As a counselor, you will be making decisions on how to select evidence-based treatments. In your essay, demonstrate the decision-making process that you will use to choose one evidence-based treatment over another. Write a 1,000-1,250-word reflection essay on how to effectively utilize research in order to guide decision-making processes in the counseling profession. Include the following in your essay:

1. A discussion about how qualitative and quantitative research reports guide the decision-making process.
2. A discussion about the key characteristics of effective writing and publication in counseling and psychological research. How do these characteristics guide the decision-making processes?
3. Select a diagnosis and include an example of how research could assist in treatment.
4. Include a minimum of three scholarly resources in addition to the course textbook.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the directions in the Student Success Center.

This benchmark assignment assesses the following programmatic competency: 4.2: Utilize research to guide decision-making processes.

 

USE OUR CLASS TEXT AS ONE OF YOUR REFERENCES: (If it applies)

Sheperis, C., Young, J., & Daniels, M. H. (2017). Counseling research: Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ. Pearson.

With the ever-growing demands of an evolving country, police professionalism was implemented to adhere to the expectations of a civil society. Police agencies were designed to provide the greatest level of protection and order maintenance for the American population.

Post by Day 3: Define police professionalism, and describe two outcomes of increased police professionalism during the 20th century. Provide one example of recent events involving police professionalism. Compare any similarities or differences between the two examples. You may pull from the media, newspapers, etc. Explain what recommendations or strategies could be implemented to help establish more positive relationships.

Respond by Day 5 to at least two colleagues, considering the outcomes of increased police professionalism discussed in the post. Suggest additional recommendations and/or strategies that were not brought up in the post.

Jones M., & Johnstone, P. (2011). History of Criminal Justice. (5th ed.) New York, NY. Routledge.

• Chapter 12, “Corrections in Modern America”

Week 2 Assignment: Editing APA Style Errors

Attached Files:

•  Week 2 Editing APA Style Errors Assessment.docx (20.604 KB)

The attached paper contains 10 APA Style formatting errors.  Your job is to fix the errors in yellow.  HINT: The table on page 177 of the APA Manual will help you correct several errors. If you are not sure what the error is, then keep looking for it.  This activity involves some investigative work using the APA Manual to address mostly BASIC APA Style formatting rules.  If you guess, you will probably not get the answer correct. But if you use the APA Manual, you can get 100%.

NOTE: DO NOT send this assignment to the Writing Studio.

Download the paper, fix the mistakes (highlight them another color if you want), and turn in the paper by Sunday night.  This is a pass/fail assignment and you must fix at least 9 of the 10 errors to get credit.

Running Head: ETHICS AND ASSESSMENTS 1

ETHICS AND ASSESSMENTS 3

Ethics and Assessments: An Analysis of Test Selection and Participant Feedback

Daniel G. Kuchinka

Industrial/Organizational Psychology

Testing and Assessment in Workplace Psychology

Ethics and Assessments

In this paper, we will consider and assess different ethical codes of conduct and describe why they are important in an assessment process. For our discussion, assessment is defined as psychological tests used for selection purposes in the workplace. Ethics is a broad subject with varying definitions and meaning typically referring to immoral, unfair, or illegal activities. Codes of conduct are common and often identify relevant and important issues unique to the mission of an organization. For our discussion, ethical codes of conduct are defined using a composite list provided by Cook & Cripps (2005). We will focus on ethical issues specific to planning assessments and providing feedback. When reviewing the following information, keep in mind that while specific ethical guidelines and practices of assessment are well documented and some examples will be identified, debate remains concerning many of the important details (Levinson, 2002). These details will be identified and explained as we progress through the following ethical codes of conduct.

When planning an assessment, one of the first activities a psychologist will encounter that poses an ethical consideration is choosing an appropriate assessment. Cook and Cripps (2005, p. 321) describe “several issues including making sure the assessment is job related, does not show group bias, is not unduly intrusive, and does not cause unnecessary stress to applicants”. When examining each of these examples, we can develop an appreciation for the complexity of ethical issues and reasons for debate as previously described. To make sure an assessment is job related, a psychologist will often perform a job analysis and investigate several assessments to make sure an appropriate test is used. This would include reviewing the reliability and validity of the test, as well as understanding the population the test is designed for based on the publisher’s recommendations. Although simply making a poor choice of assessment does not necessarily constitute unethical behavior.

