Impact On Prostate Cancer Patients During Psychological Group Treatment For Sexual Dysfunction

For this assignment you will write a literature review based on 5 studies that examine the role of one
specific psychological or social factor in either the onset or course of a disease.
Please choose a disease of interest to you (e.g., breast cancer, heart disease, asthma, AIDS). Locate
5 studies that examine the role of some specific psychological or social factor in either the onset or
course of the disease (e.g., stress, social support, perceived control, Type A Behaviour Pattern).
These should all be reports of original findings on a specific study. Although you may cite scholarly
published literature reviews and meta-analyses in your paper, these should not be considered one of
the five studies you are reviewing. Prepare a literature review based on these five studies. What can
you conclude about the role of that psychosocial factor in the disease? Back up your arguments and
cite your sources. Please provide either links to the five articles or include pdf’s of them with your
assignment. Your paper should be 5-6 pages of double-spaced text (excluding references and a title
page). References should be included on a separate page attached to the end of your assignment.
It is important to have a clear and specific research question that you will answer in your review. A
question like “Does stress affect heart disease?” is too broad. What do you mean by “stress”? And
what do you mean by “affect”? Are you going to examine the role of stress in causing heart attacks?
Or are you going to examine the role of stress in hindering recovery from heart attacks? Or are you
going to examine how heart attacks create stress in people’s lives? A more precise research
question might be “Does acute psychological stress predict the onset of myocardial infarction (heart
attack)?” All the articles you select should investigate the research question you are trying to answer.
We have prepared a worksheet to help you choose an appropriate topic and sources for this
assignment. Please attach the completed worksheet when you submit your paper. This will count for
5% of the grade for the course paper.
Course paper worksheet (https://canvas.ubc.ca/courses/31579/files/5272034/download?wrap=1)
(https://canvas.ubc.ca/courses/31579/files/5272034/download?wrap=1)
Course paper worksheet (Rich Text Format)
(https://canvas.ubc.ca/courses/31579/files/5272035/download?wrap=1)
(https://canvas.ubc.ca/courses/31579/files/5272035/download?wrap=1)
Your assignment will be graded based on the appropriateness of the articles you select, the clarity of
your writing, and the quality of your interpretation and synthesis of the 5 studies. Consider the
strengths and limitations of the studies in your review. How do these affect your interpretation of the
findings and the conclusions that you can draw?
Note on course paper topics:
Please be sure to choose a topic for your course paper that is related to the field of health
psychology.
Your topic should be on the role of a psychological or social factor in what would generally be
considered a medical disease. A focus on the biological effects of cigarette smoking, exercise,
alcohol, etc. are not appropriate. Neither are articles on psychological disorders that are more
fully covered in courses in abnormal psychology, such as depression or eating disorders, unless
these are being looked at as psychological factors in relation to another disease that is not
generally considered a psychological disorder. So, for example, do not write your paper about the
role of stress in depression or anorexia nervosa. But it is fine to write your paper on the role of
depression in cancer (e.g., Does depression cause cancer?).