Availabilities:
| Location | Domestic | International |
|---|
| Coffs Harbour | | |
| Gold Coast | | |
| Lismore | | |
| Online | | |
Unit description
Introduces students to different types of methodologies used to inform evidence-based practice and the processes involved in conducting ethical research. Through both theoretical and practical components, students will learn the basic methods for: planning an investigation; collecting, analysing and interpreting data; and reporting and disseminating data findings.
Unit content
Understanding how evidence is created is a cornerstone learning foundation for all students of health sciences. This unit introduces students to understanding the nature of evidence in the health sciences:
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Ways of knowing and knowledge creation
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Identifying problems, purposes, aims, questions, hypotheses
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Ethical and cultural considerations in producing knowledge
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Methodological designs
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Data collection methods
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Data analysis including descriptive and inferential statistics, and thematic analysis
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Interpreting and reporting findings
Learning outcomes
Unit Learning Outcomes express learning achievement in terms of what a student should know, understand and be able to do on completion of a unit. These outcomes are aligned with the graduate attributes. The unit learning outcomes and graduate attributes are also the basis of evaluating prior learning.
| On completion of this unit, students should be able to: |
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| 1 | describe different philosophical approaches to knowledge creation |
| 2 | describe the strengths and limitations of various study designs |
| 3 | identify a question and plan an appropriate methodology that addresses it |
| 4 | evaluate ethical implications of a proposed inquiry |
| 5 | demonstrate an ability to conduct basic data analysis |
| 6 | demonstrate an ability to interpret and report findings. |
On completion of this unit, students should be able to:
- describe different philosophical approaches to knowledge creation
- describe the strengths and limitations of various study designs
- identify a question and plan an appropriate methodology that addresses it
- evaluate ethical implications of a proposed inquiry
- demonstrate an ability to conduct basic data analysis
- demonstrate an ability to interpret and report findings.
Prescribed texts
- This text is available to read online at the library so purchase is not required unless you prefer to read from a book: Portney, LG & Watkins, MP , 2015, Foundations of Clinical Research: Applications to Practice, 3rd edn, F. A. Davis, Philadelphia.
- Prescribed text information is not currently available.
Prescribed texts may change in future teaching periods.