Social Psychology Research: Bias and Ethics;
As a student of psychology, it is important to fully understand how research is conducted, as well as the numerous issues associated with sound research. Two important research issues are bias and ethics. When a research study is biased, either by the study design, the participants (subject bias), or the conduct of the study or interpretation of the results (experimenter bias), the results may be misleading. When practitioners then apply the results of the study to a real world situation, the impact may be ineffective, may achieve different results than expected, or may even be harmful. Unbiased research is essential.
Another important consideration in psychological research is ethics. Any research must be ethical in how it is conducted and how the results are used. A high level of ethics is especially critical when it comes to research involving human subjects, which is the case with most psychological research. Ethics in research involves honesty, objectivity, integrity, carefulness and competence, openness, respect for intellectual property, respect for privacy, confidentiality, responsible publication of findings, social responsibility, non-discrimination, legality, care of animals for those studies involving animals, and protection of the rights of human subjects.
This Assignment asks you to analyze a social psychology research article for bias and ethics. The skills acquired can be applied to a critique of any scientific research study.
To prepare for this assignment:
• Review Chapter 1 of the course text, Social Psychology, focusing on research bias and research ethics.
• Watch the “Research Methods” video from the Contemporary Videos in Social Psychology DVD. Focus on the various problems that can be associated with different types of research.
• Read the online article, “What Is Ethics in Research and Why Is It Important?” Focus on the expectations of ethics for the scientific community, how results are used in the real world, and related ethical issues.
• Select one of the following articles from this week’s Learning Resources:
o “Intervening to Decrease Alcohol Abuse at University Parties: Differential Reinforcement of Intoxication Level”
o “An Attitude-Behavior Model of Salespeople’s Customer Orientation”
o “Prosocial and Antisocial Behavior in Preadolescence: Teachers’ and Parents’ Perceptions of the Behavior of Girls and Boys”
o “The Self-Protective Altruist: Terror Management and the Ambivalent Nature of Prosocial Behavior”
o “A Cross-Cultural Study of Environmental Motive Concerns and Their Implications for Proenvironmental Behavior”
• Read your selected article thoroughly and think about the following questions:
What was the purpose of this research study?
How were the participants selected?
What kind of design is the study? (correlational or experimental)
How was data collected?
Where might bias exist in the study and for how was it controlled?
What might be the implications of bias in this study? In other words, if the results of this study were applied in real life and bias was indeed present, what might be the results?
Was the study conducted ethically? If so, what strategies did the researchers use to assure that the study was conducted ethically? If not, what could they have done differently?
The assignment -1 pages, APA style format, No Plagiarism and must be cited with references and use resources provided below to do this assignment. Thank you
Analyze the article you selected by responding to the following questions:
(1).Briefly, what was the purpose of the study and what were the main findings?
(2).Where could bias exist in the study design, in the conduct of the study, in the behavior of the study subjects as they participate in the study, or the interpretation of results? Did the research do anything to help control for bias? Explain. If there is potential bias in the study, how might this impact the use of the study results in the real world or in future research? If the researchers controlled for bias, what might be the results if they had not controlled for bias?
(3).Was the study conducted ethically? Explain in terms of the information you learned in the assigned readings. Would you implement additional strategies to assure an ethical study? Explain.
Resources:
• Course Text: Taylor, S. E., Peplau, L. A., & Sears, D. O. (2006). Social psychology (12th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
o Chapter 1, “Theories and Methods in Social Psychology” (pp. 2–31)
• Article: Resnik, D. (n.d.). What is ethics in research and why is it important? Retrieved July 6, 2008, from http://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/resources/bioethics/whatis.cfm
Your choice of one of the following articles:
• Fournier, A., Ehrhart, I., Glindemann, K., & Geller, E. (2004). Intervening to decrease alcohol abuse at university parties: Differential reinforcement of intoxication level. Behavior Modification, 28(2), 167–181. Retrieved from http://auth.waldenulibrary.org/ezpws.exe?url=http://bmo.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/28/2/167
• Stock, R., & Hoyer, W. (2005). An attitude-behavior model of salespeople’s customer orientation. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 33(4), 536–552. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/ehost/detail?sid=2b9ddeb9-20bc-40d1-a30d-5a5f3afc1b29%40sessionmgr15&vid=1&hid=11&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=bth&AN=18323036
• Veenstra, R., Lindenberg, S., Oldehinkel, A., De Winter, A., Verhulst, F., & Ormel, J. (2008). Prosocial and antisocial behavior in preadolescence: teachers’ and parents’ perceptions of the behavior of girls and boys. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 32(3), 243–251. Retrieved from http://auth.waldenulibrary.org/ezpws.exe?url=http://jbd.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/32/3/243
• Hirschberger, G., Ein-Dor, T., & Almakias, S. (2008). The self-protective altruist: Terror management and the ambivalent nature of prosocial behavior. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34(5), 666–678. Retrieved from http://auth.waldenulibrary.org/ezpws.exe?url=http://psp.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/34/5/666
Milfont, T., Duckitt, J., & Cameron, L. (2006). A cross-cultural study of environmental motive concerns and their implications for proenvironmental behavior. Environment & Behavior, 38(6), 745–767. Retrieved from http://auth.waldenulibrary.org/ezpws.exe?url=http://eab.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/38/6/745
Media
• Pearson/Prentice Hall. (Executive Producer). (2007). Contemporary videos in social psychology [DVD]. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Author.
o “Introducing Social Psychology”
Click here to access a transcript for “Introducing Social Psychology”
o “Research Methods”
Click here to access a transcript for “Research Methods”
With these Learning Resources in mind, please proceed to the Discussion.

