Local Community Organizing and Change: Altering Policy in the Housing and
Community Development System in Kansas City
- Does it pass the Litmus test below? – Please itemize your answer.
Yes, it passes the litmus test
a. There is evidence that the problem is related directly to local community
organizing and changes as well as how community development systems in
Kansas City are developed. The article entails how the local community holds
government and non-government institutions accountable for improving the
housing and the community welfare in Kansas City, Missouri.
b. The problem is also grounded in the literature. The literature is purely on
community development and in what is refered to as the Community Creating
Opportunities in Kansas City as well as on a global context
c. The article represents a meaningful literature gap
d. There is an amenity to scientific study due to the insistence on fact and analysis
of the facts. - What was the social problem and research problem being addressed in the study?
The social problem addressed by this research is the issue of housing in Kansas City,
Missouri. - What theory/theories or conceptual framework was used?
The conceptual framework of Community Based Organizations and the theory of
Community Organizing are discussed, centered on the Communities Creating
Opportunity (CCO).
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- What type of design (quantitative, qualitative, and mixed) was used?
The design of the research was qualitative. It centered on a specific case study within a
community in Kansas City. - What method(s) was used to collect data?
The data collection was done through an empirical study of past research done on
Kansas City’s housing problems. This was through the use of secondary sources. - Who was the population? What sampling strategy was used?
The population used is the St. Matthews community; who are inhabitants of Kansas
City’s metropolitan area. The sampling used is not specified as it is based on sampled
from past research work done. - What are the limitations of reliability and validity of the study?
The study does not justify the sample effectively. There is no direct research done such as
an effort to collect primary data and the information given is as old as 2004. It is thus
highly irrelevant for used and not up to date. - What were the variables or themes of interest?
The variables in the research include housing and community welfare. These variables
are specific to the community of St. Mathews Parish in Kansas City. - What were the findings?
The activities of the Communities Creating Opportunity (CCO) were tantamount to
better opportunities and improvement of the housing situation in Kansas City, Missouri. - How can the findings & implications be applied to: Individuals, Groups, Settings,
Communities, Professional practice, Policy
The findings can be applied to communities in other parts of the country to educate them
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on the importance of citizen government, power in multitudes and how individuals can
benefit from group sensitization and the activities of a group. This can hence educate
the community on the policies that can be setup to guarantee welfare.
- How can you apply the findings & implications to your:
a. Personal life: These findings can be applicable to one’s personal life as they
relate to the aspects of social justice and self-determination. The development of
synergy through community organization is important to the individual as one is
able to learn how to harness this power.
b. Professional life: Professionally, the existence of working unions and trade
unions is testament to the success of community based organizations. This article
reveals why one should be part of such a community, group or organization.
Article 2: Emotional Intelligence: Significance of Psychology and Spirituality (450 words) - Does it pass the Litmus test below? – Please itemize your answer.
Yes, it passes the litmus test
a. The research centers on how emotional intelligence can be developed by
psychology and spirituality. There is evidence that from the social setting of a
person, there can be significant impact on their psychological development
especially to do with the concept of emotional intelligence.
b. Some of the literature topics that form the basis for this paper include; behavior
adaptation, spiritual intelligence and emotional intelligence. All these aspects
regard the topic of research; which is the impact of psychology and spirituality
on emotional intelligence.
c. There is a meaningful literature gap in the article as well. This gap is addressed
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by the topics related to the literature in this study.
d. The study is inherently scientific. There is a clear definition of the methods used,
the findings as well as the scientific deductions made. This conceptualizes the
basis of the scientific survey on the variables.
- What was the social problem and research problem being addressed in the study?
The social problem addressed by this research is the association of emotional
intelligence with the ability to belong in a social setup. This is linked to the conditioning
of the being with regard to their spiritual and psychological upbringing. - What theory/theories or conceptual framework was used?
The ANOVA conceptual framework was applied as a hypothesis testing mechanism. The
t-test tool was applied to differentiate men and women on aspects of Spiritual Quotient as
well as the Emotional Intelligence. - What type of design (quantitative, qualitative, and mixed) was used?
The design of the research was a mixed methods approach. The quantitative aspect of
the research was based on the sampling that took care of number and gender
perspectives. The research was also qualitative in that it used scientific metric to
measure spiritual quotient as well as the emotional intelligence. - What method(s) was used to collect data?
The data was collected from a primary source using questionnaires and interviews
among the sampled population. - Who was the population? What sampling strategy was used?
The population used was a group of 150 University students aged between 21-24 years
doing a masters’ degree at a University in Pakistan.
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- What are the limitations of reliability and validity of the study?
The study is bias to a community assumed to have a definite set of IQ and EI scores. The
use of this community affects the randomness of the research. The study is also not
effective on the religious aspect of spirituality which is important among different
religious sects. - What were the variables or themes of interest?
The variables of interest in the research include; emotional intelligence, spiritual
quotient and psychology as they apply to the social setup of a community or institution. - What were the findings?
The study revealed that students studying psychology were more spiritually intelligent
compared to students studying other disciplines. This proved that education is a factor is
spiritual intelligence more than are the aspects of religion and emotional intelligence.
The study also revealed that people with a higher spiritual quotient also demonstrated a
high emotional quotient. - How can the findings & implications be applied to: Individuals, Groups, Settings,
Communities, Professional practice, Policy
The findings relate to a social welfare perspective of emotional intelligence. This is the
understanding that brings a community together. At the same time, the ability to live
within a set of guiding principles; refered to as Spiritual Quotient is vital in the
development of the EI of the person. - How can you apply the findings & implications to your:
a. Personal life: As a person, one understands the value of emotional intelligence to
the life of the individual by reading this article. Spiritual Quotient is also crucial
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to the purpose and quality of life of the individual.
b. Professional life: Professionally, the ability to understand and respect different
cultures and religions within the workplace is related to emotional intelligence.
However, as the research proves, without a significant spiritual quotient,
emotional intelligence is difficult to master.
References
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Kaur, H., Singh, V., & Singh, P. (2012). Emotional intelligence: Significance of psychology and
Spirituality. Pakistan Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 9(2), 32-36.
Speer, P. W., & Christens, B. D. (2012). Local community organizing and change: Altering
policy in the housing and community development system in Kansas City. Journal of
Community & Applied Social Psychology, 22(5), 414-427.