Research capability in doctoral training

Abstract

Rationale:Doctoral training should provide insight into the evolution of research capability in nursing.

Methods:Research designs were evaluated from abstracts of 204 theses extracted from the ASLIB database, 1983–2002. Most were from PhD/DPhil degrees, but a few were Professional Doctorates.

Findings:‘Educational’ and ‘organisational’ settings dominated, indicating their sustained popularity. A total of 11 methodological frameworks were noted, with ‘Ethnography’, ‘Social history’, ‘Work environment’ and ‘Grounded theory’ being the most popular. ‘Interviews’ with individuals and ‘Questionnaire survey’ were easily the most popular of 28 different research tools/techniques.

Comparing abstracts from 1997–2002 with those from 1983–1996 identified significant changes in methodologies and methods used. The frequency of ‘Phenomenology’, ‘Work environment’ and ‘Grounded theory’ methodologies increased. The ‘Patient led’ framework appeared for the first time, albeit in just a few theses. The incidence of ‘Ethnography’ declined. Some methods only appeared for the first time during the 1990s, e.g. ‘Focus groups’. Of the methods, ‘Interviews’ increased substantially but ‘Questionnaires’ decreased slightly. In terms of developing clinical research, we noted an increased frequency of ‘All experimental’ methods. Multiple methods, used in 71% of theses overall, increased in incidence during the late 1990s, a change that was significantly associated with ‘post-1992’ universities. Over time, there was a significant increase in the number of methodologies and methods used, per thesis.

Conclusions:This study documents the breadth of research designs used by students researching nursing. It provides evidence for an evolution of designs with an increasing diversity that indicates a growing maturity of nursing research culture.