Certified Midwife Exam Prep Research & Evidence-Based Practice 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A midwife is reading a phenomenological qualitative study. Which of the following BEST describes the purpose of this methodology?
- To develop a new theory from participant data
- To explore the lived experience of a phenomenon from participants' perspectives (Correct answer)
- To compare outcomes between two groups experiencing the same event
- To measure the prevalence of a condition in a community
Correct answer: To explore the lived experience of a phenomenon from participants' perspectives
Phenomenology seeks to understand the essence of lived experience as described by those who have experienced a particular phenomenon.
Question 2: When a midwife notices that a research study's primary outcome was changed after data collection began, this MOST likely represents which type of bias?
- Attrition bias
- Selective reporting bias (Correct answer)
- Observer bias
- Recall bias
Correct answer: Selective reporting bias
Changing or selectively reporting outcomes after data collection is selective (reporting) bias, often inflating the apparent significance of findings.
Question 3: Which measure of central tendency is MOST appropriate when a dataset on neonatal birth weights contains several extreme outliers?
- Mean
- Mode
- Median (Correct answer)
- Standard deviation
Correct answer: Median
The median is resistant to extreme values (outliers), making it more representative of the typical value in skewed distributions.
Question 4: A midwifery practice wants to evaluate whether implementing a new prenatal education program reduces preterm births. Which study design is MOST feasible when randomization is not possible?
- Case-control study
- Quasi-experimental (interrupted time series) study (Correct answer)
- Cross-sectional survey
- Ecological correlation study
Correct answer: Quasi-experimental (interrupted time series) study
A quasi-experimental interrupted time series compares outcomes before and after an intervention without randomization, controlling for time trends.
Question 5: In a research report, 'transferability' is described as a criterion for rigor. This concept is MOST equivalent to which criterion in quantitative research?
- Reliability
- Internal validity
- External validity (generalizability) (Correct answer)
- Objectivity
Correct answer: External validity (generalizability)
Transferability in qualitative research refers to whether findings can be applied to other contexts, paralleling external validity (generalizability) in quantitative research.
Question 6: A midwife discovers a high-quality systematic review contradicts current unit policy. According to EBP principles, what is the BEST initial action?
- Immediately change practice to align with the review findings
- Share the evidence with the team and propose a formal policy review process (Correct answer)
- Disregard the review because institutional policy takes precedence
- Wait until the evidence is published in a textbook
Correct answer: Share the evidence with the team and propose a formal policy review process
EBP integrates best evidence, clinical expertise, and patient values through a collaborative process; sharing evidence and proposing formal review respects this process.
Question 7: Which of the following BEST describes the concept of data saturation in qualitative research?
- The point at which the sample size matches the target population proportion
- The point at which no new themes or information emerge from additional data collection (Correct answer)
- The point at which quantitative and qualitative data sets are equal in size
- The point at which all participants have been interviewed at least twice
Correct answer: The point at which no new themes or information emerge from additional data collection
Data saturation occurs when additional data collection yields no new themes, indicating sufficient depth and breadth of information has been achieved.
Certified Midwife Exam Prep Research & Evidence-Based Practice 5
A midwife is reading a phenomenological qualitative study.
Which of the following BEST describes the purpose of this methodology?