Category: Essays

The purpose of exercise is to conduct a detailed, critical evaluation of the research design, methods and analysis of a study written up and published in a peer-reviewed journal.   Students will be using Wolfer’s (2007) critical questions for evaluating written research to evaluate an article; these questions are provided below.

 

Article selection tips:

–          select an article from a peer-reviewed Sociology Journal

–          the article should clearly be written about a study the author conducted

o   a meta-analysis of multiple studies is not appropriate for this assignment

o   secondary data analysis of an existing national data set is OK, but be sure you understand what you are reading

 

Requirements:

 

1.Title (3 pts)

 

1)      Is the title specific enough to differentiate it from other related topics?

2)      Do subtitles, if present, provide important information regarding the research?

3)      Are the main variables expressed in the title?

4)      Are the terms in the title easily understood by most people?

5)      Does the title avoid any reference to the study’s results?

6)      Overall, is this a good title?  Why or why not?

 

2. Ethical Evaluation (2.5 pts)

7)      Are the steps the researcher took to honor ethical responsibilities to individuals clear?  Are they appropriate? Are they enough?

8)      If there were any findings (based on your readings of tables or other means of data presentation) that refuted the researcher’s hypothesis, did he address these findings?

9)      If any results were unexpected, did the researcher discuss any explanations for the unexpected effects?

10)  Did the researcher adequately acknowledge the limitations of the research?

11)  Overall, has the researcher adequately fulfilled his ethical obligations?

 

3. Literature Review (4 pts)

12)  Is the material presented in the literature review relevant to your research interests?

13)  Is the special problem area identified in the first paragraph or two of the report?

14)  Does the researcher establish the importance of the research problem?

15)  Has the researcher been appropriately selective in deciding what studies to include in the literature review?

16)  Is the research cited recent?

17)  Is the literature review critical?

18)  Is the researcher clear as to what is research, theory and opinion?

19)  Overall, do you think this is an adequate literature review?  Why or why not?

 

4. Operationalization and Measurement (5.5 pts)

20)  Is the conceptualization suitably specific?

21)  Are the definitions productive?

22)  How many different dimensions are being measured at once?

23)  Are the various dimensions sufficient?

24)  Are the actual questions (or a sample of them) provided?

25)  Is the response format clear, or, when not already clear, does the researcher provide information on the response format?  Is there any information on restrictions in respondents’ responses?

26)  If the researcher is using a published instrument, does he or she cite sources where additional information can be found?

27)  Has the researcher avoided overstating the preciseness of the measurement?

28)  Does the researcher provide some measure of reliability?  What type of reliability is established?  Do the measures indicate adequate reliability for your purposes?

29)  Does the research provide some measure of validity?  What measures of validity are presented and are they adequate for your purposes?

30)  Overall, is the measurement appropriate and adequate given the research purpose?

 

5. Sample Strategy (3 pts)

31)  Does the research goal lend itself to generalization? Is the broad sampling method appropriate for the research goal?

32)  Does the researcher provide information regarding the study population?  The sample?

33)  Is the exact sampling method (e.g. simple random, purposive) specified?  Remember, it is not sufficient for a researcher to simply state that a sample was selected ‘randomly.’

34)  Is the sample size sufficient, given the research goals, the degree of accuracy the researcher desires, and the nature of the population studied?  Given the nature of the research, is the sample size sufficient?

35)  If the researcher uses a probability sample, does he or she generalize the findings to the appropriate population?  If the researcher uses a non-probability sample, does he or she refrain from generalizing to a wider population?

36)  Overall, is the sampling appropriate?

 

Your evaluation should include one of the following sections (6-10) (4 pts):

 

6. Experiments

37)  Can you identify a treatment variable that indicates that an experiment is the method of observation?

38)  How many groups were studied?

a.       If there were two or more groups, did the researcher use random assignments

b.      If the researcher did not use random assignment, did the researcher present evidence that the groups were similar regarding key variables at the beginning of the study?

39)  Is the treatment and any pre- or posttests described in sufficient detail that facilitates replication?

40)  Is deception necessary?

a.       If so, is the deception within the parameters of the research topic?

b.      Have the participants been debriefed so they know the true nature of the study (and can enact their right to privacy by declining to participate after the fact?)

