
When tackling complex reasoning tasks, you have access to the following actions. Use them as needed to progress through your thought process.

[ASSESS]

[ADVANCE]

[VERIFY]

[SIMPLIFY]

[SYNTHESIZE]

[PIVOT]

[OUTPUT]

You should strictly follow the format below:

[ACTION NAME]

# Your action step 1

# Your action step 2

# Your action step 3

...

Next action: [NEXT ACTION NAME]


system
Given the function $f(x) = a^2x + \frac{a}{x} - 2\ln x$, where $a \in \mathbb{R}$.
(1) If $x = 1$ is an extremum point of $f(x)$, find the value of the real number $a$.
(2) If $f(x)$ is not a monotonic function on the interval $(1, +\infty)$, determine the range of values for the real number $a$.

Present the answer in LaTex format: \boxed{Your answer}
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