Research Paper Analysis

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Hello,

Interesting article! One approach to help you with getting started on this assignment is to look at each question, which you can draw on for your final copy. This is the approach this response takes. It should be fairly easy to take it to the next step of writing your final paper.

RESPONSE:

ASSIGNMENT: Research Paper Instructions: For this research analysis, use the format for "Criteria for Judging a Research Study" outlined below. This is a modification of the criteria from the text, Exploring Research. Use the same section headings as outlined below as you answer the questions under each section. These criteria will help you to write your analysis of the article: For this paper, you are to prepare the answers to the questions below in paragraph form, using proper punctuation and spelling.

Let's look closer at each section of the following outline for evaluating the article: "Racial/Ethnic Disparities in the Use of Mental Health Services in Poverty Areas".
(URL: http://www.psychservices.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/56/6/746).

Criteria For Judging A Research Study (Use title of the article)

1. Review of Previous Research

a. How closely is the literature reviewed in the study related to previous literature?

Although the literature review is very short, it is related to previous literature in the field. For example, the literature review reports earlier findings on the use of mental health services among Asian Americans, which indicate underutilization (Uba, 1994; Leong, 1986), and how researchers have explained this underutilization in terms of inaccessibility resulting from cultural incompatibility with services and avoidance of care by all but the most severely disturbed individuals (Mental Health, 2001; Sue, 1998, Akutsu, 1997). The literature review also report the further results form the last two studies listed above that showed more complex patterns, implying progress in the sense that use of outpatient services is higher among Asians than among Caucasians in the United States (Sue, 1998, Akutsu, 1997).

b. Is the review recent?

The review is fairly recent, listing research stemming from 1986 to 1997. However, the authors could have perhaps included more recent research to add to this, as it is almost 11 years old. However, in research, this is still considered fairly recent.

2. Problem and Purpose

With such a short literature review (2 paragraphs), the problem does not seem to be stated very clearly, and the authors do not provide a problem statement. The reader needs to infer, which seems to be that the authors think that certain ethnic groups have subdivisions that might differ in terms of service use patterns and diagnosis. However, one need to guess this, and it becomes more clear when you see the methods section.
a. What is the purpose of the study?
However, the purpose of the study is " to explore differences in service use between ethnic groups and to determine whether some ethnic groups have more serious conditions than others that account for differences in service use patterns" (p.1).

b. Is the purpose clearly stated?

The purpose is clearly stated as mentioned above. The purpose of the study is " to explore differences in service use between ethnic groups and to determine whether some ethnic groups have more serious conditions than others that account for differences in service use patterns" (p.1).

c. Does the purpose seem to be tied to the literature that is reviewed?

The purpose seems to be tied to the literature that is reviewed. It seems that the intent of the study is to expand on the previous research that found the use of mental health services among Asian Americans indicated underutilization (Uba, 1994; Leong, 1986), and ...