41)  Based on the description of treatment and experimental procedure, do you see any red flags regarding ethical issues?

42)  Did the researcher use assistants?

a.       If so, did the researcher state that they were properly trained?

b.      If so, did the researcher specify any special measures to make sure that the assistants administered the treatment properly?

43)  Is the setting natural or artificial (in a laboratory)?

a.       If it’s in a laboratory, does the researcher recognize that external validity may be weak?

b.      If it’s in a natural setting, does the researcher recognize that there may be some differences in the environments of the various groups?

c.       Overall, do you think the experimental design is sound?

 

7. Survey

44)  Is the research topic worded appropriately for survey research?

45)  Did the researcher specifically state which type of survey method was used?

46)  Do the survey questions adequately address the topic?

47)  Are the survey questions constructed correctly?

48)  Did the researcher provide any information about the response rate? Did the researcher provide any information about follow-up mailings or other ways of increasing response rate? What are the implications of the response rate?

49)  Did the researcher explain how he or she guaranteed anonymity or confidentiality?

50)  Overall, is the survey methodology effective and appropriate?

 

8. Field Research

51)  Does the research describe the selected site? Does the research provide some explanation as to how that site was chosen?

52)  Did the researchers explain how they addressed gatekeepers?

53)  Did the researcher address how he developed field relations?  If conflict arose, did the researcher make any comment about how personal or research problems in the field were addressed?

54)  Did the researcher adequately protect the identity of the respondents? Did the researcher address other ethical considerations?

55)  Did the researcher describe, at least in passing, his method of note taking?  Does the method seem adequate?

56)  In the analysis, does the researcher present general patterns of behavior and support those patterns with data such as quoted comments? Does the researcher use quotes selectively?

57)  Does the researcher make any mention of issues of validity and/or reliability?

58)  Overall, is the research adequate?

 

9. Unobtrusive Measures

59)  What is the researcher’s research purpose or hypothesis?  Is content analysis an appropriate method of observation?

60)  What are the researcher’s units of analysis?  What are the units of observation (if they are different than the units of analysis)?

61)  Is the researcher studying a population or a sample of these units?  If the researcher is studying a sample, is it a probability sample?  If so, was it correctly drawn?  If the researcher is not studying a population or a probability sample, is he or she appropriately cautious about the nature of any conclusions?

62)  Does the researcher identify the characteristics and level of content being analyzed?  Does the researcher explain how material is coded, especially for issues of latent content?

63)  Did the researcher do any type of pretest with other coders to test for reliability?  Where they any tests for validity?

64)  Are the conclusions consistent with the units of analysis?

65)  Are the results clearly presented and the conclusions appropriate?

66)  Generally, is the method of observation done appropriately?

 

10. Evaluation Research

67)  What is the purpose of the evaluation presented?

68)  Is the nature of the program described in detail?

69)  Are the goals presented and can the goals that the author presents be evaluated?

70)  What type of observation method is used? Is it appropriate, given the real-life restrictions of evaluation research?

71)  Is a control group used? If so, how has the researcher tried to show that it is equivalent to the experimental group?  If not, does the researcher adequately explain its omission?

72)  How are people selected for program participation? Does this affect the interpretation of findings, and, if so, does the researcher discuss this?

73)  Are the results clearly explained?

74)  How does the article address the other areas of evaluation discussed in earlier chapters?

 

Your evaluation should include one of the following sections (3 pts):

 

11. Qualitative Analysis

75)  Is the results section a cohesive essay?

76)  Does the researcher connect the results to any general research questions or goals?

77)  Is the perspective of the results presentation appropriate? Does it match the research technique?

78)  Has the writer presented enough examples to support the conclusions?  Do the examples make the readers ‘believe’ the researcher’s points?

79)  Do you have reason to believe that the presence of the researcher influenced the actions or statements of other group members? If this is possible, has the researcher addressed it in the research?

80)  Especially in field research (although this may be an issue to a lesser degree in other forms of qualitative data gathering), does the researcher discuss how he or she interacted with subjects in the field, what problems arose, and how the researcher addressed them?

 

12. Quantitative Analysis

81)  Is the results section a cohesive essay with the important findings highlighted?

82)  In the essay, does the researcher tie the results to the research hypotheses or goals stated in the introduction?

