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Writing up research for publication NS775 Price B (2015) Writing up research for publication. Nursing Standard. 29, 19, 52-59. Date of submission: January 17 2014; date of acceptance: February 27 2014.

Aims and intended learning outcomes

Abstract

For related articles visit the archive and search using the keywords above.

The aim of this article is to assist you to plan and prepare a research article for publication, summarising the research you have conducted and presenting your findings in a clear way. The article is not aimed at expert researchers, but assumes that you are familiar with the principles of research design that have guided your study. After reading this article and completing the time out activities you should be able to: Summarise the essential items that should be planned when preparing a research article for the chosen journal. Outline important considerations in relation to the ethics of publishing research. Describe the benefits of reviewing articles from relevant journals and reading the author guidelines. Outline what should be included in the abstract for an article. Identify the main elements of research design (paradigm and research methods) that should be covered in your article. Explain why a clear understanding of the research design can help readers evaluate the claims made about your research. Describe why it is important to pay particular attention to tables, figures and diagrams as part of the writing process.

To write a CPD article: please email [email protected] Guidelines on writing for publication are available at: rcnpublishing.com/r/author-guidelines

Introduction

This article describes the process of preparing a research article for publication in a nursing journal. It is aimed at nurses who wish to share their research results with other health professionals and is designed to help the researcher who is new to publishing. In writing a research article, the author describes what he or she has learned. This may enable others to replicate or develop the research, or improve their clinical practice. Published research should represent the research clearly and accurately, present the findings or results, and provide reasoned conclusions about what has been discovered.

Author Bob Price Healthcare education and practice development consultant, Surrey, England. Correspondence to: [email protected]

Keywords Article preparation, authorship, clinical nursing research, nurse evaluation research, nursing methodology research, research, writing for publication

Review All articles are subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

Online

Nursing research continues to evolve. There has been an increase in qualitative data research that provides insights into patient, carer and practitioner experience (3% in 1985 and 21% in 2010) (Yarcheski et al 2012). Research now focuses on nursing practice issues, which are of particular value when they show understanding of the economic and

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logistical constraints of health care. Nursing practice issues formed 73% (71/97) of 2010 published studies in four nursing journals reviewed by Yarcheski et al (2012). It is beyond the scope of this article to debate the best research designs, but different research designs should be presented for publication in slightly different ways. A qualitative research study, such as a case study, phenomenological, ethnographic or grounded theory research, will present evidence as a series of themes and illustrate these by quoting what people have said or with observations made (Denzin and Lincoln 2005). A quantitative research study, such as a survey or a randomised controlled trial, will present data in a more statistical form (Williams and Monge 2000). It is clear – from even the most cursory examination of published research articles and research reports – that writing for publication involves a distillation of information. Not all findings and conclusions can possibly be included within the confines of a single research article (Ahern 2012), so each research article should have a strategic purpose. Will this article represent a summary of the research and its most significant findings, or will it focus on the methodology – the process of conducting the research? Perhaps it will become one of a series of research articles reporting on different aspects of the research you have undertaken. Will the article demonstrate your reflections on the research you have done, providing insights into the research process and enabling others to replicate your research (Reymi and Naidoo 2013)? The different types of research article can all be valuable for readers. This continuing professional development article focuses on writing a summary of a research project for publication. It aims to assist nurses who are undertaking this process for the first time. Getting your research published is important in an evidence-based profession. The evidence should be presented clearly, it should be easy to interpret and the implications for practice should be stated (Christie et al 2012). One Canadian study demonstrated how influential research about practical care issues can be, with articles achieving widespread interest and citation among other practitioners (Hack et al 2010). The research design should be summarised so that others understand how data were gathered and analysed (Houghton et al 2012, Fleming 2013). Clearly documented research can inspire others to undertake their own research, in a more informed way, understanding

the nature of the work involved (Traynor 2013). Your writing needs to be disciplined, focusing on what you did and what can be deduced from it. Complete time out activity 1

