Success in a scientific research is determined by several factors, and these are with the inclusion of the techniques and methods that are used in data collection, data analyses and more significantly, assessment criteria that are incorporated in the research. There are several ways that can be used to evaluate data that have been collected using the various data collection techniques such as survey, interviews and questionnaires. To achieve a comprehensive evaluation, the researcher or scientific analyst needs to have a well structured plan involving several approved and tried steps. Formulated in this paper is a constructive and evidence-based plan that I would use to evaluate the outcomes of my applied research project on Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder, ADHD.
Since the major aim of the research was to investigate the causes, effects and treatment approaches that are used to address Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and evaluation process will integrate various phases and techniques, and these are with the inclusion of the measurement standards discussed below. In order to figure out whether the problem-solving program was successful, the researcher will have to collect all the data and find out how beneficial the program was, and the negative effects associated with the research.
The researcher will need to investigate and relate the causes of the disorder to children below the age of 10years and compare it with the causes of the disorder to teenagers below age 17 years (Marczak & Sewell, 2012). For instance, it has been found that the disorder is highly caused by both internal and external factors within the environment where a child is raised. For instance, brain injury, exposure to pollution, cigarette and alcohol consumption during pregnancy, premature birth and low birth weight have been highly concluded to be the main causes of ADHD to children below the age of 10. Research should use evidence-based data collected through interviews and questionnaires for effectiveness and competence to be achieved by the end of the program.
The other approach of assessing the success of the program is by subjecting the affected children and teenagers to test based on the severity of the illness. Afterwards, the same children are subjected to the same test after they have been treated and offered better medication and therapies from specialist to confirm whether the reasoning potential of the children is improved or distorted. With the understanding that the disorder affects the thinking and the reasoning ability of the children, it is expected that the children will tend to perform better after they have been treated than the first test (Goldenberg, 2003).
Estimating the rate at which the disorder is rising or falling in some societies is also an alternative that can be used to measure the effectiveness of the program. From the collected data, the researcher can easily tell whether the program is beneficial by comparing the occurrences of the disorder to the same society over time, say 12 months. For instance, from that data collected, it is evident that the rate at which the disorder has been diagnosed on children seems to have been declining over the past years, and this is due to exposure to one or more factors that are approved to be key preventive measures of the disorder in some societies than others (Rampazzo, 2002).
The other approach of confirming appropriateness of the problem-solving program of eliminating ADHD is testing the effectiveness of the common drugs. These must have proved useful in treating the disorder. Evaluating the side effects of the drug, especially the negative impacts of the common drugs to different users will entail confirming the effects of drugs to the brain, reasoning ability of children and their behavior.
The last criterion is devising an alternative treatment for ADHD and testing the effectiveness of the approach by subjecting it to several children and teenagers suffering from the illness. The major aim of the research is to get new strategies, approaches and techniques to solving the predicaments that are faced by individuals suffering from the disorder. For instance, according to the data, reduction of sugars in children is one of the best approaches of reducing the chances of children and teenagers being diagnosed with the disorder (Galland, 2010). According to individuals such as Dr. Benjamin Feingold, a pediatrician from California, children who consume high concentration of salicylates became very excited after eating them, an indication that some sugary foods increase the chances of a child being diagnosed with the disorder (Galland, 2010).
In evaluating the success of the project, I would use different piloting technique to confirm whether the approaches devised at the end of the project are effective and appropriate as compared to those methods used to address the disorder prior to the conclusion date of the project. This will entail comparing the rate at which individuals who are subjected to control methods of reducing the chances, and effects of the disorder with the treatment methods used initially to treat the disorder. According to the characteristics of the program participants, it can be concluded that the severe negative effects of the disorder to children and teenagers can be reduced and managed through using control methods such as controlling the behavior, eating habits and medical approaches applied in solving the challenges.
The problem solving approaches of controlling and managing the illness or the disorder would be effective and efficient. The project will quantitative, and this is with consideration of the fact that I would be comparing the performance and the functioning of individuals suffering from the disorder and the new methods of controlling the disorder devised upon the completion of the project.
References
Galland, L. (2010). ADHD is on the rise: How to use nutrition to treat attention deficit.
Goldenberg, M. (2003). A arte de pesquisar: como fazer pesquisa qualitativa em ciências sociais. (7th ed., pp. 87-88). Rio de Janeiro: Record.
Marczak & Sewell, M. M. (2012). Using focus groups for evaluation.
Rampazzo, L. (2002). Metodologia científica: para alunos dos cursos de graduação e pós-graduação. (pp. 47-51). Sao Paulo: Loyola.