This clearly written, easy-to-understand book demystifies the research process and provides a rational foundation from which to critique and understand research designs and applications in health care and human service settings. Divided into five parts - Introduction, Thinking Processes, Design Approaches, Action Processes, and Improving Practice Through Inquiry - it explores multiple research strategies, proposing that naturalistic and experimental-type research strategies have equal value and contribute in complementary and distinct ways to the science of practice. Content in this edition has been significantly expanded and updated to reflect changes in the field, specifically in areas of ethics, informed consent, practice efficacy, and proposal-writing.
Part I. Introduction 1. Research as an important way of knowing 2. Essentials of research Part II. Thinking processes 3. Philosophical foundations 4. Framing the problem 5. Developing a knowledge base through review of the literature 6. Theory in research 7. Formulating research questions and queries 8. Language and thinking processes Part III. Design approaches 9. Experimental-type designs 10. Naturalistic inquiry Part IV. Action processes 11. Setting the boundaries of a study 12. Protecting the boundaries 13. Boundary setting in experimental-type designs 14. Boundary setting in naturalistic designs 15. Collecting information 16. Measurement in experimental-type research 17. Gathering information in naturalistic inquiry 18. Preparing and organizing data 19. Statistical analysis for experimental-type research 20. Analysis in naturalistic inquiry 21. Sharing research knowledge before 22. Sharing research knowledge during and after Part V. Improving practice through inquiry 23. Case study designs 24. Practice efficacy 25. Stories from the field Appendix. Informed Consent Documents Glossary