Research Proposal on "Defense Mechanisms & Psychodynamically-Oriented Psychologists"

Quoted Instructions for "Defense Mechanisms and Psychodynamically-Oriented Psychologists" Assignment:

An annotated Outline Problem statement Provide a one to two paragraph statement that is the result of a review of research findings and current practice and that it contains the following information: 1. A logical argument for the need to address an identified gap in the research literature that has relevance to the discipline and area of practice. 2. Preliminary evidence that provides justification that this problem is meaningful to the discipline or professional field. Provide three to five key citations that highlight the relevance and currency of the problem. 3. The over all purpose or intention of the study. In quantitative studies, state what need be studied by describing two or more factors (variables) and a conjectured relationship among them related to the indentified gap or problem. In qualitative studies describe the need for increased understanding about the issue to be studied based on the identified gap. In mixed methods studies with both quantitative and qualitative aspects clarify how the two approaches will be used together to inform the study. For other approaches, clarify why an alternative approach is needed and useful for this project. Significance Provide one to two paragraphs informed by the topic in the problem statement which describes; 1. How the study will contribute to filling the gap identified in the problem statement – What original contribution wills this study make? 2. How this research will support professional practice or allow practical application-Answer the So what? Question. 3. How the claim aligns with the problem statement to reflect the potential relevance of this study to society - how might the potential findings lead to positive change? Background Provide a representative lit of scholarship and findings that support the main assertions in the problem statement, highlighting their relationship to the topic (e.g., “This variable was studied with a similar sample by Smith (2010) and Johnson (2008),” or Jones’s (2011) examination of industry leaders showed similar trends in the same key segment.”). Framework In one paragraph, describe the theoretical base and conceptual framework in the scholarly literature that will ground the study. This theory or framework informs, and is informed by, the research question (s) and helps top identify research design decisions, such as the method of inquiry and data collection and analysis. Research question (s) Lit the question or a series of related questions that are informed by the study purpose, which will lead to the development of what needs to be done in this study and how it will be accomplished. A research question informs the research design by providing a foundation for: • Generation of hypothesis in quantitative studies • Questions necessary to build the design structure for qualitative studies and a • Process by which different methods will work together in mixed studies. Nature of the Study Using one of the following terms as a subheading, provide a concise paragraph that discusses the approach that will be use to address the research question(s) and how this approach aligns with the problem statement. The subheadings and examples of study design are: • Quantitative – for experimental, quasiexperimental, or nonexperimental designs; treatment control; repeated measures; causal-comparative; single-subject; or predictive studies. • Qualitative – for ethnography, case study, grounded theory, narrative inquiry, phenomenological research, or policy analysis. • Mixed methods, primarily quantitative – for sequential, concurrent, or transformative studies, with the main focus on quantitative methods. • Others – for the designs, to be specified with a justification provided for its use

Possible Types and Sources of Information or Data Provide a list of possible types and sources of information or data for this study, such as test scores from college students, employee surveys, observation of children, interviews with practitioners, historical documents from state records, deidentified medical records, or information from a federal database. Possible Analytical strategies Provide some possible ways to organize and analyze the results obtained by the research strategies detailed previously. A few examples of possible analytical strategies include multiple regression, content analysis and meta-analysis. Other Information Provide any other relevant information, such a challenges or barriers that may need to be addressed when conducting this study. References Include references formatted in the corrected style (APA sixth edition, mod3led at the end of this guide) for all citations within the Dissertation Prospectus. Quality Indicators Nice key indicators have been identified to assure the overall quality of the dissertation project at this point in its development. Supervisory committee members will use these indicators to give ongoing feedback and as a means to document their final approval of the Dissertation Prospectus. Students should use these rubric items to guide development of prospectus. 1. Complete? Does the prospectus contain all the required elements? Refer to the annotated outline to see the required parts of the Dissertation Prospectus document. 2. Meaningful? Has a meaningful problem or gap in the research literature been identified? In other words, is addressing this problem the logical next step, given the previous exploratory and confirmatory research (or lack thereof) on this topic? It is not acceptable to simply replicate previous research for a PhD degree. 3. Justified? Is the evidence presented that this problem is significant to the discipline and/or professional field? The prospectus should provide relevant statistics and evidence, documentable discrepancies, and other scholarly facts that point to the significance and urgency of the problem. The problem must be an authentic “puzzle” that needs solving, not merely a topic that the researcher find interesting.

4. Grounded? Is the problem framed to enable the researcher to either build on or counter the previously published findings on the topic? For most fields, grounding involves articulating the problem within the context of a theoretical base or conceptual framework. Although many approaches can ground a study in the scientific literature, the essential requirement is that the problem is framed such that the new findings will have implication for the previous findings. 5. Original? Does this project have potential to make an original contribution? Addressing the problem should result in an original contribution to the field or discipline. 6. Impact? Does this project have potential to affect positive social change? As described in the Significance section (see annotated outline), the anticipated findings should have potential to support the mission of the University to promote positive social change. 7. Feasible? Can a systematic method of inquiry be used to adder the problem? The tentative methodology demonstrated that the researcher ha considered the options for inquiry and has selected an approach that has potential to address the problem. 8. Aligned? Do the various aspect of the prospectus align overall? The nature of the study should align with the problem, research questions and tentative approaches to inquiry. 9. Objective? Is the topic approached in an objective manner? The framing of the problem should not reveal bias or present a foregone conclusion. Even if the researcher has a strong opinion on the expected findings, the researcher must maximize scholarly objectivity by framing the problem in the context of a systematic inquiry that permits multiple possible conclusions.