Reflection

Instructions Reflection paper # 1: From theory, to observations and research. As a 6-month-old, Mary was labelled in psychological assessments a “difficult” child (as defined by Thomas and Chess, 1977 (read pp 366-7 in your textbook). Imagine that the psychologist in the case, on the faculty at Columbia University, let say, had an interest in the developmental outcomes (variable Y, socio-emotional adjustment at age 5) of early temperamental “difficultness” (variable X, as predictor) and planned a research proposal to be submitted to NIH for funding. What research design could this psychologist use to examine his/her question? Justify. What socio-emotional outcomes of early difficultness could this psychologist expect? What method of data collection would this investigator use to get the relevant data for analysis? A careful researcher would also examine other potential variables that may affect (mediate or moderate) the relation between predictor and outcome. Can you think of a third (intervening) variable that could either exacerbate (augment) the relation b/w variables Y and X, or, alternately, significantly reduce the magnitude of this relation? Limit your entries to the equivalent of 2 pages, Times 12, double spaced. Please upload and attach your paper as a “docx” document and Title it as: Your Name (this is all I need to know). PS: Do a Google search for Moderation and Mediation in statistics for a better grasp of the last bullet point.