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Assignment:
Students will review an empirical research article in peer-reviewed journals published within ten
years. The purpose of this assignment is to practice critiquing research articles, identify evidence-based
counseling practices, and evaluate empirical evidence of counseling interventions and programs. The
article should be quantitative research. The purpose of this assignment is to let you practice summarizing and critiquing scholarly articles.
Please review the following article: Relationship between Parental Narcissism and Children’s Mental Vulnerability: Mediation Role of Rearing Style
Citation: Dentale, F., Verrastro, V., Petruccelli, I., Diotaiuti, P., Petruccelli, F., Cappelli, L., & Martini, P. S.
(2015). Relationship between Parental Narcissism and Children’s Mental Vulnerability: Mediation Role of Rearing Style. International Journal of Psychology & Psychological Therapy, 15(3), 337-347. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=a9h&AN=110236447&site=ehost-live
Please follow the example that is attached.
Please consider the following questions when critiquing the article:
– Be concerned if articles offer “proof,” “facts,” and “truth” based on research, especially when studying human behavior
– Random or convenience sampling? Using random samples is the best way to obtain data that can be generalized to a population. Sampling lacking random methods ? problems w/ generalization.
– Do researchers establish criteria when using purposive samples in qualitative research?
– Be cautious when a body of literature has a common sampling flaw (e.g., convenience samples).
– Is it the right measure for the variables being studied?
– Give high evaluations to studies that use multiple measures of key variables. More confidence in establishing consistent results.
– Does body of literature have a common measurement flaw [e.g., using self-report data on socially undesirable behaviors (e.g. drug use) can lead to underreporting of the behaviors]
– Lack of logical argument for the study—Why was this study conducted, why is it important, and why now?
– Researcher bias in reviewing existing literature—only reporting literature that supports their position, exaggerating/minimizing study limitations.
– Consider the reliability and validity of measures used.
– Consider the care with which interview protocols were developed. Give high evaluations to qualitative studies where protocols are described in detail.
– Consider quality control measures in qualitative research (Two common techniques are peer review and member checking).
– Consider researchers’ self-critiques of their own research methods—focus on what the research has identified as weaknesses or limitations of the study. What else may have been missed?
– Be cautious when researchers refer to causality when RQ and design do not lend themselves to this type of conclusion.
– Pay attention to methodological trends across studies—Be aware of those studies that place less emphasis on methodology.
Insufficient detail in methods section—was sufficient detail provided to replicate the study?
– Limitations of significance testing—just because a study reports findings are “statistically significant” does not mean that the difference was large enough to have “practical significance.”