NCFR Substance Areas Literature Review Project
due in 2 parts: Week 4 and Week 7
(Addresses Course Objectives 1, 3, and 5)
Below are the 10 "Substance Areas" of the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR), a professional organization whose mission it is to "To provide an educational discussion for family researchers, educators, and practitioners to share in the development and dissemination of knowledge about families and family relationships, establish professional standards, and work to promote family well-being".
During the eight weeks of this senior seminar students will, with the guidance of their instructor, select and conduct a review of peer reviewed research literature related to the 10 substance areas (Note: All articles must be retrieved from the APUS online library). The phrase "peer reviewed" means that a publication contains articles reviewed and deemed academically sound and scientifically rigorous by the author's peers in the field. Sources such as blogs, personal websites, popular magazines, newspapers, or any of the Wikis that are out there are NOT acceptable.
Students will select, from the larger body of child and family development literature, two peer reviewed research journal articles per substance area and review, summarize, and critique them in one paper per area. The critiques should describe the research method and results, as well as implications for future research. Each article review should be between 1 and 1½ pages – double-spaced, equating to 2-3 pages per substance area. The format for this assignment should be:
- Substance Area Name
- Research article 1 (include the title of the article)
Critique of 1-1 1/2 pages (review should begin at the one inch margin) - Research article 2 (include the title of the article)
Critique of 1-1 1/2 pages (review should begin at the one inch margin)
Use this format for each of your Substance Areas. The text for each review must start at the 1 inch margin on the left-hand side of your paper.
These must be submitted in the order listed below. Do NOT submit these as separate files. All five content areas are to be submitted as one file.
Be sure to review the rubric provided for you in the assignment area to make certain that you are covering all the requirements.
Assignment 5, due in Week 7:
By 11:59 PM EST on Sunday of Week 7, your Substance Areas 6 – 10 reviews must be compiled and combined with the previous five articles and submitted as one literature review file with descriptions at the end of the paper about what was learned while conducting the course-long review.
NCFR SUBSTANCE AREAS
1. FAMILIES AND INDIVIDUALS IN SOCIETIAL CONTEXTS
e.g., Structures & Functions; Cultural Variations; Dating, Courtship, Marital Choice; Kinship; Cross-Cultural and Minority Families; Changing Gender Roles; Demographic Trends;
Historical Issues; Work-Family Relationships; Societal Relations
2. INTERNAL DYNAMICS OF FAMILIES
e.g., Internal Social Processes; Communication; Conflict Management; Normal Family Stresses; Family Crises; Special Needs in Families.
3. HUMAN GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT ACROSS THE LIFESPAN
e.g., Prenatal; Infancy; Early and Middle Childhood; Adolescence; Adulthood; Aging.
4. HUMAN SEXUALITY
e.g., Reproductive Physiology; Biological Determinants; Aspects of Sexual Involvement; Sexual Behaviors; Sexual Values and Decision-Making; Family Planning;
Sexual Response; Sexual Dysfunction; Influence on Relationships
5. INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS
e.g., Self and Others; Communication Skills; Intimacy, Love, Romance; Relating to Others.
6. FAMILY RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
e.g., Goal Setting and Decision-Making; Development and Allocation of Resources; Social Environment Influences; Life Cycle and Family Structure Influences; Consumer Issues and Decisions.
7. PARENT EDUCATION AND GUIDANCE
e.g., Parenting Rights and Responsibilities; Parenting Practices/Processes; Parent/Child Relationships; Variation in Parenting Solutions; Changing Parenting Roles Over the Life Cycle.
8. FAMILY LAW AND PUBLIC POLICY
e.g., Family and the Law; Family and Social Services; Family and Education;
Family and the Economy; Family and Religion; Policy and the Family.
9. PROFESSIONAL ETHICS AND PRACTICE
e.g., Formation of Values; Diversity of Values in Pluralistic Society; Examining Ideologies; Social Consequences of Value Choices; Ethics and Technological Changes; Ethics of Professional Practice
10. FAMILY LIFE EDUCATION METHODOLOGY
e.g., Planning and Implementing; Evaluation; Education Techniques; Sensitivity to Others; Sensitivity to Community Concern.
