Describe aspects of prenatal care, postnatal care, or both, in relation to your topic.

This assignment is the first of three components in your course project. For more information about the course project, review the course project information and refer to the Unit 10 assignment.

For this assignment, select the topic or issue in prenatal development, postnatal development, or both, that you will research for your course project. If you choose to focus on a postnatal topic, limit your focus to the first three months after birth only.

Some examples of appropriate topics include:

  • Postpartum maternal depression: the impact on early postnatal attachment.
  • Alcohol-related neurodeveopmental disorders: the impact on prenatal and postnatal brain development.
  • Hospital births versus home births: the impact on birth outcomes.
  • The impact of multiple births as a result of in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Write a 1–2 page paper describing the development topic or issue you have selected. Address the following in your paper:

  • Justify the chosen topic in the area of prenatal development, postnatal development, or both.
  • Describe aspects of prenatal care, postnatal care, or both, in relation to your topic.
  • Explain what you hope to learn from your research and writing of the final paper.

Assignment Requirements

  • Written communication: Written communication should be free of errors that detract from the overall message.
  • APA formatting: References and citations should be formatted according to current APA style and formatting standards.
  • Length of paper: 1–2 typed, double-spaced pages.
  • Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12-point.

Review the scoring guide to ensure you have addressed the assignment grading criteria before you submit your assignment.

Note: Your instructor may also use the Writing Feedback Tool to provide feedback on your writing. In the tool, click the linked resources for helpful writing information.

Resources

  • Topic Selection Scoring Guide.
  • APA Guide.
  • APA Style and Format.
  • Capella Library.
  • Capella Writing Center.
  • PSY6010: Human Prenatal Development Research Guide.
  • Tour the Capella Library.
  • Writing Feedback Tool.

What would you advise her in terms of preventive actions, available testing, and reproduction options?

By the due date assigned, submit your response to the appropriate Discussion Area. Use the same Discussion Area to comment on your classmates’ submissions through the end of the module, and continue the discussion through the end of the module.

Choose one of the seven disorders you read about in this unit: Fragile X syndrome, ADHD, Turner syndrome, Down syndrome, Williams syndrome, autism, and FAS. Respond to the following questions using the disorder you chose.

Your friend Alice tells you that her daughter Lauren has been recently diagnosed with this disorder. Alice would like more details and comes to you for information.

Provide a brief description of the disorder.

Ask three friends or family members who are not in the field of medicine or psychology what they know about the cause and symptoms of the disorder. Analyze their replies and discuss what this might imply about how this disorder is known and perceived by the general public.

Alice expresses guilt that she may have caused Lauren’s disorder and is also concerned that it might occur again in future offspring. What would you advise her in terms of preventive actions, available testing, and reproduction options?

What does he need to do to make sure he is competitive enough to be accepted into a graduate program?

Use the information presented in Chapter 8 of your course text as well as the required websites to assist you in addressing the scenarios. You will also need to do some additional research. Recommended websites are provided and you will find useful information on the websites of graduate programs in psychology and other mental health-related fields.

  1. Denise has decided she wants to counsel children and adolescents. She has a modest amount of interest in reading research findings that are relevant to counseling children and youth. She has little interest in conducting research. She is exploring the following options for her degree after her bachelor’s degree:
    • Master of Arts/ Master of Science in Clinical Psychology
    • Master of Arts/ Master of Science in Counseling Psychology
    • Master of Education in Counseling Psychology
    • Master of Social Work
    • Master of Science in Pastoral Counseling
    • Master of Science in Counseling.
    • Research the programs Denise is considering and list at least two pros and cons for each option.
  2. Raul always thought he wanted to be a clinical or counseling psychologist until he did some volunteer work in a psychiatric clinic and interviewed several psychologists and counselors. Now, as a senior who is months away from graduation, Raul is trying to decide what his next academic and career steps should be. He has a moderate interest in research but does not care much for writing papers. He could see himself teaching, if necessary, but it is not his passion. He already has a wife and two children, so earning potential is important to him.
    • What advice would you give Raul based on the information from this week’s resources?
  3. After many years in the corporate world, John was let go from his company due to down-sizing. He is interested in integrating what he learned in business with psychology. He believes that Industrial/Organizational (I/O) Psychology might be a good fit for him.
    • What types of graduate options are available for John?
    • How competitive are graduate programs in I/O psychology?
    • What does he need to do to make sure he is competitive enough to be accepted into a graduate program?

Carefully review the Grading Rubric (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.