Some may view choosing a poor or inappropriate assessment as unethical because the psychologist should not be able to use ignorance as an excuse for his or her decision. However, Cook and Cripps may view a poor decision as a waste of time but not necessarily unethical. What would likely be viewed as unethical behavior would be a psychologist who knowingly chooses an assessment that is not job related. As an example, a test might be chosen that measures aptitude towards the English language for a job that does not require significant knowledge of English (e.g., assembly line worker). If the psychologist intentionally chose the test because he or she does not want to hire individuals that speak English as a second language, the decision would likely be viewed as unethical. However, even though this example may be clearly an ethical violation to many, some may still claim it was not an ethical violation. As an example, they may claim a common language of English is important for safety reasons. This example briefly demonstrates the complex nature of ethics and assessment.

After an assessment is completed, a common ethical code of conduct recommends providing feedback to the test taker (American Psychological Association, 1996; Cook and Cripps, 2005). For the organization using an assessment as part of the selection process, this means a qualified individual who has access to the test results is ethically responsible for explaining those results to the applicant who completed the assessment. In the “Statement on the Disclosure of Test Data” created by the Committee on Psychological Tests and Assessments of the American Psychological Association (1996), psychologists and their employing organizations or institutions have an ethical obligation to disclose an individual’s test results. This obligation can also be legally mandated or included in the policy and procedures specific to the organization administering the assessment.

Perceptions of fairness towards the assessment process and those conducting the tests can be negative if not effectively administered (Schinkel, van Dierendonck, and Anderson, 2004). Administering an invalid assessment may be a waste of time and for this reason not unethical as Cook and Cripps (2005) describe, the negative consequences on the individual being tested is what constitutes this action as unethical. Fletcher describes the experience of going through an assessment process and how subsequently being rejected can also have negative effects on self-esteem (1991). Although research could not be found pertaining to an absence of feedback (i.e., applicant completing an assessment and never receiving any feedback), it is likely not knowing anything about the test results would also yield negative consequences. It is for this reason additional research needs to be conducted with the absence of assessment feedback as a variable.

The purpose of the previous discussion was to demonstrate the complexity of ethical codes of conduct and assessment during the selection process. Literature is common that describes the various forms of ethical violations during the planning and feedback stages of an assessment. To make things more complicated, Schinkel, van Dierendonck, and Anderson (2004) describe perceptions of fairness that can be negative even when ethically administered. However, because ethics and assessment can be debatable topics, the application of ethical codes of conduct can be difficult. Psychologists need to consider the negative impact they can have on the lives of the individuals who participate in the assessment process. Perhaps it is the impact on others that can help psychologists determine what is ethical or not based on the significance of the outcome of their decisions.

References

American Psychological Association, Committee on Psychological Tests and Assessments (1996). Statement on the disclosure of test data. American Psychologist, 51(6), 644-648. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.51.6.644

Fletcher, C. (1991). Candidates’ reactions to assessment centres and their outcomes: A longitudinal study. Journal of Occupational Psychology, 64(2), 117-127.

Levinson, H. (2002). Ethical problems and consulting guidelines. In H. Levinson (Ed.), Organizational assessment: A step-by-step guide to effective consulting. (pp. 13-39). Washington, DC US: American Psychological Association. doi:10.1037/10453-002

Cook, M., & Cripps, B. (2005). Psychological assessment in the workplace: A manager’s guide. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.

Schinkel, S., van Dierendonck, D., & Anderson, N. (2004). The impact of selection encounters on applicants: An experimental study into feedback effects after a negative selection decision. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 12(1-2), 197-205. doi:10.1111/j.0965-075X.2004.00274.x

5 sentences each, total of 10.  referenced answer required for both. Can provide the reading material

1.  Review the preamble and general principles section of the code of ethics. What is the purpose of these sections? In reviewing the general principles, which do you feel is the most impactful or influential to the practice of psychology? Explain.

2.In the past, researchers in psychology used some “ethically questionable” research techniques. Do you believe that some of these techniques were useful despite their ethical shortcomings? Explain. How did these “ethically questionable” techniques lend to the creation of the code of ethics?

Prior to beginning work on this discussion, read Chapters 2, 3, 4, and 5 from the Frost (2011) e-book.

For this discussion you will take on the role of a clinical psychologist treating clients for depression. You are interested in doing research on effective treatments for a chronic form of depression called dysthymia. In the DSM-5, it is referred to as persistent depressive disorder. The DSM-5 is listed in your recommended resources, and details regarding the disorder can be found in section 300.4(F34.1).

In your review of the current materials, you find that most of the previous research on this disorder has been done using quantitative methods. Identify an aspect of this topic you feel should be studied using qualitative methods. Apply the scientific method to this research issue and develop a specific research question. Compare the characteristics and appropriate uses of various qualitative research designs and choose an appropriate qualitative  design for this research question. Create a feasible research design that includes plans for the sample selection, data collection, and data analysis. Apply ethical principles to your design by explaining how this type of qualitative design may affect the participants in your study and how you will deal with sociocultural issues.