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Applying Research Skills

Applying Research Skills. Application of Research Skills

Create a 3-5-page annotated bibliography and summary based on your research related to best
practices addressing one of the health care problems or issues in the Assessment Topic Areas
media piece faced by a health care organization that is of interest to you.

 Instructions: Applying Research Skills
Create a 3-5-page annotated bibliography and summary based on your research related to best practices addressing
one of the health care problems or issues in the Assessment Topic Areas media piece faced by a health care
organization that is of interest to you.
Introduction
In your professional life, you will need to find credible evidence to support your decisions and your plans of action.
You will want to keep abreast of best practices to help your organization adapt to the ever-changing health care
environment. Being adept at research will help you find the information you need. For this assessment, you will
review the Assessment Topic Areas media piece and select one of the health care problems or issues to research a
current health care problem or issue faced by a health care organization that is of interest to you.
Demonstration of Proficiency
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the course competencies
through the following assessment scoring guide criteria:
Competency 1: Apply information literacy and library research skills to obtain scholarly information in the field
of health care.
Identify academic peer-reviewed journal articles relevant to a health care problem or issue and describe
the criteria used for the literature search.
Competency 2: Apply scholarly information through critical thinking to solve problems in the field of health
care.
Assess the credibility and relevance of information sources.
Summarize what was learned from developing an annotated bibliography.
Analyze academic peer-reviewed journal articles using the annotated bibliography organizational
format.
Competency 4: Write for a specific audience, in appropriate tone and style, in accordance with Capella’s
writing standards.
Summarize a health care problem or issue and describe a personal interest in it and experience with it.
Write clearly and logically, with correct use of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and mechanics.
Write following APA style for in-text citations, quotes, and references.
Instructions
Note: The requirements outlined below correspond to the grading criteria in the scoring guide. At a minimum, be
sure to address each point. In addition, you are encouraged to review the performance-level descriptions for each
criterion to see how your work will be assessed.
For this assessment, research best practices related to a current health care problem. Your selected problem or issue
will be utilized again in Assessment 3. To explore your chosen topic, you should use the first two steps of the

Socratic Problem-Solving Approach to aid your critical thinking.
1. View the Assessment Topic Areas media piece and select one of the health care problems or issues in the
media piece to research. Write a brief overview of the selected topic. In your overview:
Summarize the health care problem or issue.
Describe your interest in the topic.
Describe any professional experience you have with this topic.
2. Identify peer-reviewed articles relevant to health care issue or problem.
Conduct a search for scholarly or academic peer-reviewed literature related to the topic and describe
the criteria you used to search for articles, including the names of the databases you used. You will
select four current scholarly or academic peer-reviewed journal articles published during the past 3–5
years that relate to your topic.
You will want to access the applicable Undergraduate Library Research Guide related to your
degree (found at the NHS Learner Success Lab) for tips to help you in your search.
Use keywords related to the health care problem or issue you are researching to select relevant articles.
3. Assess the credibility and explain relevance of the information sources you find.
Determine if the source is from an academic peer-reviewed journal.
Determine if the publication is current.
Determine if information in the academic peer-reviewed journal article is still relevant.
4. Analyze academic peer-reviewed journal articles using the annotated bibliography organizational format.
Provide rationale for inclusion of each selected article. The purpose of an annotated bibliography is to
document a list of references along with key information about each one. The detail about the reference is the
annotation. Developing this annotated bibliography will create a foundation of knowledge about the selected
topic. In your annotated bibliography:
Identify the purpose of the article.
Summarize the information.
Provide rationale for inclusion of each article.
Include the conclusions and findings of the article.
Write your annotated bibliography in a paragraph form. The annotated bibliography should be
approximately 150 words (1–3 paragraphs) in length.
List the full reference for the source in APA format (author, date, title, publisher, et cetera) and use APA
format for the annotated bibliography.
Make sure the references are listed in alphabetical order, are double-spaced, and use hanging indents.
5. Summarize what you have learned from developing an annotated bibliography.
Summarize what you learned from your research in a separate paragraph or two at the end of the
paper.
List the main points you learned from your research.
Summarize the main contributions of the sources you chose and how they enhanced your knowledge
about the topic.
Example Assessment: You may use the following to give you an idea of what a Proficient or higher rating on the
scoring guide would look like:
Assessment 2 Example [PDF]

