Evaluate the appropriateness of the research methods and analytical approaches used in the study. Support the position with evidence cited from the textbook and at least one other scholarly/peer-reviewed source about the research design or method.

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Prior to beginning work on this assignment, review the assigned course textbook readings, the instructor guidance for the week, the Ashford Writing Center resource Writing an Article Critique (Links to an external site.), and the Ashford University Library tutorial How to Read a Scholarly Article (Links to an external site.). Your instructor will post an announcement with the reference for the quantitative research study to be critiqued in this assignment. After reading the posted study, use the Quantitative Research Critique Template to compose and organize your assignment.

In your paper,

  • Summarize the research question, hypothesis, methods, and results of the assigned quantitative study.
  • Determine whether the study used an experimental or non-experimental approach.
  • Evaluate the appropriateness of the research methods and analytical approaches used in the study. Support the position with evidence cited from the textbook and at least one other scholarly/peer-reviewed source about the research design or method.
  • Analyze ethical issues pertaining to how the study was carried out.
  • Critique the strengths, weaknesses, and limitations of the study.
  • Recommend a research question and methods for a follow-up study on the topic.
  • Utilize the provided template with section headings.

The Quantitative Research Critique paper

  • Must be four double-spaced pages in length (not including title and references pages) using the template provided and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center (Links to an external site.)’s APA Style (Links to an external site.) The template is a Word document that is pre-formatted in APA style. If unable to use the pre-formatted template, see the following instructions for formatting.
  • Must include a separate title page with the following:
    • Title of paper
    • Student’s name
    • Course name and number
    • Instructor’s name
    • Date submitted

For further assistance with the formatting and the title page, refer to APA Formatting for Word 2013 (Links to an external site.).

 What was the most interesting/significant topic in Social Issues to you? How has this impacted how you understand social problems?

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Directions

The exam consists of twelve short answer questions and one reflection question. Some questions ask for a definition of a concept while others ask for application and/or analysis.

Short Answer 

1.  Explain why media representation of social problems is an important issue. What is an example of a problematic representation?

2.  Explain the difference between heterosexism and heteronormativity.

3.  Identify one of the sociological perspectives of family in society today and then describe a social problem connected to that perspective.

4.  Explain the concept of gender fluidity or gender as a spectrum. How did the film Growing Up Trans reproduce the idea of gender as a binary?

5.  Describe the process of tracking in schools. How does this process reproduce inequality?

6.  What is an example of the hidden curriculum in schools? What does the presence of a hidden curriculum illustrate about the purpose of education in society?

7.  Define the concept of medicalization. How does this process relate to how we construct social problems?

8.  What is one social problem that results from the big business of health care?

9.  How are environmental concerns constructed as social problems? What social factors contribute to exposure to environmental risk?

10. Define and provide an example of environmental racism.

11. What are the three common mechanisms for social change? Provide an example for each.

12. What is required to understand resistance to social change and equity?

Reflection Question

1.  What was the most interesting/significant topic in Social Issues to you? How has this impacted how you understand social problems?

Identify the symptoms or “red flags” in the case study that may be evaluated for a possible mental health disorder.

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A diagnosis is powerful in the effect it can have on a person’s life and treatment protocol. When working with a client, a social worker must make important decisions—not only about the diagnostic label itself but about whom to tell and when. In this Discussion, you evaluate the use and communication of a diagnosis in a case study.

To prepare: Focus on the complex but precise definition of a mental disorder in the DSM-5 and the concept of dimensionality both there and in the Paris (2015) and Lasalvia (2015) readings. Also note that the definition of a mental disorder includes a set of caveats and recommendations to help find the boundary between normal distress and a mental disorder.

Then consider the following case:

Ms. Evans, age 27, was awaiting honorable discharge from her service in Iraq with the U.S. Navy when her colleagues noticed that she looked increasingly fearful and was talking about hearing voices telling her that the world was going to be destroyed in 2020. With Ms. Evans’s permission, the evaluating [social worker] interviewed one of her closest colleagues, who indicated that Ms. Evans has not been taking good care of herself for several months. Ms. Evans said she was depressed.

The [social worker] also learned that Ms. Evans’s performance of her military job duties had declined during this time and that her commanding officer had recommended to Ms. Evans that she be evaluated by a psychiatrist approximately 2 weeks earlier, for possible depression.

On interview, Ms. Evans endorsed believing the world was going to end soon and indicated that several times she has heard an audible voice that repeats this information. She has a maternal uncle with schizophrenia, and her mother has a diagnosis of bipolar I disorder. Ms. Evans’s toxicology screen is positive for tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The evaluating [social worker] informs Ms. Evans that she is making a tentative diagnosis of schizophrenia.

Source: Roberts, L. W., & Trockel, M. (2015). Case example: Importance of refining a diagnostic hypothesis. In L. W. Roberts & A. K. Louie (Eds.), Study guide to DSM-5 (pp. 6–7). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing.

Study Guide to DSM-5(r), by Roberts, M.; Louie, A.; Weiss, L. Copyright 2015 by American Psychiatric Association. Reprinted by permission of American Psychiatric Association via the Copyright Clearance Center.

Post a 300- to 500-word response in which you discuss how a social worker should approach the diagnosis. In your analysis, consider the following questions:

  1. Identify the symptoms or “red flags” in the case study that may be evaluated for a possible mental health disorder.
  2. Should the social worker have shared this suspected diagnosis based on the limited assessment with Ms. Evans at this time?
  3. Explain the potential impact of this diagnosis immediately and over time if the “tentative” diagnosis is a misdiagnosis.
  4. When may it be appropriate to use a provisional diagnosis? 
  5. When would you diagnosis as other specified and unspecified disorders?

 

Learning Resources

Required Readings

American Psychiatric Association. (2013j). Introduction. In Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: Author. doi:10.1176/appi.books.9780890425596.Introduction

Describe the six properties. Which two properties do you think are the most important? Explain your answers with reasons.

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You have learned about the different aspects of memory in the previous modules. Language is critical not only to communicate with others but also to memory. Many memories are encoded using language. Memory is much more rudimentary when language skills are not present.

Research some of the general characteristics of language and the concept of speech acquisition in infants using your textbook, the Internet, and the Argosy University online library resources before responding to these questions:

  • Researchers describe language as having six different properties. Describe the six properties. Which two properties do you think are the most important? Explain your answers with reasons.
  • Jim and Sue just had a baby, and they are interested in learning more about the process of language acquisition. They have heard about the controversy surrounding the view that speech is special. Do you think speech is special or is it processed like other auditory stimuli? Explain your answer with reasons.
  • Several African languages use clicks as consonants. Jim and Sue, who are English speaking, cannot hear the difference between the different types of clicks and have a difficult time learning one of these languages. If they were to move to Africa when their baby is about one-year old, do you think the baby would be able to hear the difference? Why or why not? Do you think she would hear the difference if they moved to Africa after her tenth birthday? Give reasons for your answers.

Write your initial response in 4–5 paragraphs. Apply APA standards to the citation of sources.