Single and multiple author article planning You should start your plan by answering the question ‘Who will write this article?’ If you have conducted your research alone – in part fulfilment of an academic course, for example – you will probably write as a single author, acknowledging the support of your research supervisor. Where multiple authors are involved, it is important to be clear about who has contributed to the research and to acknowledge those who have contributed to it as co-authors (Hayter et al 2013). Details relating to the integrity of conducting and writing up research are published by the Research Councils UK (2009). Individuals should not be added to the list of co-authors unless they have had a substantial role in planning the research, fieldwork and/or management of data. It is inappropriate for individuals to be included as co-authors where they have simply advised on a study, rather than contributed to its conduct. Where multiple authors are acknowledged, it is helpful to indicate their specific role in the research, for example data collection in the women’s and children’s services directorate. Individual journals often have set criteria for multiple authorship of research articles, stating who is and is not acceptable as a co-author. They sometimes state that a percentage contribution should be indicated for each co-author, so that readers can determine who deserves the credit for the work. If you have conducted research with colleagues, you will need to agree who does what in the preparation of your article. Valuable research often develops from a supportive environment, where a range of contributors have helped design, manage and write up the study (Wilkes and Jackson 2013). The first named individual is often the author of the article and typically has been the main organiser of the research project. Others may contribute to critical review of the draft article, write particular sections of the article, or be responsible for elements such as the literature review or the presentation of technical data. In article planning meetings, you and your

1 What are the main issues associated with preparing multiple author research for publication? Can an article be ‘written by committee’? If you are part of a team that has tried to publish its research findings previously, did someone take the lead author role?

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CPD writing for publication co-authors should agree who is responsible for particular aspects of the article, the schedule for preparing the article and the process the group will follow to get the article to a standard where you feel confident to submit it to your chosen journal.

Ethical requirements for research publication

2 It is useful to work with a librarian or colleague to identify some of the print and online journals that publish the type of research you have undertaken. Read their mission statements and note any information about their intended readership. Look at example articles similar to your research to obtain a sense of the style of articles published. Think about the readership of one of these journals and consider why it might benefit from your article. 3 Explore the author guidelines for one of the journals you selected for time out activity 2. Identify the word limit – note that this rarely exceeds 5,000-6,000 words. Make notes on how you would describe your research within the word count and think about what information you would omit. How could you make best use of the journal’s required headings?

Nursing research needs to be ethically sound before it can be accepted for publication (Committee on Publication Ethics 2011), so relevant checks should be made before you begin your research and again before you disseminate your findings. It is essential that you have secured permission to proceed with your research project from the relevant research ethics committee before you begin, and that you have completed any reports required by the research ethics committee, host organisation or research sponsor before you disseminate your results or findings. In your article, you will need to describe briefly the ethical approval process (Ahern 2012) and note any sponsorship that may have influenced your research or its presentation, such as funding from a pharmaceutical company. It is important that all participants involved in the research project are aware that the research could be published and that they consent to such publication as part of their involvement. It is impractical to attempt to obtain participants’ permission retrospectively to publish research that involved them. You also need to assure research participants and the journal readership that the identity of all individuals involved has been rendered anonymous, typically by the use of pseudonyms (Wester 2011). Adherence to ethical standards will be scrutinised by peer review, the editor and the readers. You should take special care if you are reporting something that has not been designated locally as research, being described instead as an audit or a service evaluation. Irrespective of how the project was originally conceived, peer reviewers and editorial staff will be concerned to see that you have respected the rights of the individuals concerned, particularly if they come from a vulnerable group. Complete time out activity 2

The right journal and right requirements You should submit your research article to a journal that publishes articles in your field

of study and targets a readership interested in the issues raised by your research. Do not submit the same article to different journals at the same time, because this is considered poor practice and can cause confusion. In extreme cases, litigation could follow. You should follow the relevant author guidelines. Authors are unlikely to see their research published when they depart significantly from the journal’s requirements, so before you submit your article you should ensure it conforms to these guidelines. The author guidelines section of a journal’s website usually indicates the primary readership of the journal and the article headings that are used. An abstract will be required, which provides a summary of what the research involved, the aim of the research, the methods used, results or findings, and the conclusion (Clark and Thompson 2012). Abstract guidelines may also require you to indicate what this research adds to the body of nursing knowledge. Other typical requirements in the author guidelines include the research purpose – questions, aims or hypotheses as appropriate, a summary of ethical clearance procedures, and conclusions or recommendations. It is important to consider the reputation of the journal and whether it enables your research to gain sufficient exposure among those involved directly in practice, those who teach, and those who undertake or commission further research (Clark and Thompson 2012). If a journal is published online and is free to access, more nurses may have access to it. A parallel consideration is whether the journal has established a reputation for excellence for publishing this type of research. Complete time out activity 3

