Depression and Dealing With Mental Illness

Depression is a deeply personal issue that many people battle with each year. Persistnt depression categorized as dysthymia can be another more treacherous kind of monster that plagues those suffering from mental illness. While quantitative data can be helpful in determining accuracy in things like treatment and performing studies on medication efficacy, because depression is so personal and pertaining to a person’s individual experience and perspective, qualitative research should be included. There can be named several reasons for this, but the main reason is because qualitative research for an examination of a person’s unique experience and perspective and identification of underlying themes that can help paint a better picture of the mental disorder. Although there are various kinds of qualitative research designs, the phenomenological study fits with what is needed, which is exploration and discussion of underlying themes through interviews, watching videos, examining research and then making comparisons and deriving meaning from everything. The aim of this kind of study is to understand the meaning of dysthymia and how it can affect people in a way that is universal, but also personal. For example, Alzheimer’s patients are more likely to develop dysthymia. The research qtuestion would then be: Can functional and cognitive deficits as seen in Alzheimer’s patients lead to a higher risk of developing dysthymia? If so, how does this disorder affect Alzheimer’s patients? For example, a recent phenomenological study aimed to understand this phenomenon and discovered similar experiences among these patients (Novais & Starkstein, 2015). The study would be simple and would consist of a literature review on dysthymia and Alzheimer’s patients. Then Alzheimer’s patients with dysthymia would be interviewed. These answered would be analyzed and compared to the results from the literature review to identify any underlying themes. Then the discussion would include potential effective treatment options. Dysthymia is the selected research topic and the research question relies on understanding how cognitive and functional deficit can lead to development of dysthymia in Alzheimer’s patients. While the qualitative aspect is good for understanding and identifying underlying themes, there is also the need to collect data to compare and contrast findings. This is where quantitative research and even data collection can come in handy. Quantitative methods like surveys allow researchers to collect data and focus on protecting privacy. For example, surveys can allow for anonymous responses so respondents do not have to be identified. They would only be identified through gender and race. Protection of privacy is important ethically speaking, and easier to do when it is done through quantitative data collection. Therefore, a mixed methods approach would be best because it allows for use of both forms of data collection that can produce both and accurate (quantitative) and meaningful (qualitative) outcome and result. This is the ultimate goal in research when it comes to complex disorders like depression. “Mixed methods research offers powerful tools for investigating complex processes and systems in health and health care” (Fetters, Curry, & Creswell, 2013, p. 2134). A mixed methodology often requires purposeful sampling. “Purposeful sampling widely used in qualitative research for the identification and selection of information-rich cases related to the phenomenon of interest. Although there are several different purposeful sampling strategies, criterion sampling appears to be used most commonly in implementation research” (Palinkas et al., 2013, p. 533). When selecting participants, they would have to be Alzheimer’s patients. Even from the quantitative aspect, the focus needs to be on experiences of Alzheimer’s patients. Then both types of data would be analyzed and compared to reach a conclusion. This allows not only for a clearer picture, but leaves room for further exploration. References Fetters, M. D., Curry, L. A., & Creswell, J. W. (2013). Achieving Integration in Mixed Methods Designs-Principles and Practices. Health Services Research, 48(6pt2), 2134-2156. doi:10.1111/1475-6773.12117 Novais, F., & Starkstein, S. (2015). Phenomenology of Depression in Alzheimer’s Disease. Journal of Alzheimer\\\\\\\'s Disease, 47(4), 845-855. doi:10.3233/jad-148004 Palinkas, L. A., Horwitz, S. M., Green, C. A., Wisdom, J. P., Duan, N., & Hoagwood, K. (2013). Purposeful Sampling for Qualitative Data Collection and Analysis in Mixed Method Implementation Research. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 42(5), 533-544. doi:10.1007/s10488-013-0528-y