This worksheet will help you complete the Module Four Worksheet: Identifying a Research Gap.
In order to complete this worksheet, you will need to review all five studies you have selected for your final project.
This worksheet is filled out to provide an example for you to follow.
Note: Use this sheet as a template by deleting the highlighted portions and replacing them with your own content.
Based upon your review of the articles in your chosen track and the additional articles you selected, identify a gap in the abnormal psychology research presented in the course that is unexplored or underdeveloped. For example, is there an unexplored aspect of abnormal psychology you believe could be further explored? When reviewing a resource, one good way of identifying a research gap is to look at the author’s own conclusions and any suggestions for future research, which may point his or her readers to areas of the study that require further research.
Family and other forms of social support have been shown to benefit patients who are suffering from schizophrenia. Current trends indicate that family-oriented therapeutic interventions might be even more beneficial amongst racial/ethnic minority populations if they are conducted within a cultural and spiritual context. While treatment outcomes appear to be largely unaffected by a therapist-patient mismatch with regard to race/ethnicity/spirituality, it is unclear whether or not a patient’s treatment outcomes are affected by a similar mismatch between the patient and his or her family members.
Develop a basic research question addressing the identified gap. In other words, create a question that you could answer in research further investigating your identified gap. Remember: An effective research question should be clear and focus your research. Ideally, it should also be something that you are interested in or care about.
Within family-focused treatment for schizophrenia, are therapeutic outcomes impacted by a race/ethnic/spiritual mismatch between a patient and his or her family?