Experimental and Non-Experimental Research Design in Nursing Research

This assignment provides a comparative analysis of experimental and non-experimental research designs, including a discussion of the post-test only control group design and case study assessments. It explores the levels of control in each design and highlights the importance of sampling theory in research, specifically focusing on its application to nursing research. The assignment differentiates between probability and non-probability sampling methods and provides examples relevant to nursing studies. The student discusses the application of these designs in nursing research, illustrating how different sampling methods can be used to evaluate treatment efficacy. References to relevant research papers are also included to support the analysis.

Running head: EXPERIMENTAL AND NON-EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH DESIGN
EXPERIMENTAL AND NON-EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH DESIGN
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1EXPERIMENTAL AND NON-EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH DESIGN
Example of Experimental and Non-experimental Research Design:
An example of the experimental research design is Post-test only control group design. In
this design, the independent variables are assigned randomly into two groups (Moazami et al.,
2014). One is the control group and the other is the experimental group. None of the groups are
subjected to the pre-testing. Then after the exposure of the experimental group to an experiment
or a series of experiment, both of the groups are post-tested for the assessment of the result.
An example of the non-experimental research design is the case study assessments
(Hariyati, Fujinami & Susilaningsih, 2017). Those types of assessments do not have a direct
cause-effect approach when finding an outcome. The case studies are some original or
hypothetical scenario where some events are sequentially arranged. Those events should be
analysed with a possibility assessment procedure and the causal factors of a certain event are
deciphered by prediction.
Comparison between the Levels of Control:
In case of experimental research design, the predictor variable group can be subjected to
control and manipulation in order to approach a cause and effect relationship. However, in case
of non-experimental research design, there is no variable that can be subjected to control and
manipulation and in order to conduct the experiment, only observation and interpretation method
is used.
Sampling Theory and its Application to Nursing Research:
Sampling theory is very important while conducting a research. It involves the collection
of data, identification of the sample population and finally selecting the data relevant for
conducting the research (Gentles, Charles, Ploeg & McKibbon, 2015). The sampling that is

2EXPERIMENTAL AND NON-EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH DESIGN
mainly applied to the theory is random sampling. The two types of sampling methods are
probability sampling and non-probability sampling. The examples of probability sampling
includes systematic sampling, cluster sampling, simple random sampling and stratified random
sampling, whereas the non-probability sampling include convenience sampling, purposive
sampling, snowball sampling and quota sampling (Palinkas et al., 2015).
In nursing research, randomly a group of patients can be selected in order to examine the
efficacy of a certain treatment method as a part of an experimental study design. Two groups of
patients can be randomly selected for the study as sample, who can be exposed to the treatment
in order to find the efficacy of the procedure. The first group to be selected as the control group
and the other one is to be as the experimental group. The particular basis on which the particular
group of patients are chosen for the experiment comes under different types of sampling methods
mentioned before.

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References:
Hariyati, R. T. S., Fujinami, Y., & Susilaningsih, F. S. (2017). Correlation between career ladder,
continuing professional development and nurse satisfaction: A case study in
Indonesia. International Journal of Caring Sciences, 10(3), 1490.
Moazami, F., Bahrampour, E., Azar, M. R., Jahedi, F., & Moattari, M. (2014). Comparing two
methods of education (virtual versus traditional) on learning of Iranian dental students: a
post-test only design study. BMC medical education, 14(1), 45.
Gentles, S. J., Charles, C., Ploeg, J., & McKibbon, K. (2015). Sampling in qualitative research:
Insights from an overview of the methods literature. The Qualitative Report, 20(11),
1772-1789.
Palinkas, L. A., Horwitz, S. M., Green, C. A., Wisdom, J. P., Duan, N., & Hoagwood, K. (2015).
Purposeful sampling for qualitative data collection and analysis in mixed method
implementation research. Administration and policy in mental health and mental health
services research, 42(5), 533-544.