You have now written 9 blogs on a variety of topics. Briefly scan the past blogs you have written and then reflect on your growth in understanding research and its social work application. What are the general takeaways from the course and your blogs? What were you hoping to gain from this course? Were they realized? Reviewing your previous 9 blog entries, what insights did you receive about your journey into social work research? You’re welcome to incorporate any creative form of expressions here from pictures, to memes to quotes to songs.

Boy the time went by fairly quickly in the course! I remember walking into class the first day and being terrified of what the content would consist of. 

After reviewing the blogs I realize that I gained much insight on the information and process that research takes place in our social work field. 

The main take away from this course was how research is crucial to our future careers. Research not only provides us new insights on the concern at hand but provides us better understanding of the process on all studies. I’m interested in clinical work and I was able to educate myself on the process of how the best treatment/intervention, resources, and information are obtained and provided to clients. 

The research paper provided me the ability to go a little deeper in understanding what goes behind the process of composing an article. It also provided me the ability to understand why and how statistics play a part into that process. When we work with individuals we want to make sure that we provide the most valid and reliable options, which is where the ability to read the data comes into play. 

When I came into the course I didn’t know exactly what we would be covering. Research is definitely a subject that I need to work on. Thankfully I was able to gain further understanding on all aspects of a research. I was beyond scared to even do this research paper. I do want thank you for providing me assistance during the process lol. I know I had many questions. Thankfully with your help, it provided me guidance to further understanding the information at hand. My expectations in obtaining knowledge from the course were definitely exceeded. Research is highly difficult to me. However, I’m glad I was able to overcome this challenge. 

My journey into social work continues. As a future social worker our education will always be never ending. I will continue to learn about others as well as about myself in the process. I am looking forward to being able to use the knowledge that I have earned.  I want to know that I gave it my all in my education and be able to make a difference in the real world. We have to keep our social work core values in mind. Let’s get informed and strive to be the change! 

What does ethical research mean to you before today’s lecture and after today’s lecture and discussion? What insights did you gain from the material? How does your understanding of the ethical issues in research affect your thinking about the implementation of the proposal?

Ethical research to me before today’s lecture brought about the concept of making sure that our research is conducted in a way that is respectful, confidential, and morally right for our participants, while making sure that we disclose all the information on our research. It’s the client’s right to be fully aware of the study/research that is being conducted as best as possible. Everyone has their right to not want to participate in a study if they choose not to do so. 

After today’s lecture I was able to gain further insight into the ethical guidelines in social work research. We are obligated to make sure that participation is voluntary with informed consent being provided. No one should be forced to participate in a study if they decide not to do so. Another main factor is to make sure we’re not causing any harm to participants, in reference to physical or psychological harm. With these factors in mind anonymity and confidentiality is key. As social workers under our code of ethics we have to place our client’s needs first and do what is in their best interest. These were some of the key takeaways that I felt were highly important from our lecture today.

Some of the insights that I gained from the lecture is that we have to be more cognizant of the implications that our research can have on our participants. I understand that our goal is to attempt to prove our research and at times we can be so focused on that. However, we have to be certain that we don’t place anyone in any harm. In order to be sure that is the case, it’s best to review your research with other colleagues and obtain their feedback. 

My understanding of ethical issues in research affects my thinking of the implementation of my proposal to make sure that I’m placing my participants needs first. It makes me aware that there are certain factors to take in place when attempting to construct my research questions. Limitations to my research will arise but the well being of others is more important. We all went into the profession of helping others and if we don’t take that into consideration, at the end we would ultimately be doing more harm than good. I believe as a society we have been evolving and that is the continuous goal we have in research. Overall the fundamental key in research is to respect others in all aspects.

The final research paper is due in a couple of weeks. It is a major paper which requires planning, writing, and thoughtful integration of the ideas we covered during the entire semester. How are you approaching the completion of this task? What is your plan? How do you plan to complete the assignment in a timely manner? What are the specific tasks that you would need to do to get the work done? What’s your strategy and plan for the completion of this final paper?

Time goes by so quickly! The final paper is due in a couple weeks and I know this is a stressful time for everyone, especially with so much change occurring in the world around us. Throughout the semester I have gained a vast amount of information on research and the importance of it for our future careers.

During class we were going over the next task which would be our research proposal. During our last class you asked us to find an article that related to our topics. The information you provided me before going into our breakout rooms allowed me to understand the activity. I was able to find an article in relation to my topic. Thankfully my peer, Corey, brought it up during class and it provided me further guidance for the new assignment. I will be using that article to help me as a guideline to the research proposal. I will be certain to review the rubric first and continue to check up with it as I work on sections. I think separating the work into sections will allow me to complete the task. Then I will review the rubric again once my paper is finally completed. 

