PSY 790 Southern New Hampshire University Relevant Theory Discussion

Identify at least one theory that you will use to guide your research. Discuss why and how it is applicable. This theory should help explain the topic of interest and whether it involves basic research or an applied focus (including proposed interventions and their evaluation). Provide a brief overview of the theory as well as a summary of related research (which may both support and challenge this theory and its application).

In your responses to your classmates, focus on the summary of their research and how well it supports the focus of their research.

This discussion will help you prepare for Milestone Two.

Refer to the Capstone Discussion Rubric for directions on completing these discussions.

MY RESEARCH TOPIC: Assessing the relationship between depression and anxiety from the perspective student academic performance

Research Aim: Emotional disturbance is considered to be a psychological element that can lead to the deterioration of the daily activities of students. Since, academic achievements are an integral dimension of students’ lives, depression, anxiety and other forms of emotional disturbance might lead to poor academic performance. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to assess the relationship between depression and anxiety on student academic performance

AFTER COMPLETING THE INITIAL POST, PLEASE ALSO RESPOND TO THE FOLLOWING TWO STUDENTS REGARDING THE SAME TOPIC!

STUDENT ONE:

One theory that i will most definitely be using to guide my research is Bandura’s social learning theory. Social learning theory is a mix of two theories, those being behaviorism and cognitive theories of learning. The theory claims that people learn by observing others behaviors and that the process has four components- attention, retention, motor reproduction and motivation (Kretchmar, 2019). Social learning theory was coined by Stanford professor Albert Bandura in 1977, and it was originally called theory of observational learning. The principles he pointed out in this theory were that people are able to learn by observing the behavior of others – including consequences of those behaviors, reinforcement plays a role in learning, learning and performance are not necessarily the same thing, and cognitive processes play a role in learning (Kretchmar, 2019). This may help out with my final research paper because i will be focusing on how children learn in an alternate education setting, such as Montessori/ Reggio Emilia, and if they gain greater benefits through this style of learning vs. traditional learning. Studying more theories on development will help give insight to the theories behind these alternate education methods.

Kretchmar, J. (2019). Social Learning Theory. Salem Press Encyclopedia.

STUDENT TWO:

One prominent theory that has come up in research regarding school resource officers and the impact on students is role theory. Role theory refers to the concept that an individual’s behaviors are predictable as a function of their social identity or role in a given context (Biddle, 1986). McKenna and White (2018) argue that when examining the relationship between school resource officers (SROs) and students, it is important to focus on how the role that the officer performs dictates how they interact with the students. This is an appropriate theory to use because there are different functions that school resource officers have on campuses which inform the ways in which they interact with students, respond to student misconduct, and enforce campus policies. The three common roles of SROs are: 1) police officers with the power to arrest, 2) counselors on law related issues, and 3) teachers of law either through holding their own classes or by visiting classes and giving presentations (Weiler & Cray, 2011).

Theorists have examined role theory from a number of perspectives including functional, structural, symbolic interactionist, organizational, and cognitive approaches (Biddle, 1986). This supports the general acceptability of role theory being applied to various psychological approaches to understand behavior. Role theory is appropriate for my research question when looking at the organizational perspective and how SROs have a formal role with a social system and how their actions are influenced by those roles, thereby impacting student’s psychological and educational outcomes.

There are specific issues that arise when applying role theory to an organizational perspective including role conflict, role ambiguity, role malintegration, role discontinuity, and role overload (Biddle, 1986). Using this approach to investigate the relationship that roles have on individual’s behaviors and the impact that those actions then have on other key stakeholders (students) is important. It is suggested that by using role theory to investigate officer roles and responses to student misconduct, appropriate policy recommendations can be made for school districts (McKenna & White, 2018).

References

Biddle, B. (1986). Recent developments in role theory. Annual Review of Sociology, 12, 67-92.

McKenna, J. M. & White, S. R. (2018). Examining the use of police in schools: How roles may impact responses to student misconduct. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 43, 448-470.

Weiler, S. C. & Cray, M. (2011). Police at school: A brief history and current status of school resource officers. The Clearing House, 84: 160-163. doi: 10.1080/00098655.2011.564986