Unit 22: Research

Methodology for Health

and Social Care
MISS MCLAREN
INTERVENTION: TUESDAY- 3.35PM-5PM (F7/L3)
DEADLINE: 28TH MARCH 2017- 12AM
Progress Tracker w/b Tuesday
21/02/17
Progress Tracker w/b Tuesday
07/03/17
Scenario
You work as an educational
psychologist for the local
authority. The local authority is
attempting to close the gaps in
the children and young persons
services in your area. They have
identified that there are issues
with regards to mental and
physical health referrals during
the exam years and have asked
you to conduct a research project
in this area to establish links
between health and education.
 Research Questions

Demi- How does ADHD affect students during exam periods? (observations of ADHD
students around the school- Speak to Miss , Videos on student behaviour, documentaries, Case
Study of student/friend, Interview questionnaire (Chloe's brother- odd/adhd). Assessment process
for diagnosis.
Karolina- How does cancer in the family affect students during exam years? - Should
there be ore campaigns for cancer awareness (obesity, food additives, processed food, genetically
modified food, body fats linking to 13 different types of cancer, natural remedies and healthy
eating) (Medical research, NHS websites, Newspaper articles, Interview school nurse/ cancer
survivors, questionnaire)
Chloe- How can depression affect a students ability to attend school during exam years
and with completion of exams? Questionnaire on depression, interview family members,
books, documentaries, school nurse, psychology teacher)
Interview pastoral, friends, family and anonymous students in school
Gather information from news articles, medical websites, published books and relevant sources- NO
WIKAPEDIA OR PLAGURISM (always reference if you do quote someone)
 Research Questions

Aishat- How do the effects of sickle cell affect students during exam years(observations
of sickle cell students around the school- Speak to Miss Sneddon , Videos on student behaviour
and lifestyles, documentaries, Diary on the effects, Case Study step sister. Interview
questionnaire. Assessment process for diagnosis. How do students get support with sickle cell
during exam years?
Naomi- Childhood obesity- links to exam stress Is childhood obesity linked to irregular
sleep and skipping breakfast. Questionnaire. Look at medical classifications of obesity vs peoples
perceptions on obesity. Test BMI of friends and family. Look at links to diet and DNA. Junk food vs
portion size. Do students become more obese during exam years due to stress and lack of time?
Tobi- Anxiety. When do most students suffer from anxiety- before/ after/ during exam season?
Does family life impact on exam stress and anxiety? How can anxiety be treated? Medicine/
holistic therapy/ counselling?
Interview pastoral, friends, family and anonymous students in school
Gather information from news articles, medical websites, published books and relevant sources- NO
WIKAPEDIA OR PLAGURISM (always reference if you do quote someone)
 Task 1A

Task 1a - Explain the functions of research. Give clear examples in health and social
care settings.

You must include all the functions below as separate headings in your report:

FUNCTIONS: Identifying a need; highlighting gaps in provision; planning for provision;

informing policy or practice; extending knowledge and understanding; improving practice;
aiding reflection; allowing progress to be monitored; examining topics of contemporary
importance.
 Task 1B

Explain the reasons why you have chosen this area of interest (in your aims and
objectives) and explain the function of your research ( in your rationale)

You should complete a literature review from at least 4 different sources

(secondary) which demonstrate the need for this research and investigate
previous knowledge of the topic which will inform your hypothesis.

 What is a literature review?

Task 1B

The aim of a literature review is to show your reader that you have read, and have a good grasp of, the main published work concerning a particular topic
or question in health and social care.

It is very important that your review is not just a description of what others have written in the form of a set of summaries,. The review should be a critical
discussion, showing insight and an awareness of differing arguments, theories and approaches. It should be an analysis of the relevant published work,
linked at all times to your own purpose and rationale.

