Kaitlyn Powell

Sara Littlejohn

RCO 390-02

April 22 2018

Critical Reflection

Writing and Research

Now that my project is completed, I feel as though my research topic is still as relevant as

it was when I first started this project. In fact, my research topic inspired me to add an additional

minor in African-American Studies; it helped me find relevance in my degree as far as what I

aspire to do post-college. Writing helped me connect all of these complex ideas; towards the end

of my research process and at the beginning of me writing, I felt as though I was just reciting

what I had read or repeating another author's ideas. However, as I continued to write and revise,

my research began to shift in a different direction because I realized that I hadn’t answered some

perplexing questions, such as “why are family, friends, and religion seen as constraints in the

Black community in regard to mental health?”. Leaving this question unanswered would have

left a giant hole in building the connection between the role of family, friends, religion, etc. and

how that affects mental health in this community. When conducting a research project, I usually

try to ask myself some basic questions based on what my topic is to generate information. Based

on that general information, I can focus in on one to a few areas regarding my topic that I think

will strengthen my knowledge base. After I have gathered general information and examined all

sides of the topic, I typically come up with a thesis statement based on where I stand in the

matter. In regard to this research project, I easily could have talked about how the stigma against

people with mental health issues is changing, however, that's too one sided for me. By talking
about the mental health crisis from a standpoint I can personally relate to made it easier for me to

connect to the importance of my research. From this research project and with the help of my

professor, Dr. Littlejohn, I have learned how to make my research more well rounded by digging

beneath the surface. For example, I knew that African-Americans were under-utilizing mental

health services at a disproportionate rate compared to their white counterparts; however, it must

be addressed why this is happening and how race and socioeconomics play an important role in

that particular statement. I have learned that it is important to really make sure your audience

knows exactly why your research is relevant. We can’t always assume that they will see the

problems and the research the same way in which we are presenting it. Being a part of the

Research Expo and sharing my research with others was an honorable experience that Im

grateful for. At first, I was extremely nervous to talk to people about my research considering

that my topic can be considered rather controversial depending upon how one looks at it. Once I

began to talk about my research, I think my passion for my topic began to shine through the

nervousness and that grabbed people’s attention. My favorite part of the expo was answering

questions people had about my research because it gave me an opportunity to see different

problems I haven’t thought of and answer the question using the previous knowledge I did have.

My writing process can be a little stressful mostly because I put a lot of pressure on myself to be

as articulate as possible all while impacting my readers. I typically write everything Im thinking

out on paper first just to purge all of my thoughts and ideas. I do this until I have run out of

things to write; then I go back to my research and connect what I have said to some supporting

evidence to back up my thought process. Then once I feel like I am ready to begin typing it up, I

do that and usually I revise after I have finished typing. Sometimes I end up scrapping what I

typed and starting over, it just depends on how I feel about the writing. I like the careful
approach I usually take throughout my writing process. I also like the fact that I map everything

out before I actually type it because it helps me organize my thoughts better. I think I may

change the way I map everything out in the future though; instead of beginning with free-writing,

I may use other techniques of writing to help me better organize sub-topics and their

components. As a writer, I feel like it's easy for me to make connections from my thought

process to my supporting evidence and back to my thesis statement. However, it can be a little

challenging finding the right words to say so that my readers are following my lead. I also feel

like I tend to overthink what I'm actually trying to say in my writing. However, I think another

one of my strengths is taking my writing seriously because of the topics I typically choose to

write about. In order to address my weaknesses, I need to stop putting so much pressure on

myself to sound a certain way. Instead I should focus more on trying to connect to my audience

and making sure that they understand the message I am trying to convey in my writing. Im not

sure exactly how I will strengthen my weaknesses, but I know that I need to find a calming

technique that helps my writing flow. The relationship between writing for school and writing

for my future professional life is that one sets the tone for the other. The writing style I have for

school is setting the tone for the way I will be writing in my future professional career. For

example, this semester I just finished my first psychology research proposal on the effects of

psychodynamic therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy on dissociative identity disorder; this is

important because the tools that I learned while writing this research proposal will follow me to

my professional life as far as working in groups and learning what a proper proposal should

sound like.

Final Website Project

 Upon first creating my website, I decided to change the cover photo to something that

represented my topic accurately ; I also changed it because I wanted to give my viewers a hint as

to what point of view would be displayed on my website. Another thing I changed was the font

because I didn’t like the font that was originally on my website. It wasn’t cohesive with my

theme so I thought changing it would be best in order to make it more visually pleasing. The best

part of making my website was the personalization of it. I liked creating the website to my liking

from a visual standpoint, putting images and art on it that sent a powerful message. To me, it

made the research more personal and relatable. The most challenging part of the website was

formatting the text and deciding what was important enough to put on it. At first I decided to use

google sites for my website because I was familiar with it. However, I ended up not liking the

way it was formatted so I decided to make a website via weebly instead. On weebly, it was easier

to format pictures, text, and attachments in a cohesive way that was visually pleasing. The only

downside about weebly was that you have to pay for a domain. If I had more time to work on my

project, especially the website aspect, I would have researched more ways to create a free

website thats easy to build and navigate. I would have used google sites but it was extremely

difficult for me to build my website the way I wanted it to look. If I had more time to do my

research paper, I would have made sure that I answered all of the questions that needed to be

answered to the best of their ability so that I could have gotten a better grade. This project

furthered my personal, academic, and professional goals by helping me find my purpose for my

degree after college. It has inspired me to use the tools that I will obtain throughout my academic

journey for the advancement of my community and other communities of color. It has also given

me the courage to speak up for what I believe is important and how new ideas can begin to build

bridges of common understanding.