Length: 5, not incl. reference page

Format: APA

No plagiarism

Using a hypothetical healthcare organization, create 3 performance standards or benchmarks (e.g., net profit, quality ratings, service excellence award, average length of stay, average percentage of readmission after discharge, average medical error rate, and so on).

These benchmarks must be based on national standards or other successful profiles for this particular type of organization.

Evaluate the following strategic innovations that were used to evaluate your performance standards:

Selective contracting

Cost sharing

Managed care

Quality standards

Evaluate the role of decision making by the health care leader for any of the performance standard measures to achieve national benchmarks.

Compose performance baselines for healthcare organizations and develop strategies to manage and measure performance

Formulate policies governing health service vendors retained by a healthcare organization to address legal and regulatory requirements to ensure the safety, care, and privacy of patients.

Resource 1: CLC Health Issue Analysis Overview

Group work has benefits and liabilities. EVERYONE assigned to a CLC is expected to equally participate in the work in terms of time and quality of effort. Each participant has strengths and it is reasonable to apportion the work to make best use of this. Some are natural leaders. Our strengths can be our greatest liabilities: No one wants to be bossed around no matter how skilled the boss is. Honest communication is critical to effective group work. The best way to avoid conflict is to set very clear expectations up front. Then, if someone does not do what is expected him/her, he/she can be referred to the original agreement rather than have the confrontation become personal.

Course instructors are able to observe the group process in the CLC forum. If the work takes place outside the forum, this information will be absent. Be certain (even if communicating via e-mail, phone, or face-to-face) to record the communication in the CLC forum.

CLC Project Overview

The purpose of this assignment is to critically analyze a health care issue through the focus of major concepts from each Topic. There are six components to this assignment after the CLC agreement is signed and the topic is identified. It is not expected that every member of the CLC group will contribute to each assignment, but that assignments will be divided fairly and equally among the group. Each of the written components of the CLC project will be 500-1,000 words. These papers should be in APA format with a title and a reference page. An abstract is not required. An introduction is required ONLY for Part 1 and is not required in any parts thereafter. It is the intention that if one were to take the six parts of this assignment and put them together, a comprehensive and cohesive analysis would be produced. Part 1 is worth 3 points and each of the subsequent parts (2-6) are worth 4 points each.

Topic 1 (10 points)

Check into the CLC group and provide contact information and describe prior experience, if any, with health policy. Locate and read the CLC Agreement provided by the instructor, located within the Additional Resources Folder in Canyon Connect. Choose one member to transfer the document to the CLC forum. Decide upon the process needed to fill out the contract. Everyone should participate. Before filling out the agreement, it may be helpful for each student to describe the most difficult, frustrating, helpful, or beneficial aspects of working on a collaborative project. Getting this type of information out in the open ahead of time may help to prevent conflict later on. Since no one is angry yet, you can comfortably list what is likely to make you angry and also what would make you satisfied.

Complete the CLC Agreement (except for the final block, which is used at the end). Select someone to submit the CLC Agreement by the end of Topic 1.

Topic 2 (10 points)

Initiate a conversation regarding potential topics of interest. This should be a health issue with national and international relevance that will be the basis for your final project. It may be helpful to identify a number of topics of interest and have individual group members do a quick survey of the literature to be sure that there is current information available. Revise the CLC Agreement with the choice of the topic identified in the title and re-submit the CLC Agreement. There is no formal writing requirement for the topic selection. It is merely a brief paragraph declaring your identified topic.

