Introduction
My PICOT question is, “Will children with ADHD (P) who are treated with medication (I) be more likely to have substance use disorder (O) in adulthood (T) than children treated with alternative non-pharmaceutical methods (C)?”. I chose the term “exploratory research” for this discussion based on the offered question.
Discussion
The main idea of exploratory studies is to investigate a problem or a relationship that is not clearly defined and requires a better understanding and explanation. This type of design is commonly applied in mixed-methods projects for findings’ validation and corroboration (Doyle et al., 2020). The goal of the study is to determine if there is a connection between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), medication type, and substance use disorder developed with time. Exploratory research promotes the examination of the already identified variables and offers a solution to the problem that has not been properly answered at the moment. Instead of addressing the descriptive tactics, this approach defines the situation, underlines the problematic areas, and uses available resources and environments to conclude findings. There are many examples of how exploratory research contributes to the discussion of similar problems about ADHD and medical treatment. MacDonald and Sadek (2021) conducted an explorative study based on a retrospective analysis of the associations between substance use and ADHD outcomes and shared a solid background on the chosen topic for further projects.
Conclusion
Thus, the worth of exploratory research for understanding the impact of ADHD and medications on the progress of substance use disorder has already been defined. It is not only a chance to increase awareness of the given topic but also to predict future changes and impacts within the field. My intention as a researcher is to demonstrate how a similar exploratory framework and research steps will make it possible to answer the PICOT question and address the achievements of previous scholars for the promotion of new evaluations.
References
Doyle, L., McCabe, C., Keogh, B., Brady, A., & McCann, M. (2020). An overview of the qualitative descriptive design within nursing research. Journal of Research in Nursing, 25(5), 443-455. Web.
MacDonald, B., & Sadek, J. (2021). Naturalistic exploratory study of the associations of substance use on ADHD outcomes and function. BMC Psychiatry, 21(1). Web.