When nurses ask questions such as, “Why are things done this way?”, “I wonder what would happen if … ?”, “What characteristics are associated with … ?”, or “What is the effect of … on patient outcomes?”, they are often well on their way to developing a research question or hypothesis.

Formulating the research question or hypothesis is a key preliminary step in the research process. The research question (sometimes called the problem statement) presents the idea that is to be examined in the study and is the foundation of the research study. The hypothesis attempts to answer the research question.

Hypotheses can he considered intelligent hunches, guesses, or predictions that help researchers seek the solution or answer the research question. Hypotheses are a vehicle for testing the validity of the theoretical framework assumptions and provide a bridge between theory and the real world. In the scientific world, researchers derive hypotheses from theories and subject them to empirical testing. A theory’s validity is not directly examined. Instead, it is through the hypotheses that the merit of a theory can be evaluated.

Research consumers often find research questions or hypotheses at the beginning of a research article. However, because of space constraints or stylistic considerations in such publications, they may be embedded in the purpose, aims, goals, or even in the results section of the research report. Nevertheless, it is equally important for both the consumer and the producer of research to understand the importance of research questions and hypotheses as the foundational elements of a research study. This chapter provides a working knowledge of quantitative research questions and hypotheses, as well as the standards for writing them and a set of criteria for evaluating them.

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