This assignment is designed to help students identify an area of mental health
that is impacting
individuals, families, and/or communities. Students will explore the importance and relevance of their
topic, incorporating existing empirical literature. They will also examine
implications for the work of
Human Service professionals.
Students are responsible for the following:
7. Select a mental health disorder or issue to explore
8. Convey to your audience why your topic is important (define the general topic, issue or area of
concern)
9. Select a minimum of three peer-reviewed (empirical) articles to incorporate
into the paper. Consider
the following:
• the author(s)
• the purpose of the study (i.e., what is the research question(s)?)
• the main themes of the literature review
• the theoretical framework (if applicable)
• the data
• the method of analysis
• the main findings
• research limitations listed by the author(s)
10. Summarize how these studies aid in understanding your topic
11. Discuss the impact the mental health disorder or issue is having on individuals, families and
communities.
12. Discuss theory, research and practice implications for human service professionals (e.g. the role these
professionals can take in helping to mitigate concerns, recommended interventions, and/or
preventions).
13. Your 4 to 5-page paper should be written in APA format, including both a cover page and reference
page, formatted appropriately.
Use the following rubric to guide your work:
Points
Introduction and summary of mental health disorder or issue, describe importance 10
Describe impact on individuals, families and communities 20
Incorporate at least three (3) empirical sources to support discussion (10 points
each).
30
Discuss implications for theory, research and practice of Human Service
Professionals
30
Use APA format for your paper, including cover page, text formatting, in-text
citations, and reference page at end
10
Total Possible Points 100