Additional Requirements
Your assessment should also meet the following requirements:
Length: 3–5 typed, double-spaced pages, not including the title page and reference page.
Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12 point.
APA template: Use the APA Style Paper Template [DOCX] as the paper format and the APA Style Paper
Tutorial [DOCX] for guidance.
Written communication: Write clearly and logically, with correct use of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and
mechanics.
Content: Provide a title page and reference page following APA style.
References: Use at least four scholarly or academic peer-reviewed journal articles.
APA format: Follow current APA guidelines for in-text citation of outside sources in the body of your paper
and also on the reference page.
If you would like assistance in organizing your assessment, or if you simply have a question about your assessment,
please do not hesitate to ask faculty or the teaching assistants in the NHS Learner Success Lab for guidance and
suggestions.
Note: Faculty may use the Writing Feedback Tool when grading this assessment. The Writing Feedback Tool is
designed to provide you with guidance and resources to develop your writing based on five core skills. You will find
writing feedback in the Scoring Guide for the assessment, once your work has been evaluated.

Assessment Topic Areas
Selecting a topic for your written assessments can be challenging, but it’s
important to make a thoughtful choice.
Choose a topic area of interest to you from the topic suggestions in this
media piece. You will use this topic to complete Assessments 2 and 3. Be
sure to select a topic that will be manageable for a written assessment.
To explore the chosen topic, you should use the Socratic Problem-Solving
Approach, focusing on the sections specifically called out in the
assessment guidelines.
Topic 1: Limited Access to Healthcare
Short Description:
Consumers face barriers to healthcare access for assorted reasons. For
example: due to geographic location, provider availability, transportation
issues and mobility.
Potential Intervention Approaches:
Healthcare information online
Telemedicine
In–home healthcare services
Keywords for Articles:
online health information seeking, health care access, health information
systems, consumer health information, chronic disease, health
information search, health seeking behavior, rural nursing
References:
Bhandari, N. (2014). Seeking health information online: does limited healthcare
access matter? Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association: JAMIA
(1067-5027), 21 (6), p. 1113. https://www-ncbi-nlm-nihgov.library.capella.edu/pmc/articles/PMC4215038/

Lee, K., Hoti, K., Hughes, J. D., & Emmerton, L. (2014). Dr Google and the
Consumer: A Qualitative Study Exploring the Navigational Needs and Online Health
Information-Seeking Behaviors of Consumers with Chronic Health Conditions.
Journal of Medical Internet Research, 16(12), e262.
http://doi.org.library.capella.edu/10.2196/jmir.3706
Ware, P., Bartlett, S. J., Paré, G., Symeonidis, I., Tannenbaum, C., Bartlett, G., …
Ahmed, S. (2017). Using eHealth Technologies: Interests, Preferences, and Concerns
of Older Adults. Interactive Journal of Medical Research, 6(1), e3.
http://doi.org.library.capella.edu/10.2196/ijmr.4447
Pratt, D. (2015). Telehealth and telemedicine. Albany Law Journal of Science &
Technology. (1059-4280), 25 (3), p. 495.
http://www.lexisnexis.com.library.capella.edu/hottopics/lnacademic/?
shr=t&csi=148364&sr=TITLE(%22Telehealth+telemedicine+in+2015%22)+and+date
+is+2015
Topic 2: Healthcare Disparities
Short Description:
In 2010, the Federal Department of Human and Health Service (DHHS)
launched the Healthy People 2020 goals to include a goal to eliminate
health inequality/disparity. Healthy People 2020 defines a health disparity
as “a particular type of health difference that is closely linked with social,
economic, and/or environmental disadvantage. Health disparities
adversely affect groups of people who have systematically experienced
greater obstacles to health based on their racial or ethnic group; religion;
socioeconomic status; gender; age; mental health; cognitive, sensory, or
physical disability; sexual orientation or gender identity; geographic
location; or other characteristics historically linked to discrimination or
exclusion” (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 2017,
p.1).
Potential Intervention Approaches:
Federal goals
Community health improvement plans
Patient advocacy efforts
“Triple Aim” for populations
Keywords for Articles:

