This bestselling book provides an accessible introduction to the concepts and practicalities of research methods in health and health services. This new edition has been extensively re-worked and expanded and now includes expanded coverage of: Qualitative methods Social research Evaluation methodology Mixed methods Secondary data analysis Literature reviewing and critical appraisal Evidence based practice Covering all core methodologies in detail the book looks at the following kinds of health research: health needs morbidity and mortality trends and rates costing health services sampling for survey research cross-sectional and longitudinal survey design experimental methods and techniques of group assignment questionnaire design interviewing techniques coding and analysis of quantitative data methods and analysis of qualitative observational studies unstructured interviewing The book is grounded in the author's career as a researcher on health and health service issues, and the valuable experience this has provided in meeting the challenges of research on people and organisations in real life settings. Research Methods in Health, Fourth Edition is an essential companion for students and researchers of health and health services, health clinicians and policy-makers with responsibility for applying research findings and judging the soundness of research. "Health service researchers - new and old - will be delighted by this new edition of a popular and useful text. There is new content but also updated material making this practically useful as a resource at any stage of the research trajectory. While health is the focus the book is hugely valuable to researchers in cognate areas. such as social care, education and housing. The book meets its own high standards in being easy to follow, well indexed and containing interesting examples of approaches. The limitations of different methods are also honestly reported. A 'must have' for the book shelf." Jill Manthorpe, Professor of Social Work, King's College London, UK "When first published in 1997, this volume was the first systematic overview of research methods used in the health field. In its updated 4th Edition it remains vital and, if anything, more important given the growing number of researchers and students investigating health issues and health services. It provides an impressively comprehensive overview of health research methods in which the wealth and variety of experience of the author shines through at every point. Qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods are appraised and explained with unpartisan authority and rigour, and the volume covers everything from multidisciplinary collaboration in health service evaluation through the Delphi technique of consensus development to the health economics needed to evaluate costing." Paul Stenner, Professor of Social Psychology, The Open University, UK "This excellent text really is a must for anyone involved in health research. It is truly multidisciplinary in its scope, drawing on a breadth of relevant research from health economics, to epidemiology to psychology which is beyond the scope of most books on research methods. Yet in spite of the wealth of material included it is written and presented in an accessible way so that it will be an invaluable source for those with a background in either qualitative or quantitative research and from students to experienced researchers." Robert J. Edelmann, Professor of Forensic and Clinical psychology, Roehampton University, UK Reviews of previous editions: "Provides an excellent broad based introduction to the subject. The content is clearly presented and at a suitable level for health professionals and postgraduate students in health and health-related social sciences." Virginia Berridge, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK "A valuable source book for health services researchers, health care providers, and others interested in quantifying quality of life for clinical or research purposes." The International Journal for Quality in Health Care "Includes accounts of a number of recently developed scales, while retaining the breadth, concision and clarity that marked the first edition." Medicine, Healthcare and Philosophy

“An essential and comprehensive guide for students and researchers in a range of health care disciplines investigating health services, health care and well-being.” Professor Robert J. Edelmann, Emeritus Professor of Clinical and Forensic Psychology, University of Roehampton, UK “An invaluable resource for students, researchers and practitioners from all health backgrounds and disciplines, who are involved in research to produce a robust evidence-base to inform the development, provision, delivery and evaluation of healthcare services.” Felicity Smith, Professor Emeritus of Pharmacy Practice, UCL School of Pharmacy, UK “The fifth edition of ‘Research Methods in Health’ continues to provide an excellent broad based introduction to the subject.” Virginia Berridge, Professor of History and Health Policy, Centre for History in Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK This bestselling book provides an accessible introduction to the concepts and practicalities of multi-disciplinary research methods in health and health services. The new edition has updated and expanded coverage of: •International examples, terms and approaches •Epidemiology and methods of tracing epidemics •Aging population demography and bio-demography •Evaluation and assessment of health services •Health services research and audit, including data generation •Methods of evaluating patients’ perspectives •Measuring quality of life outcomes •Health economics methods and applications •Quantitative and qualitative research Core processes and methodologies such as social research, mixed methods, literature reviewing and critical appraisal, secondary data analysis and evidence-based practice will be covered in detail. The book also looks at the following key areas of health research: •Health needs •Morbidity and mortality trends and rates •Costing health services •Sampling for survey research •Cross-sectional and longitudinal survey design •Experimental methods and techniques of group assignment •Questionnaire design •Interviewing techniques •Coding and analysis of quantitative data •Methods and analysis of qualitative observational studies •Unstructured interviewing The book is grounded in the author's career as a researcher on health and health service issues, and the valuable experience this has provided in meeting the challenges of research on people and organisations in real life settings. Research Methods in Health, Fifth Edition is an essential companion for students and researchers of health and health services at all levels, health clinicians and policy-makers with responsibility for applying research findings and judging the soundness of research. Ann Bowling is a sociologist, specialising in research on ageing, research methods, quality of life, public and social health. She was Professor of Health Sciences at the University of Southampton, UK (2012–17), where she is now Visiting Professor. Ann was awarded the Highly Commended book prize for the 4th edition of Research Methods in Health at the 2015 BMA Medical Book Awards.

This second edition has been revised and updated to reflect key methodological developments in health research. It is a comprehensive, easy to read, guide to the range of methods used to study and evaluate health and health services. It describes the concepts and methods used by the main disciplines involved in health research, including: demography, epidemiology, health economics, psychology and sociology.