83)  If there are tables or graphs, are they clearly presented?

84)  Does the researcher present any descriptive statistics?

85)  Are the statistics appropriate for the level of measurement?

86)  Are the conclusions the researcher draws appropriate for the statistical information?

87)  In the discussion section, does the researcher briefly summarize the research purposes, methodologies, and key findings (in a non-statistical manner)?

88)  Does the researcher acknowledge any methodological or statistical weaknesses?

89)  Are the implications of the research or suggestions for future research discussed?

90)  Overall, is the results section adequate?

91)  Overall, is the discussion section adequate?

DUE: 2/1/2016 @ 6pm est. for $10…..PLZ CHARGE THE ENTIRE $10.00 W/HAND SHAKE. THXS!

Directions:

Compare how the model below of health would explain the causes of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

The social ecological model

List examples of the key components of each determinant potentially contributing to ADHD (((Using factors that Influence Health in an Ecological Model)))
According to each of these models, what would be the logical intervention to treat and/or prevent ADHD?

Which model(s) best explains this illness? Which are the least useful and why?

This assignment will help you understand the principles of geriatrics through research.

Using the South University Online Library or the Internet, conduct an in-depth review of peer-reviewed journals on geriatric.

Identify a method of research you would like to focus on and select at least three articles focused on geriatric research, which use your selected method of research.

Create a 4- to 5-page Microsoft Word document, that provides:

A brief summary of each selected article.
A comparison of the selected articles.
An explanation of the research method used to collect data in these articles.
A description of the target demographic of each study.
A comparison of the outcomes of each study.
A comparison of the effectiveness of the research methods used.
A description of how the three different studies could be redesigned based on your comparison.

Support your answers with appropriate research and reasoning.

Cite any sources in APA format.

Assignment 3 Grading Criteria
Maximum Points
Summarized each of the selected articles.
10
Compared each of the selected articles.
10
Explained the research method used to collect data.
5
Described the target demographic of each study.
5
Compared the outcomes of each study.
5
Compared the effectiveness of the research methods used.
5
Described how the three different studies could be redesigned based on your comparison.
5
Used correct spelling, grammar, and professional vocabulary. Cited all sources using APA format.

Discuss the dilemma of inchoate offenses:

Whether to punish someone who has done no harm or to set free someone who is determined to commit a crime.
Which of the two is more important?
What is problematic about punishing someone who has begun to, but not actually finished, an offense such as homicide, rape, or mugging?

Investigate 3

Under the doctrine of vicarious liability, corporate leadership is sometimes responsible for the criminal activity of those who serve under them.

Assume that a corporation decides to dump tons of hazardous materials from their waste products into the local waterway. The dumping violates all laws and administrative agency standards and is done negligently. Eventually, after a series of unexplained deaths and lingering illnesses in the local community, the company’s actions are discovered.

Give a 6-8 sentence statement that answers the following questions:

Question 1.1. Who is liable? Is it the workers who secretly dumped the hazardous waste into the river? Is it the supervisors and managers of the employees who did the dumping? Or should liability be imposed on the corporate officers or even the president of the company?

One of our first modules pertains to why and how we need to build a proactive information security program. Some of our requirements flow down from client contracts, others are regulatory obligations, and the rest are “best practices” that an organization should meet in order to fulfill a fiduciary obligation (reasonable and ethical). This of these as a grid or framework of what and how your information security program must do. The objective is to build a program that accomplishes these requirements. One contract may say “review sources of information security relevant data for indication of intrusion or attack on a weekly basis”, another may ask for a “daily review”. You always choose the most stringent requirement so you can maintain a level of “comfortable compliance”. If you or your people are reviewing your intrusion prevention systems, log aggregation tools, anti-malware dashboards, etc. on a “continuous basis”, you’re comfortable compliant with the most stringent requirement and far exceeding the others.

The Payment Card Industry’s (PCI) Data Security Standard is one of the most common contractual security drivers; it applies to almost all organization that process, store, or transmit credit card data. Please review the first document linked below, and skim the second (no need to read them in their entirety):

https://www.pcisecuritystandards.org/pdfs/pcissc_overview.pdf (Links to an external site.)

https://www.pcisecuritystandards.org/documents/pci_dss_v2.pdf (Links to an external site.)