Topic 3 – Part 1 (50 points)

Research and outline the history of the health issue. Write a formal paper in APA format (500-1,000 words in length), describing the history of the issue. A title, introduction, and a reference page are required, but an abstract and conclusion are not. Include the following:

1. Influences such as determinants of health and socioeconomic status.

2. Past and present initiatives (private and public) to address the issue.

3. Outcomes that have been developed and utilized to measure progress on the issue.

4. The current status of the health issue based on measured outcomes.

Topic 4 – Part 2 (60 points)

Describe the national and international implications of the health issue. Write a formal paper (500-1,000 words in length), using APA format. Include a title page and a reference page. An abstract, introduction, and conclusion are not required. Include the following:

Scope and depth of the problem.
Countries that are faring better or worse than others.
How the U.S. ranks on this issue in relation to other countries.
Efforts of the World Health Organization and other agencies on this issue.
Existing disparities (include race, age, and gender, as appropriate) in relation to the issue – describe the populations that have emerged as being disadvantaged and why.
Topic 5 – Part 3 (60 points)

Write a formal paper (500-1,000 words in length), using APA format. Include a title and a reference page. An abstract, introduction, and conclusion are not required. Include a title page and a reference page, and the following:

Discuss past and present funding for initiatives that address the health issue. Include both public and private sources.
Analyze past and present quality initiatives that address the health issue. Include both public and private sources.
Differentiate how being insured versus uninsured impacts health outcomes relative to this issue;
Compare health outcomes for the issue between the U.S. and a country with universal health coverage.
Topic 6 – Part 4 (60 points)

Write a formal paper (500-1,000 words in length), using APA format. A title page and a reference page are required, but an abstract, introduction, and conclusion are not. Include the following:

Examine the previously addressed aspects of health policies, finance, global/national prevention, and/or treatment initiatives related to the health issue by identifying applicable ethics principles.
Differentiate how application of the identified ethics principles to the health issue has resulted in population disparities.
Hypothesize how existing disparities might be eliminated using alternate ethics principles.
Critique whether the applicable ethics principles are consistent with the ANA’s Code of Ethics for Nurses.
Topic 7 – Part 5 (60 points)

Write a formal paper (500-1,000 words in length), using APA format. A title page and a reference page are required, but an abstract, introduction, and conclusion are not. Include the following:

1. Discuss cultural beliefs and influences relative to the health issue.

2. Differentiate any religious/spiritual beliefs and values relative to the issue.

3. Appraise how religious/spiritual beliefs and values have influenced progress in addressing the issue – either negatively or positively.

4. Compare differences in ideologies related to the issue across political party lines, geographic regions, and countries of the world.

Topic 8 – Part 6 (60 points)

Write a formal paper (500-1,000 words in length), using APA format. A title page, conclusion, and a reference page are required, but an abstract and introduction are not. Include the following:

Assess the past and present impact nurses, including advanced professional/ advanced practice nurses, have made in addressing this health issue.
Describe how nurses can become more broadly involved with influencing health policy related to this issue. Include available resources.
Hypothesize how nurses can positively impact future outcomes related to the provision of care for persons affected by the health issue.
Synthesize all aspects of the health care issue through a summary conclusion, concisely tying up Parts 1-8 of the CLC project.

The Principles of Family Assessment

• Describe the principles of family assessment, and explain why it is important for a nurse to undertake a family assessment.

• Use of at least three scholarly references from separate sources to support this part.

Application: Retirement

Retirement is a modern concept. In many parts of the world, retirement is not a part of the life course. In Western cultures such as Germany and Hong Kong, most people can expect to retire comfortably.

Thirty years ago, the majority of workers in the United States were enrolled in retirement plans. Those retirement plans provided a set amount of money for the rest of a person’s life. Today, less than 25% of the workforce can expect to retire with such a plan. In fact, half of all workers have no job-related retirement plans at all, and can expect to rely only on Social Security and on the amount of money they save.

In this Application, you will compare and contrast retirement opportunities between two cultures. You will choose either Germany or Hong Kong, and compare and contrast the culture of that country to the culture of the United States. Then you will propose at least two government policies that might promote positive retirement outcomes for all Americans based on the Learning Resources or other resources you have developed.

The assignment (1–2 pages):

Describe the potential positive and negative outcomes that are predictable in Germany or Hong Kong and in the United States. Describe what individuals might do in each culture to protect themselves from falling into poverty. Conclude your Application with at least two suggestions for policies (taken from the Learning Resources or other resources you find) that would help to keep most Americans out of poverty during retirement.