health disparities, community health assessment, community health
improvement plan, strategic planning, local health departments, health
inequities
References:
Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (2017). Disparities. Retrieved
from https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/about/foundation-healthmeasures/disparities
Shah G.H., & Sheahan J.P. (2016). Local health departments’ activities to address
health disparities and inequities: Are we moving in the right direction? International
Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2016; 13(1):44.
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/13/1/44
Institute for Healthcare Improvement. (2017). Triple Aim for Populations.
http://www.ihi.org/Topics/TripleAim/Pages/Overview.aspx
Topic 3: Medication Errors
Short Description:
A medication error is a preventable adverse effect of a patient taking the
wrong medication or dosage, whether or not it is evident or harmful to
the patient. Medication errors can be a source of serious patient harm,
including death.
Potential Intervention Approaches:
Medical staff education
Packaging improvements
Patient medication safety training
Keywords for Articles:
medication administration, medication errors, medication safety
References:
Cohen, M. (2016). Medication errors (miscellaneous). Nursing. 46(2):72, February
2016. DOI: 10.1097/01.NURSE.0000476239.09094.06
Institute for Healthcare Improvement. (2017). Improve Core Processes for
Administering Medications.
http://www.ihi.org/resources/Pages/Changes/ImproveCoreProcessesforAdministerin
gMedications.aspx

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2012). Table 6: Categories of
Medication Error Classification. http://www.ahrq.gov/professionals/quality-patientsafety/patient-safety-resources/resources/match/matchtab6.html
Schmidt, K., Taylor, A., & Pearson, A. (2017). Reduction of medication errors: A
unique approach. Journal of Nursing Care Quality. 32(2), April/June 2017, 150–156.
Topic 4: Healthcare System Errors
Short Description:
The health care system in the United States has been the subject of much
debate as experts try to determine the best way to deliver high-quality
care. In Crossing the Quality Chasm, the Institute of Medicine (2001)
called for the redesign of health care delivery systems and their external
environments to promote care that is safe, effective, patient-centered,
timely, efficient, and equitable.
Potential Intervention Approaches:
Systemwide transformation
Process redesign
Electronic health records
Keywords for Articles:
multi-stakeholder collaboration, healthcare system redesign
References:
Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Quality of Health Care in America. (2001).
Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century. Washington
(DC): National Academies Press (US).Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
(2017). Hospitals and Health Systems.
http://www.ahrq.gov/professionals/systems/index.html
Roberts, B. (2017). Relationship-based care: The institute of medicine’s core
competencies in action. Creative Nursing, 05/2016, 22(2).

Statistics / SPSS Assignment

1)To study about the relationship between height and the weight, you need to collect a sample of
nine (9) people using a systematic sampling method.
-What is the population of people?
-Where and how are you going to collect your sample?
-Does your sample accurately represent your population? Why or why not?
-Collect the sample and record the data.
2) (CLO 1) Construct a confidence interval to estimate the mean height and the mean weight by
completing the following:
-Find the sample mean and the sample standard deviation of the height.
-Find the sample mean and the sample standard deviation of the weight.
-Construct and interpret a confidence interval to estimate the mean height.

Construct and interpret a confidence interval to estimate the mean weight.
3)(CLO 2) Test a claim that the mean height of people you know is not equal to 64 inches using
the p-value method or the traditional method by completing the following:
-State H0 and H1.
-Find the p value or critical value(s).
-Draw a conclusion in context of the situation.
4) (CLO 3) Create a scatterplot with the height on the x-axis and the weight on the y-axis. Find
the correlation coefficient between the height and the weight. What does the correlation
coefficient tell you about your data? Construct the equation of the regression line and use it to
predict the weight of a person who is 68 inches tall.
5)Write a paragraph or two about what you have learned from this process. When you read, see,
or hear a statistic in the future, what skills will you apply to know whether you can trust the
result?

Stroop Effect 

Stroop Effect 

  1. Empirical Report Instructions

General Requirements

As described in the Course Information, you are required to participate in a cognitive experiment using the Experiments in Cognition software. The data you collect from yourself will be used to write an empirical research paper. Research papers are an important component of any educational experience, and will help you to develop and refine the following academic skills:

  1. Critical reading of original research literature.
  2. Summarizing and integrating research findings.
  3. In-depth analysis and understanding of a topic of interest.
  4. Objective writing for an academic audience.