To start off, I’d like to get your response to the following four questions:

1. What are your initial thoughts about the seemingly straight forward six goals in the first link compared to 75 pages in the second?

2. Do you have any experience with PCI? Have you worked for an organization that dealt with PCI? HIPAA? SOX?

3. What’s your perspective on “compliance” versus “security” or risk reduction?

4. If any organization meets the PCI compliance / security standard, should they be considered “secure”?

To support your work, use your course and text readings and also use outside sources. As in all assignments, cite your sources in your work and provide references for the citations in APA format.

For this discussion question, you are asked to retrieve and review the required reading noted below (refer to the Readings and Assignments page for information on Week 2 readings). This article is available in the South University Online Library. For many of you, use of the South University Online Library is new, so the first step is to download and read the online library search directions by clicking here. This will walk you through the steps needed to locate a journal article via the South University Online Library. Many of your reading assignments require that you retrieve the article and this week you will have an opportunity to familiarize yourself with the library.

Discuss what you have learned from the Apker, Propp, Ford, and Hofmeister (2006) article by reflecting on your personal communication style and how you can apply what you have learned to provide a collaborative practice.

Reference:

Apker, J., Propp, K. M., Ford, W. S. Z., & Hofmeister, N. (2006). Collaboration,

credibility, compassion, and coordination: Professional nurse communication

skill sets in health care team interactions. Journal of Professional Nursing,

22(3), 180–189

The reconstruction of a crime scene is an effort between law enforcement, forensic specialists and experts, medical personnel, and criminalists. However, there are limitations and cautions that need to be considered.

Assignment Guidelines

In 5–7 paragraphs, address the following:
In your own words, what is the purpose of crime scene reconstruction? Explain.
Who do think should be responsible for reconstructing the crime scene? Explain.
When do you think it is plausible to reconstruct the crime scene? Explain.
What do you think are the 2 most important elements in crime scene reconstruction? Explain why.
What challenges exist regarding the use of crime scene reconstruction as evidence in court? Explain.
What might be done to ensure that these challenges are avoided?
What legal issues do you think are most significant regarding crime scene reconstruction? Explain

Will the increased use of telehealth technology tools be viewed as dehumanizing patient care, or will they be viewed as a means to promote more contact with healthcare providers and new ways for people to stay connected (as in online disease support groups), thereby creating better long-term disease management and patient satisfaction? Why or why not?

Book: McGonigle, D., & Mastrian, K. (2015). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge (3rd ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett. (ISBN 978-1-284-04351-8)

Cite Reference

>300 words

plagiarism checked through Turniton

Module 4:

Learning Guide #4
Learning Guide for Module 4

Course Title: B404 Nursing Informatics
Learning Goals/Outcomes

Upon completion, the student will be able to:

Write APA formal paper related to nursing informatics case study
Discuss aspects of APA format
Integrate in-text citations in correct APA format
Create a reference page in correct APA format
Describe the basic concepts of the science of human factors.
Explain why addressing these contributory factors is critical to ensuring the safety of patients and providers.
Describe how process changes can reduce the impact of factors that contribute to error.
Explain why the design and testing of technology are important to ensure reliable performance and consistent use.

Required Resources

Re-read chapter 8 of your McGonigle and Mastrian textbook.
View Youtube video: APA Format Citations-Sixth (6th) Edition (Links to an external site.)
Review Purdue Owl APA style formatting guide (Links to an external site.)
View APA style PowerPoint presentation (Links to an external site.)
Read How to Recognize Peer Reviewed Journals (Links to an external site.)
View Youtube video: APA Format: In-text Citations, Quotations, and Plagiarism (Links to an external site.)

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES- WEBQUESTS

https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/ (Links to an external site.)

Mini Lecture

Patient Safety 102: Human Factors and Safety

The IHI Open School provides online courses in improvement capability, patient safety, leadership, person- and family-centered care, triple aim for populations, and quality, cost, and value. These courses are free for students, residents, and professors of all health professions, and available by subscription to health professionals (see IHI.org registration process and directions in modules). This course is an introduction to the field of “human factors”: how to incorporate knowledge of human behavior, especially human frailty, in the design of safe systems. You’ll explore case studies to analyze the human factors issues involved in health care situations. And you’ll learn how to use human factors principles to design safer systems of care – including the most effective strategies to prevent errors and mitigate their effects. Finally, you’ll learn how technology can reduce errors – even as, in some cases, it can introduce new opportunities for errors.