Our final paper is a large assignment; however, I feel that it can be accomplished with organization. My plan/goal is to start the assignment this weekend. I will set aside a couple hours after work to go over the rubric and start my work/draft on Saturday. Sunday’s are currently my only day off and will be focusing on it all day while taking breaks. The goal is to set aside at least 2 hours a day on my workdays to work on the assignment while balancing my other tasks at hand. It can be difficult due to working in front of a computer all day. However, I think the key are breaks lol. That should help me out. If any concerns come about, I will then contact you immediately to gain clarification. I believe organizing my time will allow me to be able to complete the assignment in a timely manner. I am approaching this task with an optimistic mindset and will give it my best to complete the task. 

What are your thoughts on research designs after tonight’s class? How important is identifying an appropriate research design for your study? What types of research designs are you considering for your study and why? Notate a research design that is consistent with the goals of your study.

Research designs … with so many it’s quite a difficult choice to make. 

The class provided us information on the research options available and helped us identify which research design to lean towards depending on what kind of information we are attempting to obtain. It’s important to identify what research design we want to focus on in order to obtain and set up the measures the proper way. If not, we would be gathering information that’s irrelevant towards our research question.

My research would be a quantitative experiment because I’m using the measures where I’m testing an experimental design, testing a model. 

In order for participants to be accepted in the study they would have to go through a certain screening. Participant screening would require individuals to be in a certain age group, over 18, in a relationship, veteran of OEF/OIF and both the participant and partner would have to be interested in therapy to improve their relationship.

After the participants are screened and accepted they would take scales on their PTSD and aggressive level. This would be a quasi-experimental design because I’m not randomly assigning people to the experiment or control. I was already going to obtain people that are looking to be in a couples therapy. The design would then be used in a comparison of pre-test/post-test design. 

I think we have to be conscious of the research method we select, if not, we would be obtaining incorrect data for our research. It would not only be wasting our time and resources but the participants as well. We have to keep their treatment goals in mind when selecting the research design. An outline is needed to select and provide the best option and process to obtain the goals of our research. 

This week’s blogging will focus on the use of research methods. As a researcher, which particular research methods (quantitative, qualitative, or a combination) do you tend to gravitate towards and why? Do you think it’s important to recognize the biases in the choice of the research method? Why? What could determine the use of a particular research method?

As a researcher Qualitative research is the type that I tend to gravitate towards. The reason for this is due to the fact I like the way that the data is collected using methods that include: focus groups, individual interviews, and participation/observations. I personally like to have the time for that one on one connection/interview. I like to focus on human behavior and feel that the qualitative research option provides us the ability to do so.

However, I think that it’s also important for us to recognize the biases in the choice of research method. I think in order to fully have a richer and complete research a combination of both would be required. If we only focus on the quantitative research we would not be able to provide a complete representation of the group we are focusing on. It would also be more time consuming due to the time required for the data collection, analysis and interpretation being lengthy. 

Different factors can be determinants of what research method to select. You first need to know what is the targeted population you want to measure and what exactly you are attempting to find out about that population. Once you do, you will be able to figure out if what you are attempting to research leans more towards beliefs and experiences, or if can be better understood through numbers. If it would be better understood through numbers, that would be leaning more towards a quantitate research. 

What are my thoughts and feelings about statistics? Why do you think you feel the way you do about statistics? What can we do as a class (or individuals) to appreciate statistics more fully? What is the purpose of statistics, if any?

My thoughts and feelings about statistics is that they are essential for different careers. Previous to this course, I never thought of the impact that statistics has on social work research. I personally was scared about statistics and it was not something that I was looking forward to. After our literature review I can understand and see the reason why statistics are needed. For social work it provides us the ability to view and gather data, review analysis, and provide the best treatment based on the results from the data. It provides the essential prediction needed for treatments. 

As future social workers we want to make sure that we are providing the most effective treatment to our patients. The reason why I selected this career is to be able to help others as much as I can. Statistics provides me the capability of knowing if treatments will work for the population that I am studying. 

As a class and as an individual, I think we realized the importance of statistics after our research. It is essential for ourselves and our focused group. No one wants to waste resources, if we can provide a treatment that shows a higher effective result. It is important not only for ourselves but our patients.

The importance of research for ourselves and future patients is to be well informed, know the information is credible and useful, in order for ourselves and the patient to make the most appropriate decision. 