According to Caulley (1992) of La Trobe University, the literature review should:

compare and contrast different authors' views on an issue

group authors who come to similar conclusions

criticise aspects of research methods

explain areas which authors disagree on

highlight good research

highlight gaps in research

show how your new research relates to previous research

conclude by summarising what the literature says

The purposes of the review are:
Task 1B

to define and limit the problem you are working on

to place your study in an historical perspective
to avoid unnecessary duplication
to evaluate promising research methods
to relate your findings to previous knowledge and suggest further
research
Structure of the literature review
Task 1B

The overall structure of your review will depend largely on your own thesis or research area. What you will need
to do is to group together and compare and contrast the varying opinions of different writers on certain topics.
What you must not do is just describe what one writer says, and then go on to give a general overview of another
writer, and then another, and so on. Your structure should be dictated instead by topic areas, controversial issues
or by questions to which there are varying approaches and theories. Within each of these sections, you would
then discuss what the different literature argues, remembering to link this to your own purpose.
Linking words are important. If you are grouping together writers with similar opinions, you would use words or
phrases such as:
similarly, in addition, also, again
More importantly, if there is disagreement, you need to indicate clearly that you are aware of this by the use
of linkers such as:
however, on the other hand, conversely, nevertheless
At the end of the review you should include a summary of what the literature implies, which again links to
your hypothesis or main question.
 Writing the review
Task 1B

You first need to decide what you need to read. What exactly are your objectives and what do you need to find out? Before you start reading it may be useful to
write a list of the main areas and questions involved, and then read with the purpose of finding out about or answering these. Unless something comes up which is
particularly important, stick to this list, as it is very easy to get distracted, particularly on the internet.

A good literature review needs a clear line of argument. You therefore need to use the critical notes and comments you made whilst doing your reading to express
an academic opinion. Make sure that:

you include a clear, short introduction which gives an outline of the review, including the main topics covered and the order of the arguments, with a brief
rationale for this.

there is always a clear link between your own arguments and the evidence uncovered in your reading. Include a short summary at the end of each section.

Use quotations if appropriate.

you always acknowledge opinions which do not agree with your thesis. If you ignore opposing viewpoints, your argument will in fact be weaker.

Keep your writing clear and concise, avoiding colloquialisms and personal language. You should always aim to be objective and respectful of others' opinions; this
is not the place for strong personal opinions. If you thought something was rubbish, use words such as "inconsistent", "lacking in certain areas" or "based on false
assumptions"!

When introducing someone's opinion, don't use "says", but instead an appropriate verb which more accurately reflects this viewpoint, such as "argues", "claims"
or "states". Use the present tense for general opinions and theories, or the past when referring to specific research or experiments:

Although Trescothick (2001) argues that attack is the best form of defence, Boycott (1969) claims that ...

In a field study carried out amongst the homeless of Sydney, Warne (1999) found that ...

And remember at all times to avoid plagiarising your sources. Always separate your source opinions from your own hypothesis. making sure you consistently
reference the literature you are referring to. When you are doing your reading and making notes, it might be an idea to use different colours to distinguish
 Task 1B
Final checklist
Selection of 4 Sources

Have you explained the purpose of the review?

Why did you include some of the literature and exclude others?

Which years did you exclude?

Have you emphasised recent developments?

Have you focussed on primary sources with only selective use of secondary sources?

Is the literature you have selected relevant?

Is your bibliographic data complete?

Critical Evaluation of the Literature

Have you organised your material according to issues?

Is there a logic to the way you organised the material?

Does the amount of detail included on an issue relate to its importance?

Have you been sufficiently critical of design and methodological issues?

Have you indicated when results were conflicting or inconclusive and discussed possible reasons?

Have you indicated the relevance of each reference to your research?

Interpretation

Has your summary of the current literature contributed to the reader's understanding of the problems?

Does the design of your research reflect the methodological implications of the literature review?
 Task 2

Discuss ethical issues relating to research in the health and social care sectors. Create a
written report which discusses the ethics in research; include references to historic cases
which demonstrate the importance of behaving ethically in research. You could reference
the case of the boy in the bubble, thaladomide or the head transplant case. Within your
report you should consider the consequences of not following ethical guidelines, as well as
the legislation involved.

You must cover the following areas:

ETHICAL PRINCIPLES: protection from harm (do no harm); informed consent (voluntary); confidentiality; obtaining
ethical approval.

ETHICAL ISSUES: human rights; role of the media; use and misuse of data; vulnerability of client groups.

IMPLICATIONS: of ethics, eg who commissions research, bias, authenticity, validity, reliability, impact of key reports
on services and people who use services, consequences/benefits of findings, effect/influence of publications, access
to information.