A psychological assessment report is created by psychology professionals to inform groups or individuals of the assessments appropriate for their current needs. This type of report also includes a summary of the services provided to these groups or individuals. This evaluation is used by the various entities to assess basic needs, competencies, preferences, skills, traits, dispositions, and abilities for different individuals in a variety of settings.

Psychological reports vary widely depending on the psychology professional creating it and the needs being assessed. Some of the psychology professionals who create this type of report include counselors, school psychologists, consultants, psychometricians, or psychological examiners. This type of report may be as short as three pages or as long as 20 or more pages depending on the needs of the stakeholders. Many reports include tables of scores that are attached either in an appendix or integrated into the report. Despite the many variations in assessment reports, most include the same essential information and headings.

Students will choose one of the personality assessment scenarios from the discussions in Weeks Two, Three, or Four to use as the basis of this psychological assessment report. Once the scenario has been chosen, students will research a minimum of four peer-reviewed articles that relate to and support the content of the scenario and the report as outlined below. The following headings and content must be included in the report:

The Reason for Referral and Background Information
In this section, students will describe the reasons for the referral and relevant background information for all stakeholders from the chosen personality assessment scenario.

Assessment Procedures
In this section, students will include a bulleted list of the test(s) and other assessment measures recommended for the evaluation of the given scenario. In addition to the assessment(s) initially provided in the personality assessment scenario from the weekly discussion, students must include at least three other measures appropriate for the scenario.

 

Immediately following the bulleted list, students will include a narrative description of the assessments. In the narrative, students will examine and comment on the major theoretical approaches, research methods, and assessment instruments appropriate for the situation and stakeholder needs. In order to defend the choice of recommended assessments, students will evaluate current research in the field of personality theories and provide examples of how these assessments are valid for use in the chosen scenario. For additional support of these recommended assessment measures, students will evaluate the standardization, reliability and validity, and cultural considerations present in these personality assessments that make them the most appropriate tools for the given scenario. Students will conclude the narrative by assessing types of personality measurements and research designs often used in scenarios like the one chosen and providing a rationale for why some of those assessments were not included.

General Observations and Impressions
In this section, students will describe general observations of the client during the assessment period provided in the chosen personality assessment scenario and explain whether the client’s behavior might have had a negative impact on the test results. Students will analyze and comment on how the APA’s Ethical Principles and Code of Conduct affected the implementation of the personality assessment during the initial process. Based on the observations and analysis, students will assess the validity of the evaluation and make a recommendation for or against the necessity for additional testing.

Test Results and Interpretations
In this section, students will analyze the results of the assessment provided in the chosen personality assessment scenario. Based on the score, students will interpret the personality factors (conscientiousness, openness, emotional stability, introversion, extroversion, work drive, self-directedness, etc.) that are present.

Note: Typically, this section reports test results and is the longest section of a psychological assessment report because the results of all the tests administered are analyzed and reported. Some psychologists report all test results individually, while others may integrate only a portion of the test results. However, in this report, only the assessment presented in the chosen personality assessment scenario will be included.

Summary and Recommendations
In this section, students will summarize the test results.  They will provide a complete explanation for the evaluation, the procedures and measures used, and the results and include any recommendations translating the evaluation into strategies and suggestions to support the client. Finally, students will provide any conclusions and diagnostic impressions drawn from the previous sections of the report.

Pathbrite Portfolio 
The Masters of Arts in Psychology program is utilizing the Pathbrite portfolio tool as a repository for student scholarly work in the form of signature assignments completed within the program. After receiving feedback for this Psychological Assessment Report, please implement any changes recommended by the instructor, go to Pathbrite (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. and upload the revised Psychological Assessment Report to the portfolio. Use the Pathbrite Quick-Start Guide  (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. to create an account if you do not already have one. The upload of signature assignments will take place after completing each course. Be certain to upload revised signature assignments throughout the program as the portfolio and its contents will be used in other courses and may be used by individual students as a professional resource tool. See the Pathbrite (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. website for information and further instructions on using this portfolio tool.

Writing the Psychological Assessment Report

The report:

  • Must be six to ten double-spaced pages in length and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
  • Must include a title page with the following:
    • Title of paper
    • Student’s name
    • Course name and number
    • Instructor’s name
    • Date submitted
  • Must include the required headings and content as listed above.
  • Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought.
  • Must utilize assessment manuals as necessary to support the inclusion and results of the assessments.
  • Must use a minimum of four peer-reviewed sources, at least two of which must be from the Ashford University Library.
  • Must document all sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
  • Must include a separate reference page that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.

Carefully review the Grading Rubric (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.