Writing an abstract Abstracts are used by nurses searching for research evidence. An abstract distils the research project and helps readers decide whether it will be helpful to read the article in full. An abstract should be succinct, clear and accurate in regard to the completed research (Wester 2011). It should indicate your results and findings honestly. You should resist the temptation to overstate the significance of your research. It is important to identify questions that are not yet resolved, or where evidence is unclear, and areas for further research. The main features of an abstract are similar in most journals and are shown here

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in an example abstract from an imaginary study (Box 1). Complete time out activity 4

Writing an introduction The introduction to your article sets the context and justification for your research (Lester and Lester 2011). This usually addresses the rationale for undertaking the research and the relevance to the reader of the problems you identified in clinical practice. The perceived value of published research often depends on whether its aims relate closely to the needs and concerns of the reader. The professional context for the research associated with chronically ill patients, in Box 1, is the need to understand their healthcare needs and problems during what might prove to be a quite brief hospital stay. If the nurse obtains a full patient history, he or she is better equipped to use the limited time available. The introduction should discuss the context of the research and how it relates to

the available knowledge (Lester and Lester 2011). This is usually done by indicating what has already been published in closely related areas. The new research might fill a gap, perhaps relating to a new group of patients not previously researched. New research might also use new methodology to explore a subject. If past research has tended to consist of survey methods, for example, the current study using in-depth interviews may offer new insights into the chosen subject. As an author you should position your research concisely with regard to published information. Complete time out activity 5 Readers will need to understand any professional, organisational and economic circumstances underpinning the research so that they can evaluate the claims made concerning them. Research that was conducted in a period of economic recession, for example, might be quite different to research planned in less financially constrained circumstances. Research does not exist in a vacuum; it is conceived with particular interests, needs

BOX 1 Example of a research abstract  Article title: Challenges of taking a comprehensive patient history from patients admitted to hospital with a chronic illness.  Aims: The aim was to identify the challenges of obtaining a clear and comprehensive patient history from patients with a long-term illness. (This example is short and clear and there is no ambiguity.)  Methodological design and justification: A case study approach was used to capture the experience of taking a patient history. The researcher followed ten nurses as they admitted chronically ill patients to a ward. The taking of the patient history was observed with each nurse, and audiotaped with the permission of the patient and the nurse. The nurse was then interviewed about the process of taking the patient history. (Note that the rationale for case study research is given. The researcher does not solely confine him or herself to a summary of what was done. This section of the abstract helps the reader to decide whether to explore the article further.)  Ethical considerations: The local research ethics committee reviewed and approved the research design. Since patients were being asked to give consent to research that would commence immediately, it was agreed that the researcher would return after one week to confirm that they were content for their data to be used in the study. This allows participants time to change their minds and should help the reader feel that the study was conducted appropriately. The names of all participants have been changed to protect their identity.  Findings: Four main challenges were identified. First, the erratic way in which patients narrated their history made it more difficult for nurses to understand the sequence of events. Second, patients were often reticent about sharing their anxieties. Third, patients used a range of different terms to describe their illness. Fourth, there were care pressures and nurses were trying to gather the maximum information at one interview. (There may be additional, more tentative findings, but there is limited space to speculate in a research article. The abstract format enables you to determine exactly what you will report in the body of the article.)  Study limitations: This case study centres on a small group of nurses and the findings highlight possible challenges, rather than predicting challenges that may apply elsewhere. (Inexperienced researchers sometimes overstate what the data signify, therefore including a ‘study limitations’ section within the abstract is important.)  Conclusion: Patients present complex histories in complex ways and limited interview time compounds the problem. There may be merit in exploring new ways to help patients structure their story to offer a clear chronology of events.

4 Prepare an abstract relating to your research. It should be no more than 300 words. Present your abstract using the required abstract headings of your selected journal. What do you consider are the essential aspects of your study? What would you include that would enable others to decide whether they wished to read your research in greater depth? 5 Explain the value of your research in relation to clinical and professional requirements, current knowledge, and its organisational and economic context. What would you say best justifies your research? Is the context and background of your research clear to the reader?