LEGISLATION AND POLICY: Human Rights Act; Data Protection Act; sector codes of practice; policies and procedures.
Task 3A

Compare different research methodologies for health and social care. You
must create a glossary to cover the different types of research and
explain the different sources of data below:
Types of research: quantitative; qualitative; primary; secondary
Primary sources: questionnaires; structured and unstructured interviews;
scientific experiment; formal and informal observation; measurements.
Secondary sources: information literacy, eg website, journals, media,
books, e-resources; literature review, eg extract information, interpret,
analyse, synthesis; data, eg graphs, tables, statistics
Task 3B

In a report to accompany your glossary, justify the research methodologies

chosen for the project by explaining how these methods will help you to
collect useful data that will give you clear answers to your research
question.

1-2 pages
 Task 3C

Add to your report by explaining and justifying in your methodology how these
methods will help you to collect reliable and valid data, and how you can minimize
bias through these methods

1 page
Task 4A

Produce a plan for your research which explains how you intend to carry out the
research under the following headings:
a) a question or hypothesis for study
b) research aims and objectives (M1)
c) rationale (M1)
d) proposed methods of data collection (M2, D1)
e) proposed secondary resources (M1)
f) people involved (P4)
g) breakdown/timing (P4) 2-3 pages
h) other considerations for example ethical issues, potential problems or risks. (P2)
 Task 4B

You must complete a research diary to log each step you have taken. (P4)

Date Action taken Participants Points to consider

28/02/17 Questionnaire based on -Pastoral team Not all students and
student anxiety during -GCSE Teachers staff member may be
exam periods handed -Year 11 and Year 12 honest or hand back
out. students their questionnaires so I
will need to set a
deadline and collect
questionnaires
personally.

1-2 pages
 Task 5

Results gathered from questonnaire: Question 1

Carry out the planned research
6
project (assessed via data collected
and research log as part of P4). 5

0
Feel calmer Feel ok Feel stressed Feel depressed
Year 11 year 12 year 13

Gather evidence by creating tables and charts, take

photographs and notes based on your findings
 Task 6 Report findings and conclusions from the research
project.

Generate a report around the following headings:

v. results, ( approx. 1-2 sides A4)
vi. Analysis and conclusion, ( approx. 1 sides A4)
vii. References;
Through Interview or written submission
a) M3 assess strengths and weaknesses of the research project in meeting the aims or hypothesis ( M3)
b) Analyse the success of the project, relating your conclusions to the original aims of the research. (M4).
c) Evaluate how the research project could have been improved.(D2)
Evaluation: drawing conclusions, compare with aims, ethical considerations, bias, error, relationship of results to current
research, limitations of research, strengths and
Carefully reference all your sources;
Any images used should be adapted in such a way as to demonstrate the product is your OWN work;

Your annotations of diagrams should be detailed and clear;

Use appropriate terminology.
3 pages minimum
Bell J Doing Your Research Project A guide for first time researchers in health, social care and early years
(Open University Press, 2005) ISBN 9780335215041
Bowling A Research Methods in Health: Investigating Health and Health Services (Open University Press,
2002) ISBN 9780335206439
Denscombe M Small-scale Social Research Projects (Open University Press, 2006) ISBN 9780335198054
Michie V, Baker L, Boys D, McLeavy J BTEC National Health and Social Care Book 2 (Nelson Thornes, 2008)
ISBN 9780748781720
Silverman D Interpreting Qualitative Data Third Edition (Sage Publications, 2006) ISBN 9781412922456
Stretch B, Whitehouse M BTEC National Health and Social Care Book 1 (Heinemann, 2007)
ISBN 9780435499150
Stretch B and Whitehouse M BTEC Level 3 Nationals in Health and Social Care Student Book 1 (Pearson,
2010) ISBN 9781846907663
Stretch B and Whitehouse M BTEC Level 3 Nationals in Health and Social Care Student Book 2 (Pearson,
2010) ISBN 9781846907470
Walsh M Research Made Real: A Guide for Students (Nelson Thornes, 2001) ISBN 9780748758418

Journals and magazines

Care and Health
Community Care
Nursing Times