This report will help to inform your Group Research Proposal. Your report should be no longer than 3000 words (double-spaced, size 12 Times New Roman font, 2.5cm margins) excluding diagrams, references and appendices.  It represents 60% of the assessment weighting.

Although you will work on this report individually you will come together in groups after assessment to share findings and combine your best ideas for the group research proposal. Using the PRISMA-P protocols you are to conduct a systematic review of research relating to therapies, interventions or treatment plans within one of the following LGBTI subgroups or issues: young people; older adults; families; religion and spirituality. For more clarification read O’Donnell (2014). Working therapeutically with LGBTI clients: a practice wisdom resource and especially pages 38 – 48.

The ultimate goal of the essay is to review the relevant empirical evidence available and recommend therapies, interventions or treatments to best service the population identified. You may wish to work on a specific issue (i.e. coming out at older age, working with children of blended families) but be sure to liaise with your future group members to ensure suitable integration later. There is no problem if students investigate the same specific issue but the assignment must be completed individually.

Your report should include the following 3 sections:  

15% Background

·       You must begin with a clear statement about the area you are investigating and why you believe it is an important problem. Use evidence to justify the need for research to devise future solutions or strategies.

15% PRISMA-P Flow-chart

·       Provide the PRISMA-P flow diagram to indicate the decisions you made when identifying relevant articles

·       Outline the pros and cons of your approach. What was difficult? Easy? Where were the biggest gaps in the evidence?

30% Critical Appraisal

·       Review the quality of the research found. What are the gaps in methodology, analysis or conclusions? Was there a particular study that exemplified the type of research you thought was optimal?

·       Critically appraise the evidence for applicability to the solution

·       Conclude on a future course of action

Oral Presentation Group Research Proposal

This group presentation is informed by the systematic literature search completed in the first assignment. Form groups of 4 to 5 and design a research project that will address an issue identified for the LGBTI sub-group of interest. As a group, present your project to the class during workshop 3. Each group member should present for a maximum of 8 minutes so the 40min total time includes time for questions at the end (few minutes). You can allocate the 8 minutes any way you like but the following must be addressed: 1. Background (e.g. previous research, current study aims and hypotheses, significance and innovation of the research) 2. Study design (e.g. participation selection criteria and recruitment, measures, procedures, statistical analysis) 3. Ethics considerations and impact on study design (e.g. consent, potential risks/benefits, dilemmas) 4. Evaluation (e.g. how will you know if the intervention/therapy was successful)