Discussion 1: Religion and Privilege

For citizens in some countries, religious oppression is common and long standing. While freedom of religion is guaranteed in the U.S., religious intolerance still exists. According to the Equal Opportunity Employment commission, the number of lawsuits filed for religious discrimination doubled between 2000-2010 (Pledger, 2011). Social workers must be alert for the complex ways that religious privilege functions. By creating an awareness of the privilege given to some while marginalizing others, social workers can understand how this bias impacts their clients.

Post an explanation of the connections between privilege and religion. Describe a situation in which members of a religion experience privilege. Describe a situation in which members of a religion experience religious oppression.
Should be at least 80 words and contain at least 1 reference and citation.

Discussion 2: Methods of Measuring

The center point of research studies is the body of data collected to answer the research question. These data must be measured, which is the act of taking an abstract concept (e.g., depression, anger, etc.), sorting them out and quantifying them in some cohesive way in order to construct meaning-but how can you measure something that is not easily quantifiable?

Choosing an appropriate measurement tool requires consideration of a number of different issues including reliability, validity, appropriateness for use with a specific group or culture, availability, and potential cost. Sometimes, social workers will attempt to create their own set of questions to tap into or measure a concept.

This may appear to be an easy thing to do; however, writing questions to measure a phenomenon is more challenging than it would seem. For example, how do we know it measures what we want it to measure? In the first discussion this week, you will have the opportunity to create your own questions to measure a phenomenon of your interest. In the second discussion, you will compare the measure you created with an existing instrument that measures the same phenomenon.

To prepare: Choose one phenomenon or issue that a client may be dealing with (for example, depression, anxiety, or family conflict). Consider how you would evaluate the client's progress in this area. Create questions with response options that would capture this phenomenon or client issue.
Should be at least 80 words and contain at least 1 reference and citation.

• Identify the phenomenon you would measure and explain how you conceptualize this phenomenon.

• Provide at least 3 questions you would use to measure this phenomenon and explain how these questions operationalize the phenomenon.

• Define reliability in 2-3 sentences and give one example of how you would establish reliability for the questions you created.

• Define validity in 2-3 sentences and give one example of how you would establish validity for the questions you created.

• Create a measurement plan to assess the phenomenon.

o Describe the methodology you would use to collect data using your measurement tool (your method for acquiring this research data).

o Explain the advantages and disadvantages of your choices.

Discussion 3: Evaluating Existing Measures

In discussion 2, you considered how you might create a method for measuring a phenomenon or client issue. For this week's Discussion 3, choose and evaluate an existing instrument to measure the concept you identified in Discussion 1. Consider how you would compare youroriginal measurement to the existing measurement.

To Prepare: Review the following webpage on how to find existing instruments:

Posta brief explanation of the existing measurement instrument that you identified. Then, compare your original measurement approach to the existing instrument. Next, explain how you would revise or replace your original measurement plan. Finally explain the advantages and/or disadvantages of using existing instruments for measurement. Please use the Learning Resources to support your answer.
Should be at least 80 words and contain at least 1 reference and citation.

Identify tests

Search for tests that will capture the data you're interested in. Full text of the tests may not be immediately available through the databases. Discovering the best test for your needs is your first step. Once you have chosen a test, you can learn where to find the full text.

• PsycTESTS

PsycTESTS contains access to unpublished (not commercially available) psychological tests, measures, scales, surveys, and other assessments. Each record contains reliability and validity, scope, implementation, and an overview when available. Most records also contain the full text of the instrument.

• Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print

Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print contains reviews of over 3,000 commercially available, English language testing instruments. Reviews contain information about the reliability, validity, and publication details of the testing instruments. A score index that allows users to easily identify what is being measured in individual tests and bibliographic information is also included. Testing instruments fall into many categories such as psychological tests, career inventories, intelligence and aptitude, and personality. There are no full text testing instruments in this database.

• Health and Psychosocial Instruments (HaPI)

The Health and Psychosocial Instruments (HaPI) database provides information about approximately 15,000 measurement instruments. The full text instruments are NOT included in HaPI. Instead this database is used to discover instruments on a topic, track the history of an instrument over time, and find publisher information.