Finding a Quantitative Research Article for Nursing

Scholarly Journal Articles
Scholarly journal articles have a high level of editorial review (peer review) and contain some of the most well-respected research in your discipline. They are designed to facilitate evaluating the findings and method of research as easily as possible. That is why your professors urge you to use them for your research.

Structure of Scholarly Journal Articles
Most scholarly journal articles in your field will use the same structure. This common structure helps you find what you need quickly.  Most often, it includes the following: abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion, conclusion, and bibliography.

Abstract (Summary) : A concise summary of the article, including methodology, results, implications of the results, authors’ interpretations and conclusions.

Introduction (WHY): The authors introduce their topic, explain the purpose of the study, and present the statement of the research hypothesis.  There is also a brief overview of the other literature that has been written about the same topic. 

Methods/Methodology / Materials (HOW): It provides the technical details of how the study was conducted, including the identification of participants, procedures, and materials.

Results (WHAT HAPPENED): Includes the data the authors use to reach their conclusions. There are often figures, tables and graphs.

Discussion / Analysis/ (WHAT IT MEANS): The authors analyse their data, evaluate whether the results of their study answered their hypothesis and explains how results support the conclusions.

Conclusion (WHAT WAS LEARNED): Here the authors offer their final thoughts about how the study adds to the existing knowledge on the topic the strengths and weaknesses of the study, and recommendations for future research.

References: A list of sources from where the information was obtained.