DIRECTIONS: READ THE FOLLOWING STUDENT POST AND RESPOND. CITE REFERENCES USING APA FORMAT.

Valerie Holmes

d1 Quantitative Research: Experimental Research by Valerie Holmes

Determine whether the study is experimental or quasi-experimental; describe how you know.

The article selected is experimental as the research design yielded conclusions about cause-and-effect relationships using the manipulation of one or more variables to determine their possible effects on the dependent variable (Leedy& Ormond, 2014) using descriptive statistics and random assignment was used.

Describe the variables, both independent and dependent, used in the research.

The independent variable is the MFG intervention and child welfare or non child welfare involved; the independent variables (also referred to as an experimental or predictor variable) are the factors that are manipulated by the researcher.

The dependent variables (outputs) are the Kazdin Barriers to Treatment Participation Scale (KBT: (a 44-item, caregiver report measure of possible barriers to participation occurring over the course of treatment) and the Metropolitan Area Child Study process measures (MACS: a caregiver report instrument using the treatment program satisfaction (TPS) and relationship with facilitator (RF) subscales) (Gopalan, Gardner, Bannon, Dean-Assael, Fuss, Gardner, Brooke, & McKay 2011).

This study presents findings related to differences between child welfare-involved and non-child welfare-involved families on perceived barriers to MFG treatment participation, program satisfaction, relationship with facilitators, and attendance rates and concludes with a discussion of how the MFG model exemplifies family engagement practices for child welfare-involved families (Goplan et al., 2011).

Describe the treatment conditions of the experimental group. If quasi-experimental, describe the different groups or conditions that were compared.

This study focuses on children (n=225) enrolled in the experimental MFG group; the treatment conditions of the experimental group included youth and family members of children aged 7-11 years old whom met diagnostic criteria for oppositional defiant disorder and conduct disorder and were randomly assigned to either (1) Multiple Family Group (MFG) intervention group (treatment group) plus other clinical services deemed necessary by clinic providers (e.g., individual and/or family therapy, medication management) or (2) usual intervention of individual and/or family therapy and medication management (control group) (Gopala et al, 2011).

Describe the specific type of research design that was used and discuss why it is considered experimental or quasi-experimental.

The specific type of research design was experimental as the researcher used descriptive statistics and non- parametric testing, manipulated the independent variable and examined its effects on multiple dependent variables; offering a rigorous degree of control and greater internal validity (Leedy et al., 2014) using randomized assignment.

Evaluate the scientific merit of the selected design. How might you have designed this study differently?

The study used an experimental design using descriptive statistics and non- parametric testing of KBT, MACS and MFG attendance with randomized assignment (Gopalan et al., 2011). The study sufficiently advanced the knowledge base of the use of MFG with child welfare families by contributing new information; providing research evidence that adds to existing research that adequately answered the research question in an ethically sound manner.

Finding included that, (although child welfare-involved caregivers reported more treatment barriers and less program satisfaction than non-child-welfare involved families), there were no significant differences between groups on average total sessions attended and attendance rates over time (Gopala et al., 2011). The study could have been designed differently by utilizing a qualitative approach (such as a multiple case study) to illuminate why child welfare families engage and continue with the MFG model with the use of focus group, semi structured interviews and observations.

Evaluate how well the experimental approach and design helped the researcher answer the research questions.

The experimental design and approach helped the researcher answer the research question of "is there a statistically significant difference between child welfare- and nonchild welfare-involved families regarding barriers to child mental health care, attendance, program satisfaction, and relationship with facilitators in multiple family group service delivery model aimed at reducing childhood disruptive behaviors?" by controlling for extraneous variables through the randomized assignment of a control group (receiving no intervention) with performance with the treatment group that participated in an intervention (Leedy et al., 2011).

Randomized assignment has been described as the hallmark of good research in that participants have an equal chance of being selected so there is no selection bias.

List the persistent link for the article in your response.