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W hile research topics are the theme of this issue, neonatal intensive care unit nurses' knowledge and experience with qualitative and quantitative research vary greatly. As new graduate nurses are entering the neonatal intensive care unit, the need for a consistent, evidence-based practice and knowledge of this is crucial. The effective practice of nursing is a balance between personal experience, best available clinical evidence, and logic or common sense. Sackett1 defined evidence-based practice as “the use of clinical experience combined with current best evidence to make decisions about the care of individual patients.” This definition implies that evidence-based practice has three components. These components would be the clinical expertise of the health care provider, the needs of the individual patient, and the interpretation of current best evidence.1

The “best” available clinical evidence is usually based on what happened in published studies using a number of study patients; and therefore, the conclusions may not represent what happens in real life. In addition, despite the fact that studies are published in peer-reviewed journals, their interpretation can be quite subjective. The US Preventive Service Task Force Classifications have been used to judge the strength of evidence.2 However, such classifications are incomplete and arbitrary; and therefore, the interpretation of evidence based on these classifications is highly subjective.3 The US Preventive Service Task Force Classifications do not mention meta-analyses, although most meta-analyses appear in many peer-reviewed journals with increasing frequency and are a highly regarded source of ”objective” external evidence such as the Cochrane Reviews.

It is my pleasure to introduce Dr Lihshing Leigh Wang as the guest editor of our first 2010 issue. Dr Wang is Associate Professor of Psychometrics and Quantitative Methodology in Educational Studies Program at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio. She received her PhD in Educational Psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and was a postdoctoral fellow of Psychology and visiting professor of Education at University of California, Los Angeles. She is currently Director of Assessment and Evaluation Graduate Certificate Program and Co-Director of Center for Quantitative Research Methodology at University of Cincinnati. Dr Wang will be examining the many challenges in quantitative research methodology and how to make the best evidence-based decisions on quantitative data.