Testing in Applied Research
Introduction
Incarcerated adults are put in correctional facilities to help reform their characters. However, many become lonely and unhappy due to the belief that an incarceration is a form of punishment, and also since these incarcerated adults are kept away from their families and friends. One of the ways to help them emotionally is by creating visitation hours. Visiting hours allow inmates to interact with their families who see them in prison (Folk 2019). Therefore, this study is interested in investigating the connection between the inmates’ visitation and their happiness. The researcher intends to find out if the visitation of inmates increases their happiness and if more visitation hours can further increase happiness among incarcerated adults. Veenhoven (2008) has argued that happier individuals easily overcome life stress. If inmates are happier, they can overcome stress and thus easily manage stress and other mental illnesses like depression.
Applied Research Project Summary
The research will target incarcerated individuals in both men’s and women’s correction facilities. Choosing these two types of correctional facilities ensures that the study does not leave out persons of all genders and sexual identities. Additionally, when selecting the inmates to participate in the study, the researchers will use a random selection to ensure all inmates serving different jail terms experience (Folk 2019). With this mixed population, the study will reveal if there is a pattern of happiness that stands out either by gender or by jail terms for incarcerated inmates. The main interest, however, is to establish if inmate visitation and the increase or decrease of the visitation hours impact the happiness of the inmates. Two records about the inmates will interest the researchers, especially their jail terms and visitation frequency. After collecting this information, the participant will be given the happiness test.
Assessing Happiness and Related Constructs
The authentic Happiness Inventory (AHI) is one of the selected questionnaires that will be used. This test will be suitable for measuring overall happiness. According to Shen et al. (2022), the AHI is often used to undertake a subjective measurement of happiness. This test is applied to positive psychology interventions. This test is the best to apply in this study because it is known to detect even the slightest changes in the level of happiness, and it can also help the researcher differentiate happiness at high levels (Shen et al., 2022). This test will be the best to issue at the beginning of the study to all the participants to understand if they are genuinely happy. Even so, other factors may affect this test. For instance, if an inmate has disagreed with other inmates or anyone else, the test may not give valid results. Therefore, it will have to be used alongside another test to determine its authenticity.
Fordyce Emotions Questionnaire is generally known to measure the current state of happiness. This test is also called the Happiness Measure test. Its central aim is to examine a person’s emotional well-being. It assesses the components that cause subjective Well-being (Sanli et al., 2019). It then gives the individual a perception of happiness. This makes this test a very important one to use to complement the first (AHI) test. This test will confirm if the participant is pleased. It will also help the researcher detect if there is any other underlying factor that is leading to happiness. Therefore, it will be given to the participants after the first test (AHI) (Sanli et al., 2019). This test can also be relied on if the results are similar to those given by (AHI). The optimism test will be issued to further strengthen the results found in this test.
The Optimistic Test Measures From a general point of view, one can conclude that optimistic tests measure how much a person is confident about the future. This test reveals whether one is happy or pessimistic. An optimistic person hopes for positive and better things for the future or is generally hopeful. Pessimistic individuals only hope for bad things and thus expect bad things to happen. Optimism is correlated with well-being which is also connected to general happiness in life. Pessimism, on the other hand, is related to anxiety. Using this test will reveal whether inmate visitation or lack of it leads to optimism or pessimism. Thus, this test will also help connect hopefulness to the level of happiness.
Validity Concerns
Content validity describes “the judgment of how adequately a test sample’s behavior representative” (Tobin, Schneider & Cohen, 2021, pp. 196) of the overall behavior that the test was created to sample.
Criterion-related validity also judges whether a test measures what it is supposed to measure. However, it does this from the perspective of the person taking the test (Tobin, Schneider & Cohen, 2021).
Concurrent validity is an index that measures the degree to which a score from a given test is connected to a given criterion obtained concurrently (Tobin, Schneider & Cohen, 2021, pp. 196).
Construct validity is used to judge whether the inferences drawn from a test score are appropriate based on the constructed variable (Tobin, Schneider & Cohen, 2021, pp. 205).
Convergent validity is “the correlation between measures of the same trait but different methods” (Tobin, Schneider & Cohen, 2021, pp. 209)
Discriminant validity is the connection between different traits through various methods that are near zero (Tobin, Schneider & Cohen, 2021).
Face validity judges the relevance of a test.
Conclusion
The happiness of incarcerated adults is a concern, and an area that calls for intense research since it can help correctional facilities reduce rates of mental illnesses. Moreover, violence in correctional facilities could be reduced if the management understood what can cause happiness among incarcerated adults. This study examines the connection between happiness and the visitation of incarcerated individuals. Three happiness tests will be issued to these inmates to determine if more visitation and visitation hours cause happiness among incarcerated adults.
References
Folk, J. B., Stuewig, J., Mashek, D., Tangney, J. P., & Grossmann, J. (2019). Behind bars but connected to family: Evidence for the benefits of family contact during incarceration. Journal of family psychology: JFP: journal of the Division of Family Psychology of the American Psychological Association (Division 43), 33(4), 453–464. https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000520
Sanli, E., Balci Celik, S., & Gencoglu, C. (2019). Validity and reliability of the authentic happiness scale. Khazar Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 22(1), 5-20. https://doi.org/10.5782/2223-2621.2019.22.1.5
Shen, Y., Yuan, S., Liu, J. et al. (2022). The reliability, validity and screening effect of the happiness index scale among inpatients in a general hospital. BMC Psychiatry 22, 601. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-022-04219-0
Tobin, R., Schneider, W. J., & Cohen, R. J. (2021). Looseleaf for Psychological Testing and Assessment. United States: McGraw-Hill Education.