What are your current biases with your research topic? Why is it important to be aware of your biases when writing a literature review?  Do you think your biases could affect the conclusions that you arrive at for the literature review? Moving forward, what do we need to do to address those biases that we are aware of in our paper?

As humans we tend to have biases in various topics for many reasons. At times we may ask questions or use body language that we may not be conscious of in order to have our participants sway toward the information that we would like to obtain. It is highly important to be aware of these biases in order to be able to obtain clear and concise information/data for our research. If not, the research would not be beneficial for anyone due to not representing the majority of the population. Therefore, providing invalid information as a whole. 

Our biases can definitely affect the conclusions for our literature review by making us only obtain information that supports our hypothesis. We need to be able to have an open mind when researching and know that there are two sides for everything that we are researching. We will not only obtain information that supports our research.

We need to be able to make a conscious effort to address our biases. To make sure that we do address our biases it would be a good idea to have various colleagues review your information and provide their feedback on the data. As well as putting an effort to review as much data on the topic that we are researching. We need to make sure we frame our interview questions properly.

Overall our main focus is to obtain data to represent the majority of the population to truly provide an effective and accurate analysis of our research without any biases. Let be conscious and let’s do it!!!!!!

• What gains/new insights/perspectives have you made about the uses of research to your future social work practice?
• How relevant is research to social work practice?
• What could research potentially do?
• How should social workers really think about the role of research?
• Do social workers have to choose between doing research and working for their clients? Are these two issues distinct or are they different sides of the same coin? (HINT: See Ch. 1)
• Please elaborate on your ideas. Use a meme/memes to summarize your perspectives. Why did you pick this particular meme?

AND THE RESEARCH CONTINUES LOL…..

Research… there are many reasons why we conduct research. As our book informed us the main reason is the compassion we have for our clients.  Research not only provides us new insights on the concern at hand. However, it provides us with information, knowledge, education that will later provide aid to us in being able to provide the best treatment/intervention, resources, and information to our future clients. 

As social workers we want to be able to benefit from the research and body of evidence on the interventions we are providing to our clients. The world is forever changing and as always, the research will continue to develop. With continuous research there will always be new ideas that arise for interventions that will assist in helping society. In every profession one has to be aware of the latest information to be able to have a continuous effective profession. 

Social workers should be open minded in their role of research. Regardless of your personal biases you have to be able and want to learn more about every possible intervention, topic, and resources that are related to your profession. If one was a client, one would want to go with the individual that was aware of the best treatment for oneself. The goal is to be productive in making our clients obtain their best possible outcome which will be an impact on their life. The goal as social workers is to be able to help others. In order to achieve this goal, we can’t allow ourselves to be focused on our personal perspective and beliefs. Not everyone has the same upbringing and background. We want to make a change and with one’s effort, it will be made! I mean, who wouldn’t want to learn more about interventions that are available that we may not be aware of? 

Social workers have to do research in order to properly work for their clients. The goal is to help our client with the scientific evidence that will provide us confidence in knowing that we are providing exceptional services and interventions. If we don’t research, we are denying our clients the opportunity to provide them their best possible outcome. Being educated with the latest research is part of our social work value of compassion. We have to keep our social work core values. Let’s get informed and make the change! 

As a social worker we have to do ALL the research in order to be fully informed. As you can see, we will do better than the FBI. WE GOT THIS! 

Do you have what it takes to write an effective literature review? What particular strengths would you build upon and what are the areas that you believe need attention when you start to develop the literature review? Share an image or images that best represent your thoughts and feelings about the literature review assignment.

That is a great question! Do I have what it takes to write an effective literature review? The answer to that would be a yes and a no. Some of the strengths that I have noticed about myself is that I love to read and learn about topics that interest me which are mostly on mental health. I am still currently finding it difficult to select a topic and narrow it down due to having many interests. I find myself panicking with trying to figure out the best topic to select and attempting to find information on the topic. 

During the process of the literature review I tend to get really stressed out. I always want my papers to be “good enough” to turn in.  I am currently debating on a topic related to either PTSD in Veterans or trauma related to the dissociative identity disorder. I know these topics are very broad and am attempting to figure out how to narrow it down. I hope I can get some feedback or ideas from my peers and my professor to help me with this decision. 

Literature reviews overall for me are very challenging but once I have my final paper, I know I will feel proud of my work. Let’s see how this literature review goes. I will definitely be bothering my professor with asking for as much help and feedback as possible. Let the challenge begin!