Mixed Methods in Health Sciences Research: A Practical Primer, by Leslie Curry and Marcella Nunez-Smith, presents key theories, concepts, and approaches in an accessible way. Packed with illustrations from the health sciences literature, this ready-to-use guidebook shows readers how to design, conduct, review, and use mixed methods research findings. Helpful checklists, figures, tables, templates, and much more give readers examples that will elevate the quality of their research, facilitate communication about their methods, and improve efficiency over the course of their projects. Real-world examples and insights from mixed methods researchers provide unique perspectives on every aspect of mixed methods research. This book successfully pulls together foundational mixed methods principles, synthesizes the knowledge base in the field, and translates it for a health science researcher audience. “The content is highly applicable to real life research teams in the areas of clinical research, health services research, and implementation science, providing sound content and practical advice. The authors have synthesized and pull key concepts from a variety of sources to provide a concise resource.” —Linda M. Herrick, South Dakota State University “Everything from the references, to the topics, checklists, conceptual graphic representations, and organizers, interviews, and resources, all contribute to the content and aid with understanding and/or application. … It addresses specific MM research as it pertains to health sciences in a way that other texts just do not even attempt.” —Denise L. Winsor, University of Memphis “[This text is] a very pragmatic approach to mixed methods research; excellent resources, tables, and figures [are] provided, along with cases and examples of value to researchers and grant reviewers. Its relevance to practice, education, and research, as well as to potential policy implications, is a strong focus that would make this a valued textbook for any researcher!” ? —Karen Devereaux Melillo, University of Massachusetts Lowell “The text is cutting edge. It leads the way with its focus on team dynamics. [The authors] succeed in making the book relevant and practical. They also articulate a number of key insights in the area of mixed methods that rarely get addressed, such as teams and conflict. Great read with a lot of good, practical information for mixed methods researchers at all levels. The practical approach of this text makes it an innovative and valuable resource.” —John G. Schumacher, University of Maryland

Health and human services currently face a series of challenges – such as aging populations, chronic diseases and new endemics – that require highly complex responses, and take place in multiple care environments including acute medicine, chronic care facilities and the community. Accordingly, most modern health care interventions are now seen as ‘complex interventions’ – activities that contain a number of component parts with the potential for interactions between them which, when applied to the intended target population, produce a range of possible and variable outcomes. This in turn requires methodological developments that also take into account changing values and attitudes related to the situation of patients’ receiving health care. The first book to place complex interventions within a coherent system of research enquiry, this work is designed to help researchers understand the research processes involved at each stage of developing, testing, evaluating and implementing complex interventions, and assist them to integrate methodological activities to produce secure, evidence-based health care interventions. It begins with conceptual chapters which set out the complex interventions framework, discuss the interrelation between knowledge development and evidence, and explore how mixed methods research contributes to improved health. Structured around the influential UK Medical Research Council guidance for use of complex interventions, four sections, each comprised of bite-sized chapters written by multidisciplinary experts in the area, focus on: - Developing complex interventions - Assessing the feasibility of complex interventions and piloting them - Evaluating complex interventions - Implementing complex interventions. Accessible to students and researchers grappling with complex interventions, each substantive chapter includes an introduction, bulleted learning objectives, clinical examples, a summary and further reading. The perspectives of various stakeholders, including patients, families and professionals, are discussed throughout as are the economic and ethical implications of methods. A vital companion for health research, this book is suitable for readers from multidisciplinary disciplines such as medical, nursing, public health, health services research, human services and allied healthcare backgrounds.

′[This book] merits attention for bringing together diverse facets of mixed methods research usage in a single volume....[It] provide[s] good coverage of the subject offering the reader command over this newly emerging research approach in social science research′ - Social Research Association In this eagerly-anticipated new text, a range of internationally-renowned experts draw on their extensive experience to provide a practical and accessible guide to the wide span of methods used in health research. Researching Health covers the background to conducting health research, qualitative and quantitative methods employed in researching health, contemporary issues such as research ethics, comparative research and the use of mixed methods, and how to disseminate health research. As such, it provides the perfect package to help readers carry out their own research projects and use the research of others more effectively in their work. Key features: - comprehensive coverage of the range of methods available - brings readers fully up-to-date on topical issues and research - packed with pedagogical features including: case studies, health-related exercises, chapter summaries, annotated further reading, and a full glossary - supported by an interactive companion website with an instructors′ manual and PowerPoint slides for lecturers, and datasets, links to relevant websites, online reading, and an online glossary for students. (The companion website can now be accessed from here or by clicking on the ′companion website′ logo above)

The bestselling textbook to understanding health research, updated and expanded Research Methods in Health Promotion provides students and practitioners with essential knowledge and skills regarding the design, implementation, analysis, and interpretation of research in the field of health promotion. Now in its second edition, this bestselling textbook has been updated with more recent research methodologies and additional information on sampling, participatory and survey research, and qualitative data analysis. The entire research process is covered, with specific points relating to both qualitative and quantitative research. By breaking the daunting process of research into simple and well-defined steps, this user-friendly text encourages students to think about research as a sequential process and provides explanations that facilitate better understanding of each step in the research process. A separate set of chapters cover the more quantitative methodological areas including designs, measurement, sampling, and data analysis in depth, giving readers the understanding they need to apply in practice. This book also provides applied chapters that illustrate the practical aspects of the research process, along with other critical information including grant writing and scientific writing. Evaluate the ethics, design, analysis, and interpretation of research Identify and understand the key components of research studies Analyze and interpret the results of experimental and survey research designs Understand the process of publishing a research report and constructing a grant proposal Research Methods in Health Promotion is ideal for both undergrad and graduate methods courses in health promotion and public health.