help, just ask!

Navigate to the Ask the Library webpage. Navigate to the UniSA study help pals webpage. Navigate to the Studiosity webpage. Navigate to the Learning Advisors' webpage.
Contact: Ask the Library Ask: the Study Help PALs Use: Studiosity Talk to: a Learning Adviser