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CPD writing for publication

6 How aware were you of the philosophy that underlies your research approach when you conducted your research? Why is it important to explain briefly such influences when you write up your research? 7 Select a number of sample research articles from your target journal. How clearly is the process of data analysis explained? Are the key terms defined? Are there any plain English explanations added to clarify particular methods? What can you do to make your own research design more transparent to the reader?

and concerns in mind. In the example in Box 1, an organisational reason for this research might be to make more economic use of the nurse’s time by standardising the taking of patient histories. Such research could then inform debate as to whether taking a patient history can, or should, be simplified in some way. Complete time out activity 6

Describing the research design The description of your research design should start with the research purpose – the aims, questions or hypotheses that you used to direct your research. Hypotheses are used in experimental research (Maxwell and Delaney 2004). In most other types of study, a research aim or research questions are presented instead. It is helpful to inform the reader of the research paradigm (Houghton et al 2012) and the research approach that has guided the research. A paradigm is a way of conceiving science – the way the research should be done and the resultant evidence viewed. A research approach describes the way the researcher organised the research – often informed by the writings of an established philosopher or researcher. Paradigm and research approach are not usually referred to in positivist research – where it is automatically assumed that the endeavour is scientific, but are more frequently referred to by researchers working in the remaining two paradigms – naturalistic research and critical theory research (Denzin and Lincoln 2005). Table 1

summarises research design, paradigms and research approaches, and demonstrates how a particular paradigm might shape the research process. Setting out the research design helps the reader to determine if the researcher’s claims seem supportable. It is more difficult for readers to evaluate the merit of a research article, and to accept its recommendations with conviction, when the researcher fails to indicate which paradigm and research approach has shaped the research (Houghton et al 2012). Having set out your research design in terms of the paradigm and approach used, you should then describe how your fieldwork was organised. What data were gathered? Which methods were used? In which order were data gathered, and why does that matter? If the research involved a series of phases, how were these arranged and why? Flow charts can be used to illustrate the sequence in which data were gathered (Figure 1). Complete time out activity 7 The data analysis is usually presented briefly (Ahern 2012). Data may be analysed using particular tests or statistical instruments. Where statistics are used it is important to have a statistician to check that the tests used are presented clearly. With qualitative data, the data analysis procedures of a particular researcher or philosopher may be followed (Denzin and Lincoln 2005). It is important to determine carefully what readers may be assumed to already know regarding the research methodology. The clarity of

TABLE 1 Paradigms, research approaches, research purpose and claims for research credibility Paradigm

Examples of research approaches

Purpose of the research

Claims for research credibility

Positivist research

Randomised controlled trials. Experiments. Surveys using set questionnaires or interview questions.

To measure accurately and objectively something that correlates with, or causes an effect in, something else.

The researcher writes about how bias was avoided in the research. He or she provides details about the research sample and the consistent data-gathering methods.

Naturalistic research

Phenomenology. Grounded theory. Ethnography. Case study research.

To describe clearly human experience, which may shape how health care is understood.

The researcher presents his or her research in terms of a clear audit trail – what was done, outlining the steps taken to secure participants’ accounts of illness or health care.

Critical theory research

Feminist or Marxist research, designed to uncover wrongs.

To expose critically how some groups are disadvantaged and how that disadvantage is perpetuated.

The researcher presents his or her research in terms of an audit trail and the need to change the circumstances of others (research as political activity).

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data analysis is often improved when plain English is used. Complete time out activity 8

any passages of text that appear ambiguous. Consider who might make an ideal critical reader for your article.

Presenting the essential data

Tables, figures and diagrams

The researcher should determine carefully what data they will include in their article, since only a limited amount can be included (Ahern 2012). Precisely what is included in your article will be determined by: The most important findings that you wish to share – interpreted data, which you have analysed and will explain to the reader. The complexity of these findings – more complex information requires fuller explanation, so fewer findings can be detailed. The extent to which qualitative data findings require illustration, for example using quotes, to give added authority to the article. The extent to which data can be summarised in tables, figures or diagrams – some caution is required since statistics require interpretation. Tables of data alone cannot explain all the detail required. It is reasonable to present only part of the data from your research, provided that you are clear at the outset about the scope and purpose of the article. Research frequently produces some findings that can confidently be discussed within an article and others that are more tentative. Being clear about the status of your data and the extent to which you are able to confidently report your findings is an important part of research scholarship. It is important to pay close attention to the language that you use when discussing the findings of your research, to use consistent terminology and define key terms. You are likely to present a series of arguments; these may relate to why a finding seems significant or why you feel confident about it. When you discuss your findings, you are to some extent reasoning aloud before the reader. Readers will then evaluate whether you are presenting a coherent case about your findings. At other times, you will show the reader that you are speculating about data and that more than one conclusion might be possible. When preparing your research article for colleagues to read, emphasise the value of spotting technical words that have not been defined and terms that seem to be used in inconsistent ways. Ask them to highlight

