Introduction
All human beings are creatures of habits, both good and bad and while our lifestyle can make us free from of rethinking everything that we are or want to do, anytime we do it, our way of life can also enslave us to doing things that can be very destructive to our life in the long run (Stroh, 2011). These habits can be very hard to deal with, even at point where we know we must, it is hard to avoid. Wealth of knowledge and experience in enhancing the quality of health care has accumulated globe over many decades.
/>
It is on this basis that the interest in developing a nursing intervention to encourage healthy eating habits among teenagers came to existence. In order to achieve this, a set of data will be needed to help in the development efforts. The data to be collected will aim at addressing the issue of different eating habits, according to gender and socioeconomic factors such as education, income, social status, and ethnicity.
Data Collection Method
The data gathered will act as a source of information that would be used in developing a nursing intervention to encourage healthy eating habits among teenagers. Qualitative method of data analysis will aim at gathering an in-depth understanding of the subject under study that influences the eating habits of teenagers. It will look at reasons why these habits are developed, at what stage of teenagers’ life doe it start and also find out the different healthy eating habits. Whereas, quantitative method of data collection will be employed to do an empirical analysis of the study, it will show the percentages and numeric data (Guion, Dieh and McDonald, 2008). By having quantitative data collection method, the nurse is hoping the numbers will give results to the study, which is an unbiased. In other words, the research adapted methodological triangulation that involved use of quantitative methods of collecting and analysing data. This method is significant to the study in that accurate data that is much needed for the study to be successful was collected. The approach will also give room to compare the findings from various categories of the respondents, in different ways.
Qualitative approach entails subjective assessment of attitudes, behaviour, and opinions. This shows that the researcher had to consider his insights and impressions about developing a nursing intervention to encourage healthy eating habits among teenagers. The insights and impression focused on developing a nursing intervention to encourage healthy eating habits among teenagers. In line with this, the nurse will consider the techniques used in identification and analysis of healthy eating habits among teenagers. This kind of research approach generates findings that are non-quantitative or findings that can be subject less rigorous quantitative analysis. In this case, interviews and focus group interviews are used (Midgley, 2010). The qualitative approach focuses on content analysis collected from interviews conducted during data collection period. The following quantitative methods of data collection will be used for the development efforts;
Surveys, questionnaires and interviews were the main data collection tools. The three data collection methods are justified for the undertaken in developing a nursing intervention to encourage healthy eating habits among teenagers because they ensured all the needed information will be gathered. Apart from conducting interviews, the study used questionnaire as a tool of collecting data (Stroh, 2011). Questionnaires will be used in this study because the research had to ensure reliability of data collected, and in addition ensure quality of data collected. Responses from questionnaires will be gathered in a standardised way, thus questionnaires in this case will be more objective. Moreover, questionnaires are quick in collecting data from the respondents in any study (Stroh, 2011). However, this might not be the case, especially when the respondents do not avail questionnaires in the required time. In other words, questionnaires can take long if the respondents do not respond as per the timelines given. On the other hand, in developing a nursing intervention to encourage healthy eating habits among teenagers, interviews will facilitate quick response to the underlying issues to help in the development efforts (Guion, Dieh and McDonald, 2008).
The researcher adapted a structured questionnaire, which had both fixed responses (closed ended), and open-ended questions. This will used because the close-ended questionnaire needed specific information from the respondents while open-ended questionnaire wanted the opinion of the respondents. The tools of collecting data targeted respondents who have the knowledge on healthy eating habits. The activities could be direct or indirect activities; meaning that the respondents could either be practicing healthy eating habits or knows what healthy eating habits entail. The respondents that will be picked for the project will include; nurses, nutritionists, doctors, and people from different life styles.
Surveys will also be used in the development effort. The type of survey that took place is unusual since the researcher had to make comparisons on the field with reference to the data collected on previous researches. Therefore, the researcher has to depend on primary data especially when it came to analysis techniques used in developing a nursing intervention to encourage healthy eating habits among teenagers.
