Chapter 1 Research in the Human Services

Question 1

human services

Answer 1

activities with the primary goal of enhancing the relationship between people and societal institutions so that people may maximize their potential and alleviate distress

Question 2

human services have an emphasis on what two things?

Answer 2

working in teams

collaborative relationships across disciplines

Question 3

social research

Answer 3

the systematic examination (or reexamination) of empirical data, collected by someone firsthand, concerning the social or psychological forces operating in a situation

Question 4

three major elements of social research

Answer 4

systematic

empirical data

social and Psychological factors

Question 5

Goals (types) of research

Answer 5

descriptive research

predictive research

explanatory research

evaluation research

Question 6

descriptive research

Answer 6

attempt to discover facts or describe reality

Question 7

predictive research

Answer 7

focuses on prediction or making projections about what may occur in the future or in other settings

Question 8

Explanatory research

Answer 8

involves explanation or determining why or how something occurred

Question 9

Evaluation research

Answer 9

focuses on evaluation or the use of scientific research methods to plan intervention programs, to monitor the implementation of new programs and the operation of existing ones, and to determine how effectively programs or clinical practices achieve their goals.

Question 10

basic research (pure research)

Answer 10

to advance knowledge about human behavior with little concern for any immediate, practical benefits

Question 11

applied research

Answer 11

research designed with a practical outcome in mind and with the assumption that some group, or society as a whole, will gain specific benefits from it

Question 12

what are the 5 practice research focal areas?

Answer 12

behavior and social environments

policy planning and development

assessment of client functioning

program evaluation

practice effectiveness evaluation

Question 13

evidence based practice

Answer 13

the conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of the best evidence in making decisions about human services assessment and intervention

it’s inherently critical - always questioning whether practices are effective

Question 14

what are the 2 reasons for the emergence of the evidence based practice?

Answer 14

developing body of research evidence that can guide practice

research in the past failed to support practice effectiveness

Question 15

stages of social research - ignore

Answer 15

-

Question 16

stages of human service practice - ignore

Answer 16

-

Question 17

problem formulation (conducting research)

Answer 17

decide on the problem to research

shape a concern into a specific researchable question

Question 18

research design development (conducting research)

Answer 18

detailed plan outlining how observations will be made

addresses certain issues as who will be studied, how they will be selected, and what info gathered

spells out what will occur during the following stages

Question 19

Data collection (conducting research)

Answer 19

pretest - preliminary application of the data gathering technique to determine its adequacy

pilot study - a small scale trial run of all the procedures planned for use in the main study

Question 20

Data analysis (conducting research)

Answer 20

unlocks info hidden in the raw data and transforms it into something meaningful

Question 21

Drawing conclusions (conducting research)

Answer 21

assess how much support exists for the hypotheses

drawing conclusions by making judgement about effectiveness

conclusions should indicate what has been learned by conducting research and impact of new knowledge

Question 22

Public dissemination of results (conducting research)

Answer 22

publication in books or journals or presentation to other presentations

Question 23

problem assessment (practice intervention)

Answer 23

posing answerable questions

Question 24

intervention strategy (practice intervention)

Answer 24

develop a strategy for intervention that will be effective in alleviating the problem specified during the assessment stage

Question 25

Implementation (practice intervention)

Answer 25

implement the intervention strategies

Question 26

evaluation (practice intervention)

Answer 26

evaluate effectiveness of intervention strategy

Question 27

closure (practice intervention)

Answer 27

make suggestions of future research

suggest other sources of help

Question 28

documentation and dissemination (practice intervention)

Answer 28

meeting agency requirements for record keeping and case documentation

share practice insights with other professionals