The format of the paper must follow the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.), or simply APA style. You are encouraged to complete the APA Style Tutorial, and review the sample empirical report. Completing the empirical research paper and writing the results in APA style will enable you to achieve the following specific goals:

  1. Obtain an experiential component to understanding research on cognition.
  2. Enhance your appreciation for the research techniques used to investigate a mental phenomenon.
  3. Apply APA format in a research paper assignment.

Once completed, your empirical report should be submitted to the Empirical Research Paper Dropbox on the main course page. Please review Moodle Orientation for instructions on how to use the Dropbox.

Experiments

You may choose from any of the five experiments described in this manual. Some of these experiments are discussed in Matlin (2013), and are replications or variants of well-known cognitive tasks that are noted for producing robust and reliable effects. A description of each experiment is provided along with detailed participant instructions. Before starting any experiment, it is very important that you read the Participant Instructions thoroughly as they provide important details about the tasks required for the experiment and how to respond.

To complete an experiment, you will need a computer with Internet access to download the course software, Experiments in Cognition. General instructions on how to download and start the software are described in the next section.

Each experiment will begin with an electronic Informed Consent form. You will be presented with a summary of the task requirements, and will be asked to click on a button to indicate your consent to participate. Informed consent is a necessary ethical requirement when conducting any type of research with human participants. On this page, you will have the option to indicate: (a) full participation in order to complete the paper requirements; (b) limited participation in order to learn more about the experiment; or (c) exit. If you indicate full participation, your data will be uploaded to a secured server in partial fulfillment of the paper requirements. You are only required to complete one experiment under full participation but you are encouraged to participate in any of the other experiments any number of times by indicating limited participation. If you select this option, your data from the experiment will only be stored on your computer. You might find that this option provides you with a better understanding of the cognitive phenomenon under investigation.

Marking Outline

Your empirical research report in APA style will comprise the following sections.

  1. Title Page (2 points):The title page should contain the following elements in the APA prescribed positions: Running Head, Page Number, Title, Author, and Afilliation. You do not need to include Author Notes.
  2. Abstract (6 points):The abstract is a 120-word summary of the entire paper, and is typically written last. The abstract succinctly summarizes the crucial elements of the four major sections of the empirical report (Introduction, Method, Results, and Discussion).
  3. Introduction (35 points):The introduction provides a brief but thorough review of the relevant literature that leads to the hypothesis and the predicted results. The description of each experiment in the assignment manual is also accompanied by two references: the original study upon which the experiment is based, and a review of the literature relevant to the experiment. You are required to seek out three additional references using the online databases that are available from the Athabasca University Library (PsycInfo, ProQuest, etc.). Use the review article to identify topics or issues that you feel are relevant when selecting the additional references. In total, your paper should be based on at least 5 sources.

The experiment descriptions also include a statement about dependent and independent variables. You will recall that experiments are defined by the presence of independent variables (variables manipulated by the experimenter) and the dependent variable (the variable measured by the experimenter). The general hypothesis of any proper experiment is that manipulations of the independent variable will cause changes in the dependent variable. Unlike other research methods, the experiment is capable of testing causal relations between variables. As you conclude the introduction, your review should naturally lead to a statement of the hypothesis and your predicted results. The predictions should be supported by the review.

  1. Method (15 points):The method section is the objective summary and administration of the task, such that the experiment could be repeated by another researcher interested in replicating your findings. Be sure that your Method section contains the following subsections, as described in the APA Style Manual: Participants, Materials, and Procedure. Under Participants, you only need to describe the relevant characteristics of yourself as the lone participant. Those unfamiliar with APA format are strongly advised to consult the Style Manual before completing this section.
  2. Results (7 points):The results section of an experiment usually involves the presentation of descriptive and inferential statistics. Descriptive statistics are summary statistics. Inferential statistics are tools used to determine whether the obtained findings are statistically significant. In this paper, you are only required to complete a descriptive analysis of your findings in the form of a table or figure (but not both). If you follow the instructions for the experiment, you will end up with a set of summary measures of your performance. This information will be used to construct an APA-style table or figure to include in your research paper. The table or figure will constitute the major portion of the results section.
  3. Discussion (10 points):The discussion section provides an interpretation of the findings with respect to the predictions made in the Introduction. You can also include your own observations and impressions of the experience as a participant, any limitations or shortcomings, and/or any future directions.
  4. References (5 points):The reference section contains a list of works actually read and cited in the body of the paper. All references must adhere to APA style.