Interview is another tool that is not predominantly influenced by the respondents. However, the interviews require much attention when it comes to asking questions. A suitable environment needs to be created in order to receive relevant information from the respondent. The interviewer required training the nurses who will be involved in the development efforts. They will be trained on how to ask questions in the right approach paying attention to the feelings of the respondents. Any interference of the respondent’s feelings leads to the collection of biased data, which will influence the overall findings of the development efforts.
Data Analysis
During data analysis, quantitative methods will be used to analyze the data. The data will mainly be analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency tables, and percentages. This enabled the researcher to describe meaningfully distribution of scores or measures in developing a nursing intervention to encourage healthy eating habits among teenagers.
The data analysis procedure will start with making a summary of all the respondents from different methods of data collection used. The responses will then be grouped according to their weight and coded in statistical applications analyzed the data in a more understanding manner. The analysis of data will be done by use of Ms excel, which enabled the researcher to analyze data as well as presenting data using statistical diagrams such as pie charts and bar graphs. The nurses involved in the development efforts will have to organize data collected, in a form that can be analyzed by the selected software (Stroh, 2011). In other words, the nurses will have to organize data in numbers that can be fed in the computer, and later the computer will be instructed according to the required outcomes.
During data analysis, qualitative methods of data collection will be used to analyze the data. The data will be address the issue of different eating habits, according to gender and socioeconomic factors such as education, income, social status, and ethnicity.The data will mainly be analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency tables, percentages, bar charts and histograms (Midgley, 2010). This enabled the nurses involved in the development efforts of the intervention program to describe distribution of scores or measures meaningfully on healthy eating habits among teenagers. The data analysis procedure started with making a summary of all the respondents from different methods of data collection used. The responses were then grouped according to their weight and tabulation was applied to analyze the data in a more understandable manner. The analysis will use qualitative data being applied due to the difference of the variables and elements under analysis. This is a result of the variety of data being analyzed, which differs as some questionnaire responses are in nominal form while other are in the scale form as well as due to the multivariable nature of the elements being analyzed in the case (Midgley, 2010).
As part of the data analysis process the nurses involved in the development of efforts of the intervention program will have to ensure validity and reliability of the data. Validity is the success of a scale in measuring what it was set out to measure so that differences in individual scores can be taken as representing true differences in characteristics under study. Validity therefore fostered comparisons as it involved the assessment of extreme ends of the study and average conclusions were drawn from the available sources. The validity of the data collection instruments will be done with the help of the nurses to edit the questionnaire and the Interview guide (Stroh, 2011). The nurses forwarded the sample structured questionnaire in the area covered by the research for editing and reviewing by the relevant company authorities. While reliability is a measure of the degree to which a research instrument yields consistent results after repeated trials. Reliability refers to consistency and stability in measurements. The perfection of secondary data sources were evidenced by the highest level of accuracy obtained in the brand name and its impact case study. The reliability will be ensured by testing the instruments for the consistency of values (Alpha values). According to Lance, Butts and Michels (2006), Alpha values for each variable under study should not be less than 0.6 for the statements in the instruments to be deemed reliable.
Conclusion
In conclusion, doctors around the worlds have come up with various theories in support or against overeating. These various theories centres around the way over eating can be either good or bad to our lives in general. The most noted characteristic of over eating is a person being too fat or overweight. But so far there is no empirical evidence in support of over eating (Midgley, 2010). The data collection methods and analysis will help in the development of a nursing intervention to encourage healthy eating habits among teenagers.
Reference
Guion, L., Diehl, D. & McDonald, D. (2008) Triangulation: Establishing The Validity Of Qualitative Studies [Online]. Available from: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fy394 (Accessed: 16 February 2014).
Lance, C. Butts, M. & Michels, L., (2006). Research Methodology: A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners. 3rd ed. London: SAGE Publications Ltd
Midgley, G. (2010) Systemic Intervention: Developing better eating habit and Practice. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.
Stroh, L. K. (2011). Health Interventions: Way of Data collection and Analysis, International Journal of Health Management, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 1–17.
