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M P Shepard

Publications and source records attributed to M P Shepard.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Conceptual and technical considerations when combining large data sets.

Secondary analysis provides a useful method for the development of new knowledge. Larger samples can be constructed, and secondary analysis can be enhanced when data sets are combined. A standardized method for combining large data sets is crucial, yet literature on methods for combining large data sets for secondary analysis is lacking. The purpose of this article is to outline and explain the process of combining two or more large data sets (n = 276, n = 125) for secondary analysis by using these authors' previous work with large oncology and AIDS caregiver data sets.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1999

Conceptual and pragmatic considerations in conducting a secondary analysis. An example from research of families.

In this article, the authors discuss conceptual and pragmatic considerations for conducting research of families using large secondary data sets. Conceptual considerations include establishing consistency among the theory, variables, and available data, and determining reliability and validity of the data in the context of the theory. Pragmatic considerations include the use of resources such as management of the data among several authors, criteria and methods for selection of a subsample, and, recoding of the data to examine dyadic difference scores. The Family Special Interest Group of the Eastern Nursing Research Society initiated this research as part of a project to analyze families using large national data sets. The purpose of the secondary analysis was to identify family beliefs about healt-promoting behaviors. Combining parent and teen data to create relational level data resulted in new information that had not been identified in the original survey.

Data Interpretation, Statistical↗
PubMed1999

Parent-teen worry about the teen contracting AIDS.

A secondary data analysis of the National Commission on Children: 1990 Survey of Parents and Children was conducted with a subsample of 457 parent-teen pairs who responded to the "worry about AIDS" question. The teen's worry about contracting AIDS was associated with race, parent's education, the amount of discipline from the parent for engaging in sex, the teen's desire to talk to the parent about the problem of sex, the teen's rating of the neighborhood as a safe place to grow up, whether the parent listened to the teen's telephone interview, and the parent's response to whether his or her teen had a history of sexually transmitted disease. Of the parent-teen pairs in the subsample, 46% (N = 210) agreed in their responses about worry. Agreement was more frequent among the parent-teen pairs when compared to randomly constructed surrogate pairs. Dyadic analysis supported a family system view of perceived susceptibility.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