Your research paper should be 10 to 12 double-spaced pages. In addition to the preceding components, your writing style (grammar and spelling) will be marked out of 10 points, and adherence to general APA format will be marked out of 10 points.

2.           Experiment 1: Stroop Effect

Experiment Description

The Stroop effect (Stroop, 1935) is a robust phenomenon with a long history of study in cognitive psychology. As described in Chapter 3 of the Matlin text, the Stroop effect refers to an attentional finding that reveals how difficult it can be to focus on one thing (or, alternatively, to ignore something else). In the classic demonstration of the Stroop effect, words that are names of colours are presented to the participant in coloured ink, and the participant is required to ignore the word and name the ink colour. When the ink and word are consistent (e.g., the word “red” is written in red ink), responses are generally quick. However, when the ink and word are inconsistent (e.g., the word “red” is written in green ink), responses are relatively slower.

In this experiment, you will be asked to indicate the colour of a computer-presented letter string by pressing a corresponding computer key as quickly as possible. There will be three conditions. In condition 1 (Neutral) the coloured letter strings will be composed of Xs. In condition 2 (Inconsistent) the letter strings will consist of colour words (e.g., red, green, blue) displayed in a colour different than the colour specified by the word. In condition 3 (Consistent) the letter string will consist of colour words displayed in the same colour specified by the word. You will test whether your reaction time in identifying the colour (i.e., the dependent variable) is affected in the consistent and inconsistent conditions when compared to the neutral condition (i.e., the independent variable).

The following sources are strongly recommended as review materials for completing your paper and are available online through the AU library. You are also required to seek out three additional references for a total of five sources.

Original Study: Stroop (1935). Studies of interference in serial verbal reactions. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 18, 643-662.

Review Article: MacLeod, C. M. (1991). Half a century of research on the Stroop effect: An integrative review. Psychological Bulletin, 109, 163-203.

Participant Instructions

On each trial in this experiment, a plus sign will appear briefly in the center of the screen for 500 milliseconds, and will be immediately followed by a string of letters printed in one of four colours. Your task is to respond to the COLOUR of the letter string by pressing the correct key as quickly as possible. The appropriate key to press for each colour is as follows:

red = z   green = x   blue = .   yellow = /

The computer key-colour assignments will be displayed at the top of the screen but you may also want to tape colour terms (or colour patches) to your computer keys to help you keep track of the colour-key assignments.

If the response is correct, the next trial will begin in 1500 milliseconds. If the response is not made within the 1500 milliseconds, or if the response is incorrect, or if an invalid key is pressed, a short tone will be presented and the next trial will begin in 1500 milliseconds.

Each of the three conditions will be presented twice in blocks of 36 trials (i.e., six blocks of 36 trials), and the order of conditions across blocks and the order of trials within a block will be determined randomly. You will have an opportunity to take a short break between blocks. In addition, there will be a set of 18 practice trials (6 trials for each condition) at the beginning of the experiment.

The raw data from the experiment (216 responses) can be examined by clicking the View Raw Data button.

To summarize these data, click on the Analyze Raw Data button to compute the mean and standard deviation of the reaction times for correct responses in each of the three conditions. This button will also calculate the number of valid trials for each condition or the number of trials where a correct response was provided. Outwardly, this button produces no observable effect but must be pressed for the next button to work.

To view the summarized results, click on the View Summarized Data button. This summary is important, and will be necessary to prepare an APA style table to include with your paper. Please note that, although the summary data appear in tabular form, the format is not in APA style. Part of your task is to create an APA table from the summarized data.

To view the results of previous participants, click on the Display Group Data button. This button will display the average reaction time for the three conditions. You can use this information to compare with your own performance. This button will not work until you have participated in the experiment.