COUC 515 Proposal Paper: Topic Selection Instructions

COUC 515

Proposal Paper: Topic Selection Instructions

The purpose of this assignment is for you to identify 3 topics that are “researchable” ideas (Rockinson-Szapkiw & Knight, 2012; see below for more information) and list those topics from 1–3 in order of preference. You must also include a bibliography with quotes from the “Recommendations for Future Research” sections of peer-reviewed articles that indicate this research is needed in the field of counseling. Peer-reviewed research articles must be from the last 5 years (otherwise the gap may have been filled).

Step 1: Inquiry. Come up with 3 topics of interest. Here is one example: “I wonder if religion and depression are related in older adults (65 and above).”

The three researchable topics are listed below that I have chosen

· Why does African American mothers use more intense displinary practice than African American fathers

· What’s behing the higher suicide rate among black children

· How is child abuse related to mental health issues

Step 2: Review the peer-reviewed literature to identify gaps in the literature for each of the 3 topics. For example, one peer-reviewed article on your topic of interest may state, “We recommend further research on the impact of religiosity on depression prognosis, looking in particular at community samples, younger patients, and people from non-Christian faiths (Payman & Ryburn, 2010, p. 566).”

Step 3: Put together a bibliography in current APA format. The bibliography must include at least 1 article per topic that suggests that the particular research topic/question is “researchable” (see Step 2 for more information). You must include a brief 1–2-sentence summary of each article in the bibliography.