Most scholarly journals have protocols on how tables, figures and diagrams should be presented; they may also limit the number of such items that can be included in a research article. It is important to check their requirements in the author guidelines. The purpose of illustrative material is to help explain your findings; you should not include it simply to break up text or to make the work look more interesting. It is important not to duplicate data in different figures or diagrams because this can be confusing and a waste of valuable space. You should take particular care in preparing illustrative material, since it is often viewed in isolation from the rest of the article, and errors and oversights are common (Box 2). You should plan in advance the number of findings that you can realistically discuss in a research article. Extra illustrative material is often included in articles where the author is trying to squeeze in more data than there

8 What are the two to three most significant findings in your research that merit discussion within a published article? Why are these significant? Make a note of these key findings and add a short rationale for each.

FIGURE 1 Flow chart of research fieldwork (taking a patient history from patients with chronic illness) long-term illness) Phase 1 (May 2013) Watch nurses take a patient history and then interview them about what they said or did.

Phase 2 (June 2013) Audio recordings of patient history sessions and nurse interviews are transcribed and analysed. Preliminary findings discussed with individual nurses.

Phase 3 (July 2013) Produce a preliminary summary of themes emerging from the data and send these to the nurses for review.

Rationale: The observed session of taking a patient history gives a focus for the interview. Nurses talk about specific problems.

Rationale: My interpretation of the data is checked with the nurses. I ascertain that I understand what each nurse meant by what he or she shared with me.

Rationale: I check with the nurses interviewed whether I have understood the main issues involved in taking a patient history correctly.

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CPD writing for publication is room to discuss. Researchers naturally wish to share as much of their research as they can, but the temptation to add more information using illustrative material should be avoided. Complete time out activity 9

Recommendations and conclusions A classic error for an inexperienced research author is to overstate the recommendations and conclusions presented at the end of the article. The claims made may be inappropriate or too far reaching given the nature of the data presented and the findings discussed. In some instances, researchers misunderstand how their research paradigm limits the types of conclusions and recommendations that can be made. For example, the research may have been conducted in the naturalistic paradigm, using qualitative data collected from a small number of respondents, but the researcher then makes several recommendations for a significant shift in care policies. Recommendations in a naturalistic paradigm research study are usually less prescriptive and more to do with what should be considered, re-examined or explored (Denzin and Lincoln 2005). Recommendations in positivist paradigm research studies may be more prescriptive, but this depends on the adequacy of the sample size and response rates, procuring the right sample mix, controlling extraneous variables, using robust data gathering instruments and limiting researcher bias (Williams and Monge 2000). Recommendations in a critical theory paradigm research study are typically associated with raising awareness and confronting others with issues that are of concern.

Conclusions may relate to what has been discovered, what remains unclear, what seems to be contested or what remains especially problematic. They should: Relate to what has already been discussed in the article and should not contain new information from the research. Show how you have related your findings to one another, creating a synthesis of what you have discovered. Clarify which findings seem firm and which are more speculative. Match the main points that have been included in the abstract. Indicate any future work that still needs to be done to improve knowledge of your chosen subject.

Conclusion This article seeks to encourage nurses to publish their research, since this can improve the evidence base for nursing. When planning to publish your research, it is important to think about the reader and how they might use the findings. Research evidence may improve current understanding of a subject, address aspects not fully understood, raise issues that mandate changes in practice or generate topics for future consideration. Planning a successful research article starts with a clear idea as to who will contribute to the article and how. Each article should have a clear purpose. Its development proceeds through the selection of a chosen journal and a clear understanding of its readership. Authors should focus their attention on the journal’s requirements regarding the article format and the style in which the research is presented. It is necessary to provide evidence that the research was conducted ethically.

BOX 2 Common errors and oversights in illustrative material

9 From your selected journal, choose one or two research articles that seem to make good strategic use of illustrative material. What characterises these articles? What makes the use of illustrations so effective?

 Failure to accurately title an illustration.  Failure to clearly indicate the source of an illustration. (Authors are responsible for securing copyright permission to reuse material obtained from elsewhere.)  Failure to refer to the illustrative material in the main text: (Box 2), for example.  Ambiguous or unclear numbers, especially for axes in a graph. (What do the numbers measure? Number of responses received? Level of patient anxiety? Levels of cortisol in the bloodstream?)  Large illustrations, such as whole practice record forms, that cannot realistically be reproduced within the allocated article space.  Failure to add necessary coding guides, for example what each colour segment within a pie diagram refers to.  Presenting complex tables of data where only part of this information is referred to in the text. The reader is left wondering what the remaining data mean.  Numbers or percentages in tables that do not add up to 100% or add up to more than 100%.