Veenhoven, R. (2008). Healthy happiness: effects of happiness on physical health and the consequences for preventive health care. J Happiness Stud 9, pp. 449–469. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-006-9042-1
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Question 
Testing in Applied Research
[WLO: 2] [CLO: 1]
Prior to beginning work on this assignment, review the following resources:
Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 in your text
Multicultural Guidelines: An Ecological Approach to Context, Identity, And IntersectionalityLinks to an external site.
Teleassessment With Children and Adolescents During the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic and Beyond: Practice and Policy ImplicationsLinks to an external site.
Testing in Applied Research
Review the free tests available through the Authentic Happiness: Questionnaire Center Links to an external site..
To access the tests, you will be required to register for a free account. Select at least three tests to take or review the test items. You are not required to share the actual results of any test you choose to take.
Psychological tests are utilized in applied research for a variety of reasons. Tests can be used to select subjects to participate in experiments, to measure confounding variables, to evaluate the effectiveness of programs and interventions, or to determine psychometric properties such as the validity of other tests.
In this assignment, you will consider the topic of measuring happiness in applied research. There is an extensive body of research on happiness and many measures of happiness and related constructs have been developed for research use. You will then write a paper that should model critical thought.
To successfully complete this assignment, organize your paper in boldface using each of the headings provided below.
Introduction
Compose a one-paragraph introduction as described in the University of Arizona Global Campus Writing Center’s resource, Introductions & Conclusions Links to an external site..
Applied Research Project Summary
In your summary,
Create a one-paragraph overview describing an applied research project related to measuring happiness. Include a research question and a hypothesis.
Identify who your subjects will be (e.g., children in Grades 4 to 6, incarcerated adults, clients in PTSD group therapy programs, corporate CEOs, middle managers, and first responders). This list is not exhaustive.
Feel free to identify and discuss other subject populations for your project. Although not required, if you have studied research methods and are employing an experimental design, you are encouraged to identify your independent and dependent variables. You are also encouraged to propose your research project on a topic that is relevant to a field you would consider pursuing for your personal career.
Assessing Happiness and Related Constructs
In this section,
List at least three questionnaires selected from the Authentic Happiness Questionnaire Center Links to an external site.to include in your project.
Summarize in one sentence what each test purports to measure.
Explain how you will utilize the test in your study (e.g., subject selection, evaluating the effectiveness of an intervention, determining the validity of another instrument utilized elsewhere in your study or program, symptom monitoring).
Validity Concerns
In this section,
Define each of the following terms using only the textbook, the instructor’s guidance, and scholarly sources in the order listed here: content validity, criterion-related validity, concurrent validity, construct validity, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and face validity.
Do not use Wikipedia, encyclopedias, dictionaries, or blogs for your definitions.
Discuss how each type of validity might apply to your research project or to the questionnaires you selected. You may present the validity information as a bulleted list, a table, a chart, or a figure.
Justify why you believe the tests you selected are appropriate and valid for the subjects on which you will base your research. If you are unable to justify the test as being appropriate and valid for a specific group, clearly state what the validity concerns are.
Apply the information from the article Multicultural Guidelines: An Ecological Approach to Context, Identity, And Intersectionality Links to an external site..
Conclusions
Compose a one-paragraph conclusion as described in the University of Arizona Global Campus Writing Center’s resource Introductions & Conclusions Links to an external site..
In your conclusion, include any ethical concerns related to conducting your proposed research project and how knowledge obtained from your study could be utilized in an applied context.
The Testing in Applied Research paper
Must be two to three double-spaced pages in length plus a title page and at least one additional page for references (a total four to five pages). Your assignment must be formatted according to APA Style Links to an external site.as outlined in the Writing Center’s APA Formatting for Microsoft Word Links to an external site. resource.
Must include a separate title page with the following:
Title of paper in bold font
Space should appear between the title and the rest of the information on the title page.
Student’s name
Name of institution (The University of Arizona Global Campus)
Course name and number
Instructor’s name
Due date
Must include the subheadings provided in the instructions (Introduction, Applied Research Project Summary, Assessing Happiness and Related Constructs, etc.).
Must utilize academic voice. See the Academic Voice Links to an external site.resource for additional guidance.
Must include an introduction and conclusion paragraph. Your introduction paragraph needs to end with a clear thesis statement that indicates the purpose of your paper.
For assistance on writing Introductions & Conclusions Links to an external site.refer to the Writing Center resources.
Must use the assigned resources and the course text required for Week 2 and at least one additional scholarly article defining the different types of validity you are required to discuss in your paper. .
Additional scholarly sources may be included. The Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources Links to an external site. table offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source.
Must document any information used from sources in APA Style as outlined in the Writing Center’s APA: Citing Within Your Paper Links to an external site. Guide.
A separate references page must be included that is formatted according to APA Style as outlined in the Writing Center. See the APA: Formatting Your References List Links to an external site. Resource in the Writing Center for specifications.
Carefully review the Grading Rubric Links to an external site. For the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.