Sustainability and Fieldwork

Sustainability can mean several different things depending upon the context in which it is

being used. It can mean that resources are being maintained at a certain rate or level of growth or

avoidance of natural resources being depleted in order to maintain balance. In the context of

Strong residential college, sustainability is our main focus and it is implemented thematically

through our curriculum. Whether the effects of whatever is being sustained is good or bad, there

is something constant that is being sustained in everything we learn. Fieldwork is work that is

done through practice within the natural environment of one’s scope of study. For me, fieldwork

can be done anywhere depending on who my subject of study is and what kind of environment I

can best observe them in. In Strong residential college, there has been a plethora of emphasis put

on fieldwork towards the end of my journey as a student of the program. In this class

specifically, I learned that conducting fieldwork helped me to strengthen my research. It makes

abstract ideas seem realistic as you are observing them in real time and reporting your findings

within your research. Fieldwork also helped me see the sustainability of certain constructs, such

as systemic racism and discrimination, remain a constant factor in why African-Americans do

not take advantage of mental health resources. Because systemic racism and discrimination is

sustained by-way of there being more white psychologists who don’t understand how mental

illness is different for African-Americans, most African-Americans continue to avoid mental

health institutions. I feel the most comfortable with observational fieldwork because in

observational research, you are simply letting elements interact with each other. There is no

poking or prodding to elicit a specific response. There is no manipulation involved and things are

allowed to be exactly what they are. To me, that’s the best way to prove a point. I would like to
improve in giving interviews. When I conduct interviews, I have a hard time letting them flow

naturally and organically; this hinders obtaining additional information that could be of use.

Strong College

The most important part of my experience at Strong has been the sense of community I

have felt when living in the residential college. I think that having experienced that was

important in order for me to learn about sustainability in the simplest way; for example, the way

people interacted with each other was sustained depending upon the relationships people forged

with each other. I also enjoyed the classes and the professors I have had class with. They

changed my life by changing the way I think about life. If I were to do anything differently, it

would probably be to not be so quick to reject opinions or views that are seen as unpopular. I

would have been more accepting of people’s differences and embraced them more as a way of

understanding rather than confusion. I would have also been involved more with the positive

committees within Guilford, such as tea time or maybe even tried to become an RA. I feel like if

I would have surrounded myself more with positivity, I would have felt more positively about

myself while living there. Between the material we learned in Strong and other UNCG courses, I

began to see gaps of unknown knowledge filling in. For example, if we covered a concept briefly

in Strong, we might have made connections related to the material being learned in strong in

relation to the concept. In other UNCG courses, the same basic concepts we learned in Strong

were sometimes applied and related upon in a way that it was connected to that specific course

and vice versa. While living in Guilford, there were plenty of learning experiences that were

geared towards life situations instead of classroom material. There were a lot of times where I

was placed in a position where certain people had opposing political stances than me, which was

hard for me to accept at first. Now, I am thankful for those experiences because it has taught me
the value of seeing more than one perspective; beyond UNCG, this mindset will help me in my

social work career due to the fact that I am not always going to agree with everything my clients

represent but in the midst of that, it is important for me to hold space for those who need it. I am

most proud of the student leadership at strong, specifically the RA’s. Strong has some of the best

RA’s at UNCG and they made my living experience really fun while living in there. They were

supportive, caring, and extremely encouraging. They always encouraged people to come to the

events that were taking place. I also liked the committees who hosted and created most of the

events in Strong. They were very memorable for me. My experience at Strong has taught me to

be kind to others who are different from you, even in the instance that they don’t accept your

differences. Not only will I be kind to others, but I will do my best to not allow the differences of

others influence the way I treat them or view them. My goal is to understand and implement the

concept of differences coexisting peacefully. This does not mean I will like certain differences in

others, it just means I have to respect it.

Education and Studenthood

I began the semester off with turning in my assignments on time, however I fell short

towards the middle and end of the semester. Honestly, my semester was a bit rough; there were a

lot of unforeseen circumstances that hindered my ability to perform my best. I wanted to do my

best work, so I asked for extensions when necessary and kept in constant communication with

my professor so that she was aware of what was happening. I feel as though I have followed

directions pretty well this semester just for the simple fact that it isn’t hard for me to do.

However, I feel like sometimes the directions weren’t very clear as to what my professor wanted

which caused me not to follow directions as well as I would have liked to on certain assignments.

My goals for myself are to experience as much as I possibly can because once you graduate, it is
harder to have many experiences where you have little responsibility outside of school. My other

goals consist of getting as much knowledge as I possibly can, especially self-knowledge. This

semester, I have entered a place of life where I want to know as much as there is to know about

myself and how I interact with the world, whether I learn this information on my own or through

other people observing me. I have begun to put myself in situations that I am not normally used

to being in; for example, in one of my psychology classes I was the leader of our research group.

Our task was to come up with a research proposal about a topic in clinical psychology. I found

that I actually do excel in leading a group, whereas before I thought I didn’t exhibit leadership

skills. I have also begun to make new friends that actually value me but are different from me,

which is something I was opposed to doing before. It has taught me a new meaning of diversity. I

have also been spending a lot of time alone doing things that I love to do only with me.

Practicing self-love and self-awareness has become something spiritual for me. If I could change

anything about my student life so far, it would be the hindrance of my own happiness. A lot of

the time, I got in my own way, which allowed other people in my life to hold me back in ways

that were subtle at first but became more prominent as my mindset began to change. Looking

back, I would have pushed myself to new heights, possibly studied abroad and did the things that

I have always wanted to do. Essentially, I would have lived my best life sooner, however, I am

thankful for the wisdom I acquired on this journey. As you read through my final project, I hope

that you see a part of myself reflected in it.