Lesson 1: Understanding the Science of Human Factors

According to the World Health Organization, human factors is an established science that uses many disciplines (such as anatomy, physiology, physics, and biomechanics) to understand how people perform under different circumstances.

We define human factors as: the study of all the factors that make it easier to do the work in the right way.

Issues that impact human performance and increase risk for error include the following:

Factors that are in play before action takes place. These are predisposing mental and physiological states, such as fatigue, stress, dehydration, hunger, and boredom.
Factors that directly enable decision making, such as perception, attention, memory, reasoning, and judgment.
Factors that directly enable decision execution, such as communication and being able to carry out the intended action.

The science of human factors is particularly useful for understanding human behavior in safety-critical situations, such as providing health care.

Lesson 2: Changes Based on Human Factors Design Principles

The science of human factors – the study of the interrelationship between humans and their environment – has identified design principles that include the following:

Simplifying involves taking steps out of a process.
Standardizing removes variation and confusion, and promotes predictability and consistency.
Use forcing functions and constraints.

Forcing functions make it impossible to do a task incorrectly. They create a hard stop that you cannot pass unless you change your actions.

A constraint is the state of being checked, restricted, or compelled to avoid or perform some action.

Use redundancies. A typical example is double-checking someone’s work.
Avoid reliance on memory. Checklists are a valuable tool to reduce this reliance.
Take advantage of habits and patterns.

Habits are those actions we perform in consistent circumstances and are triggered by our surroundings.

A pattern is a recognizable regularity in events.

Promote effective team functioning. Teamwork and communication are promoted in many industries.
Automate carefully. Technology can sometimes – but not always – be helpful.

Lesson 3: Using Technology to Mitigate the Impact of Error

Examples of technology in health care include computerized prescriber orders entry systems (CPOEs), bar-coding systems, and intravenous medication infusion pumps.

Technology should facilitate how you do your work, not dictate it.

Retrieved from IHI.org @ www.ihi.org (Links to an external site.)
Learning Activities
Activities for This Lesson

Begin literature search for APA Case Study paper.
Forum 4.
IHI.org lessons- PS 102

Will the increased use of telehealth technology tools be viewed as dehumanizing patient care, or will they be viewed as a means to promote more contact with healthcare providers and new ways for people to stay connected (as in online disease support groups), thereby creating better long-term disease management and patient satisfaction? Why or why not?
Self-Assessment
Lesson Evaluation Graded Assessments

APA Scholarly paper due in module 6 (45 points)
IHI.org lesson PS 102 (45 points)
Forum 4 (20 points

Computer Design

[Pin It]

Imagine you work for a company called Innovative Games, a leader in 3D gaming titles. Your boss has asked you to design the ultimate gaming computer for your customers. This gaming computer will be sold to your customers to provide them with the best possible experience with 3D titles. In addition, your boss hopes to create a new revenue stream for the computer. She has asked you to consider the following factors in your computer design:

Cases and form factors.
Power supplies.
Motherboards and buses.
Memory.
Video.
Audio.
Cooling.

Once you have considered all of these factors, create a design and then propose it in a 3–5 page document. The audience includes your boss and upper management. In your proposal, include the following elements as they pertain to your design:

Describe basic computer hardware component standards.
Describe basic hardware devices and their specifications.
Describe characteristics of computer hardware device components.
Describe device management of different fundamental operating systems.
Apply the assessment’s assigned LabSims concepts and activities

This exam covers all materials and lectures in your assigned reading covers so far this quarter. Choose three of the four questions below. For EACH one chosen, write a 2-3 paragraph response. In your response, be sure to refer to specific concepts from the readings, lecture notes, and/or discussions, and use these concepts to support your answer. Please state the question prior to your answer.

 

Define the sociological perspective or imagination, cite its components, and explain how they were defended by C. Wright Mills.

What is meant by the terms “ascribed status” and “achieved status” provide an example to illustrate how a person’s ascribed status could influence his or her achieved status.

Discuss how conflict theorists focus on social inequality and group conflict.

Discuss the six types of leaders that could be in a social institution