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The essential research design details should be clear, since your article might be used to plan research that replicates or develops your work. The description of the research design should be relatively brief, but should refer to the paradigm within which the research was conceived. The well informed reader uses such paradigms to help evaluate the claims made within the study, and any conclusions and recommendations made at the end. Because an article offers only limited space to discuss your research study, it is important to determine which research findings you can write about within the word count allowed. The number of illustrations you include should reflect this careful scoping of what can be adequately conveyed in a single article. It is better to cover less material in depth rather than skim over a wide range of topics that the reader may find difficult to follow and evaluate. The article should end with a carefully considered

conclusion and recommendations, which do not overstate the findings supported by the reported data NS Complete time out activity 10

USEFUL RESOURCES  Gerrish K, Lacey A (Eds) (2010) The Research Process in Nursing. Sixth edition. Wiley-Blackwell, Chichester. (Covers writing for publication and the influence of research design on the investigation and research report.)  Heppner P, Heppner M (2003) Writing and Publishing Your Thesis, Dissertation and Research: A Guide for Students in the Helping Professions. Wadsworth Publishing, London.  Holland K, Watson R (2012) Writing for Publication in Nursing and Healthcare: Getting it Right. Wiley-Blackwell, Chichester.  Turabian K (2013) A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses and Dissertations: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers. Eighth revised edition. Chicago Press, Chicago IL.

10 Now that you have completed the article, you might like to write a reflective account. Guidelines to help you are on page 62.

References Ahern K (2012) How to create a journal article from a thesis. Nurse Researcher. 19, 4, 21-25. Christie J, Hamill C, Power J (2012) How can we maximize nursing students’ learning about research evidence and utilization in undergraduate, preregistration programmes? A discussion paper. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 68, 12, 2789-2801. Clark AM, Thompson DR (2012) Making good choices about publishing in the journal jungle. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 68, 11, 2373-2375. Committee on Publication Ethics (2011) Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors. tinyurl.com/copeguidelines (Last accessed: December 11 2014.)

Denzin NK, Lincoln YS (2005) The Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research. Third edition. Sage, Thousand Oaks CA. Fleming R (2013) Demystifying the differences in using data to improve individual practice versus publishing research findings. NASN School Nurse. 28, 5, 237-238. Hack TF, Crooks D, Plohman J, Kepron E (2010) Research citation analysis of nursing academics in Canada: identifying success indicators. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 66, 11, 2542-2549. Hayter M, Noyes J, Perry L, Pickler R, Roe B, Watson R (2013) Who writes, whose rights, and who’s right? Issues in authorship. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 69, 12, 2599-2601. Houghton C, Hunter A, Meskell P (2012) Linking aims, paradigm and

method in nursing research. Nurse Researcher. 20, 2, 34-39. Lester JD, Lester Jr JD (2011) Writing Research Papers: A Complete Guide. 15th edition. Longman, London. Maxwell SE, Delaney HD (2004) Designing Experiments and Analyzing Data: A Model Comparison Perspective. Second edition. Psychology Press, New York NY. Research Councils UK (2009) RCUK Policy and Code of Conduct on the Governance of Good Research Conduct: Integrity, Clarity and Good Management (updated 2011). Research Councils UK, Swindon. Reymi K, Naidoo J (2013) Understanding the processes of writing papers reflectively. Nurse Researcher. 20, 6, 33-39.

Traynor M (2013) Publishing can inspire research. Interview by Leslie Gelling. Nurse Researcher. 20, 5, 45. Wester KL (2011) Publishing ethical research: a step-by-step overview. Journal of Counseling & Development. 89, 3, 301-307. Wilkes L, Jackson D (2013) Enabling research cultures in nursing: insights from a multidisciplinary group of experienced researchers. Nurse Researcher. 20, 4, 28-34. Williams F, Monge PR (2000) Reasoning with Statistics: How to Read Quantitative Research. Fifth edition. Cengage Learning, Baltimore MD. Yarcheski A, Mahon NE, Yarcheski TJ (2012) A descriptive study of research published in scientific nursing journals from 1985 to 2010. International Journal of Nursing Studies. 49, 9, 1112-1121.

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Writing up research for publication.

This article describes the process of preparing a research article for publication in a nursing journal. It is aimed at nurses who wish to share their...
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