A report is a very useful type of writing, professionally as well as academically. It is much like a summary in that it covers “what happened” or “what was said,” but is not necessarily as brief or impersonal as a summary. Also, although the body of the report tends to be very objective and informative, its conclusion may be subjective – suggesting areas for further investigation, an interpretation of the reported data, or perhaps a recommendation on how others should proceed based on the reported information. As always, check with your instructor for specific guidelines regarding the type of report you are writing.

Examples

Psychology 1-EN1.
Report on research

Assignment: Read and report on one article from each of the following areas on the APA site: Work & School; Family and Relationships; Health & Emotional Wellness; Disasters & Terrorism. Introduce each article, explain why you chose it, give a short summary and personal response, and then evaluate the article, particularly where its content is either supported or contradicted by your textbook.

[Instructor comments appear in bold, italic font within brackets below.]

The first article I chose was called “Strategies for Controlling Your Anger,” which was located in the Work & School topical area. I chose this article because I have to consider myself to be an angry person and I thought there might be some helpful hints for controlling this emotion. This article did just that. It gave suggestions for controlling anger such as relaxation techniques, changing the way you think during a stressful situation, and even changing the way you can communicate. Using these techniques will help you “ease up” and not think the “world is out to get you.” You should be more rational and less hotheaded so you can see how the situation really is and not what your anger is forcing it to be.

Two sections particularly interested me: cognitive restructuring and timing. Cognitive restructuring discussed “changing the way we think.” Instead of becoming irrational in situations, we should remain calm and think of a logical explanation for what’s going on. It is perfectly natural for some situation to make us angry, but overreacting and becoming brash is not the solution. This was applicable to me because I do think about life very logically. I always have a plan of action and figure out how things should be, so I thought I could try this with my anger too. I also enjoyed the short section about timing. The example given was when you discuss things with your mate. If these discussions often turn into arguments, perhaps you should change the time that you talk about things because your current time schedule could be when you are tired or upset. I found this particularly interesting because my boyfriend and I are in this situation and I am going to try to change our “discussion time.”

I believe the quality of this article is very good and it provides many helpful insights as to how we can control our behavior. This forces our thinking to be more conscious and aware versus giving into our immediate reaction, which could be based on subconscious stimuli. It also brought to my attention that many times my angry reaction could be a conditioned response to certain situations. If I change my surroundings and eliminate things that trigger my anger perhaps I will not be so easily upset. [Excellent suggestion. There could also be a little bit of classical conditioning in play here.]

The next article I chose was called “Six Myths About Stress” which was located in the Family & Relationships section. This article discussed six common beliefs about stress and explained the reality behind each one. I chose this article because I have experienced stress in my life and I was interested in learning more about it. The most interesting fact that I learned was that stress is not bad for you. It is a natural way for your body to deal with situations. Successfully managing stress is the best way to maintain a healthy life.

One of the myths dispelled was that people know when they’re stressed. Although you may not feel the symptoms of stress, it may still exist. Certain medications can even hide symptoms of stress. Opiates are one example that I thought of that might affect stress level because they produce a high sense of well-being and reduce reaction to physical stimuli. Someone taking this drug would not necessarily feel the effects that stress could be having on the body. [So if the mind does not know we are in a stressful situation, will the body still be affected?]

Another myth was that stress is the same for everyone. Dispelling this myth alone allowed me to give good merits to this article. We all experience different situations involving stress. For the teenager it might be dealing with puberty or Erikson’s theory of identity crisis. For the adult it may be dealing with unmanageable children. We all deal with stress in different ways too [which may explain why child abuse seems to be on the rise and unfortunately many people have no way of dealing with stress.] Hypnosis and meditation are two ways that we can battle stress. Introspection might also be a way to deal with it by talking about the stressful feelings we have.

Although this article was short, I considered it to be informative. I’m sure there are many people that are not aware that these myths are indeed just that and if more people read this article perhaps they will have a better understanding of what stress is really about.

The third article I chose was “Elder Care-More than ‘Parenting a Parent’”, which was in the Health & Emotional Wellness topical area. I chose this article because this situation arose in my own family and I was interested in learning how this article suggested dealing with it.

The article discussed a demographic shift in the fact that people are living longer these days and may face monetary difficulties. One possible solution would be if they moved in with their family. Two important interpersonal elements were discussed if faced with this circumstance. The first, miscommunication, can be avoided by talking to the parties involved, especially hearing how the aging relative feels about all the potential living solutions. The second tactic is to avoid role reversal and to keep in mind that this relative is a grown individual and does not need to be raised. We should instead recognize how they need help and decide on the best solution. This article taught me to remember that communication is key when dealing with situations like this. No one person can make the decision alone. I also learned that even though people are older, they still have their own opinions and desires. What they want is also important, not just what makes everything easier for me.

I feel there is great significance in this article. The concepts in this article reminded me of Erikson’s Theory of Psychological Development. A specific crisis was ego-integrity vs. despair, which occurs in late adulthood. These once vibrant individuals led active, fulfilling lives and now they are faced with many challenges like finding a new place to live and different means to take care of themselves. If they accept these changes with open arms, they will be able to adjust and feel a basic sense of satisfaction. If they resist, they may be depressed and disappointed.

The final article that I chose was called “Resilience and Disease Outbreaks” which was in the Disasters & Terrorism section. I chose this article because a disease outbreak is not a topic that I am familiar with. The article discussed the idea of resilience, which is “the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or even significant sources of stress.” This is a quality that we all must learn to help us deal with times of crisis or anxiety. The article also gives five strategies for resilience during such a time: make connections with family and friends so you do not feel alone, keep a hopeful outlook that things will get better, don’t worry and remember to take care of yourself, keep a logical point of view, and finally make appropriate decisions and take precautions that will benefit your life.

This article taught me how to deal with anxiety-ridden situations and that maintaining resilience can be the determining factor to save my psychological well-being. Instead of overreacting, I can think logically about what is happening and discuss my feelings with important people in my life.

The significance of this article can be related to the sociocultural viewpoint. Psychologists would say that the company of others is important and is a strong influence on our behaviors. If we surround ourselves with people and situations that help build resilience, we will be better equipped to deal with stressful times. Feelings of ambivalence are normal, but we can learn to overcome our fears and confused feelings. We can learn to change our behaviors and actions to help us prepare for worst-case scenarios.

Instructor end comment:

[Thanks for writing a comprehensive, yet brief paper. I enjoyed your summaries and I am glad that you found most of the articles informative. And your paper looks great!]

** Minor mechanical errors/typos have been corrected by the creators of CHARLIE