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University of Colorado College of Nursing

College of Nursing
 

Center for Nursing Research

Tools and Resources

The Center for Nursing Research (CNR) offers support, tools and resources to assist faculty, staff and students in the pursuit of their research projects. Review the tabs below to find out more about the type of resources the CNR offers including training sessions, research tools and information, research assistants (RAs) as well as a computer lab and research library.

Research Library

A variety of research books and software reference manuals are available for use in the CNR.

Research Facilities

Faculty may also request the use of CNR facilities to conduct their research:

  • Work Stations - cubicles for faculty or research assistants to work on research projects in the Center for Nursing Research
  • File Space – file drawers and bookshelf space for storage of research-related files and materials
  • Meeting Space – a conference table is available in the CNR for research team meetings or other uses
  • Interview Rooms – two rooms across the hallway from the CNR are suitable for one-on-one research interviewing sessions or completing questionnaires
  • Clinical Research Space – an additional research space around the corner with an adjacent bathroom is suitable for blood draws or other clinical measures.
  • SurveyMonkey – the CNR has a subscription to SurveyMonkey and supports faculty use. Nursing faculty should submit the text of their questionnaire to the CNR director, CNR RAs will format the survey for electronic distribution and provide you with the final dataset when data collection is complete.

To request space at the CNR for your research project, please fill out an application form available from the Office of Research and Extramural Affairs.

The CNR is committed to a philosophy of continuous quality improvement for its programs and services. Click on the links below to learn more about our current quality program.

Research Computers and Software

The CNR has four computers with specialized research software available for student use 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All four computers are equipped with SPSS and Atlas-Ti software:

  • SPSS - A comprehensive and flexible quantitative program facilitates performing statistical analysis generating a wide selection of reports, ranging from simple descriptive statistics to complex inferential analyses. SPSS for Windows is capable of analyzing large data files with thousands of variables. Supporting documentation as well as on-line SPSS tutorials accompany the system. SPSS version 13 for Windows is now available. SPSS orientation is available online in the Virtual CNR.
  • Atlas-Ti - A powerful and user friendly qualitative program for coding and interpreting text. The software provides a wide range of powerful tools for theory building that allows the user to graphically create, manipulate, and examine logical relations. Atlas-Ti help is available through the Atlas-Ti users' group - link to it through the Virtual CNR.

A networked laser printer is available in the CNR for research-related needs.The following specialized software is also available in the Center for Nursing Research:

  • HLM - an advanced statistical program that performs hierarchical linear modeling (also known as mixed modeling). The HLM program interprets input from SPSS or other statistical packages, and analyzes "level 1" (within-subject) and "level 2" (between-subject) relationships, to model growth trajectories or other processes showing change over time. You can download a free student version of this program at the Virtual CNR.
  • AMOS and LISREL - advanced statistical programs that perform structural equation modeling (including path analysis). Both AMOS and LISREL have easy-to-use graphical interfaces for modeling complex relationships between variables. You can download a free student version of either program at the Virtual CNR.
  • NORM - a Windows-based program for analyzing patterns of missing data, and interpolating missing values using a sophisticated multiple imputation procedure that is preferable to SPSS’s choices for handling missing data. NORM is freeware – download a copy at the Virtual CNR.
  • MetaWin - a Windows-based program for performing meta-analytic reviews of published literature. This program also includes a calculator function that converts between test statistics and effect size statistics, and between different measures of effect size. You can download a free student version of this program at the Virtual CNR.

Support for Faculty Research Projects

The CNR is here to provide help with faculty research projects. Available services include data analysis support, small data entry projects, locating instruments or measures for research purposes, further development and information on specific statistical or research techniques, and small-scale literature searches. The CNR is also available to aid in the creation and analysis of online surveys using SurveyMonkey. Simply provide the survey questions and a list of recipient e-mails and the rest is taken care of. Please contact a CNR RA

Consultation and Teaching Support

The CNR facilitates and supports student and faculty research projects and offers assistance with research and evaluation courses at all graduate program levels. Nursing students and faculty have access to consultations and support from the dedicated CNR RA’s during the scheduled hours. In addition, the Virtual CNR is available 24 hours a day for self-service research assistance.

Individual Consultation for Faculty

Paul Cook, PhD, Director of the Center for Nursing Research (CNR), overseas the functions of the CNR including supervising the research assistants (RA) and coordinating the activities of the computer laboratory such as training programs, frequently used software and research colloquia. As a psychologist with expertise in research methodology and statistics, Dr. Cook assists with the analysis and interpretation of data from ongoing studies and provides guidance to students and faculty in perfecting statistical and research designs. Faculty can contact Dr. Cook at x48537 for CNR support.

Sarah Schmiege, PhD, College of Nursing Statistician, provides individual consultation on faculty research projects and grants. Dr. Schmiege has extensive experience evaluating the effectiveness of randomized controlled trials within a health domain, including the data complexities that frequently arise in such trials -- missing data, problems with fidelity and adherence, and issues surrounding longitudinal data collection and analysis. She also has a wealth of experience in estimating multilevel models (e.g., timepoints nested within individuals and individuals nested within groups), conducting psychometric analyses, and using mediational analysis and structural equation modeling.