For my friends who cant sleep. I just finished my assignment. You can read it to help you out with your insomnia. Research design for anxious behavior in 50 year-olds By: B. Silva In reviewing fields for researching anxious behavior in 50 year-olds, the subfield of Developmental Psychology may be the most appropriate from which the researcher comes. A developmental psychologist has an understanding of changes to cognitive and neurological operations as individuals age or transition through life stages. The developmental psychologist studies human behavior patterns and variations “from womb to tomb” (Myers, 2014, p. 9). Once we have established the psychological specialist, we must consider which of the various fields of psychology in which to perform the study. We can do this by reviewing neuroscience, evolutionary, behavior genetics, psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive, and social-cultural theoretical models (Myers, 2014). For this behavioral question, our study will be performed from the perspective of social-cultural and Cognitive. The theoretical suggestion, or hypothesis, is that anxious behavior in 50 year-olds can be triggered by social-cultural pressures as a result of aging and life transitions (developmental psychology), in conjunction with age-related changes in cognitive function. To support this statement, let us consider two examples. First, more often the images presented in popular media as attractive or desirable is that of younger individuals, possibly causing the 50 year-old to feel social inferior and insecure in their appearance. Secondly, fresh and highly motivated, career oriented professionals may less often be viewed as peers of the 50 year-old but instead as their replacement as they approach retirement age. Consider the difficulty presented to a 50 year-old when faced with his first iPhone or if required by his employer to establish a twitter account. What appears to be easy to a 22 year-old is a daunting task to a 50 year-old. At this point, social-cultural and cognitive may overlap to contribute to the anxious behavior. In addition, advancements in technology have diminished the value of many previously desired skills, making many of them obsolete, potentially causing the 50 year-old to question their contemporary value in the workplace. As an example, let us consider architecture as a vocation. Previously, this profession required specialized skills for manual drafting of design to satisfy aesthetics, function, and structural soundness. However, with advancements in technology a trained technician can use a computer program to perform the task in a fraction of the time and with greater precision. A psychologist researcher, within the area of cognitive psychology, will consider changes to mental function in mental processes due to aging (Myers, 2014). Specifically, he would test for such things as memory loss and learning challenges. Cognitive psychology gained favor in the 1960s and has established legitimacy in examining human mental processes. Cognitive Neuroscience, “explores how we perceive, process, and remember information and even why we can get anxious or depressed” (Myers, 2013, p. 4). As stated earlier, research of anxious behavior in 50 year-olds from a Social-cultural perspective is also appropriate. We can assume that some individuals may struggle with their own aging process while images of young people grace the television screen and magazine covers. Career issues, technological demands, even family dynamics such as children leaving the home can move a person into a different social category thereby causing anxiety. An appropriate study design for this issue would be Correlational research. Correlation measures the degree to which two factors vary, and whether they may predict one another (Myers, 2013). In this case, what is the correlation between social-cultural factors, cognitive changes related to development (aging), and anxious behavior in 50 year-olds? Although, we are looking for correlation of these factors in an effort to find a statistical prediction, we must be careful not to erroneously draw causation assumptions (Myers, 2014). Once the research identifies correlation, it may support a possible cause and effect, but it does not prove as much. As Myers (2013) advises, “Association does not prove causation” (p.26). To conclude, the study of anxious behavior in 50 year-olds can be appropriately performed by a Developmental Psychologist, considering the social-cultural pressures and age-related cognitive changes. The Study design most appropriate is Correlational research. References Myers, D. G. (2014). Exploring psychology in modules (9th ed.). [VitalSource]. Retrieved from CourseSmart
Posted on: Mon, 08 Sep 2014 06:08:42 +0000
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