Research in practice: a process of collaboration and negotiation

Because practice-research conflicts confront nurses and investigators in clinical settings, our department of nursing research section found the need for collaboration and negotiation to be the major characteristic of practice setting research. Moreover, in the process of collaboration and negotiation, a number of problems arise for which alternative solutions need to be considered and tried. These problems include risk taking, vested interest, the rights of research subjects, and the need to produce both scientific and practical knowledge. The challenges faced when conducting research in practice settings are only partially predictable and only partially resolvable, but they are always exciting. The potential contributions are considerable since the basic challenge is to produce relevant, accurate information for immediate practice decisions, as well as to construct design and analysis methods that allow the project to contribute to nursings' general body of knowledge.