Toward mindfulness in quality-of-life research: perspectives on how to avoid rigor becoming rigidity.

Background: The field of quality-of-life (QOL) research has matured into a discipline with scientific rigor, sophisticated methods, and guidelines. While this maturation is laudable and needed, it can result in a limiting rigidity. We aim to highlight examples of practices that are based on shared r...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Quality of Life Research Vol. 26; no. 6; pp. 1387 - 1393
Autores principales: Sprangers, Mirjam, Schwartz, Carolyn, Sprangers, Mirjam A G, Schwartz, Carolyn E
Formato: Journal Article
Publicado: Springer Nature Jun2017
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
fields @attributes:
  recordID: 1
pdfLink:
plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=122898028&site=ehost-live
header:
  @attributes:
    shortDbName: ccm
    uiTerm: 122898028
    longDbName: CINAHL Complete
    uiTag: AN
  controlInfo:
    bkinfo:
    dissinfo:
    jinfo:
      jid:
        09629343
        GPQ
      jtl: Quality of Life Research
      issn: 09629343
      maglogo: N
    pubinfo:
      dt: Jun2017
      vid: 26
      iid: 6
      pid: 237
      pub: Springer Nature
      place: New York, New York
    artinfo:
      ui:
        122898028
        122898028
        143986963
        NLM28070804
        10.1007/s11136-016-1492-2
        NLM28070804
        122898028
      ppf: 1387
      ppct: 6
      formats:
        fmt:
          @attributes:
            type: P
      tig:
        atl: Toward mindfulness in quality-of-life research: perspectives on how to avoid rigor becoming rigidity.
      aug:
        au:
          Sprangers, Mirjam
          Schwartz, Carolyn
          Sprangers, Mirjam A G
          Schwartz, Carolyn E
        affil: Department of Medical Psychology, Academic Medical Center , University of Amsterdam , Meibergdreef 15 1105 AZ Amsterdam The Netherlands
      sug:
        subj:
          Study Design Standards
          Mindfulness
          Quality of Life
          Research
      ab: Background: The field of quality-of-life (QOL) research has matured into a discipline with scientific rigor, sophisticated methods, and guidelines. While this maturation is laudable and needed, it can result in a limiting rigidity. We aim to highlight examples of practices that are based on shared research values and principles that, when dogmatically applied, may limit the potential impact of QOL research.Methods: By juxtaposing rigorous standards with their rigid application for different stages of the research cycle, we suggest more balanced approaches.Results: Rigidity in cultivating a research question relates to constraining our thinking, leading to 'safe' research focusing on small variations of similar studies. Rigidity in operationalizing key constructs focuses on problems with validation practices that hinder further innovations, the use of static questionnaires when a more flexible approach is needed, dismissing rarely endorsed items that are clinically relevant, use of insensitive generic measures when specific measures are required, and a rigid emphasis on short questionnaires. Rigidity in data analysis relates to an undue emphasis on delineating primary and secondary outcomes and an unquestioned insistence on reducing Type 1 errors regardless of the research context. Rigidity in research infrastructure focuses on the unquestioned validity of patient input on scientific matters, and increasingly rigid guidelines and checklists that end up driving grant applications.Discussion: It is hoped that this overview will lead to a reconsideration of a more flexible application of research principles while retaining scientific rigor.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
    refInfo:
    holdings:
      @attributes:
        islocal: N