Methods of Family Research

Preface Acknowledgments 1. Why Do Research on Families? What Are The Stages Of Social Research? How is Research on Families Different? The benefits of Well-Conducted Research Study Questions For Further Reading 2. Causal Inference in Family Research Variables Units of Analysis Thinking Causally Framing the Hypothesis Study Questions For Further Reading 3. Searching and Reading the Literature Reading a Journal article Where Do I go From Here? How Do Journal Articles Get Published? Research Monographs Other Types of Publications Study Questions For Further Reading 4. Using the Internet to Study Families Web Sites of Interest to Family Researchers Search Engines What are Mailing Lists? What are Newsgroups? What Are Electronic Journals? The Internet as a Source of Data Advantages and Disadvantages of the Internet for Family Research Study Questions For Further Reading 5. How Do We Measure Concepts? Characteristics of a Good Measurement Procedure Levels of Measurement What are Reliability and Validity? Some Thoughts on Reliability and Validity Study Questions For Further Reading 6. Studying Families: Quantitative Methods Studying Families Through Experiments Studying Families Through Survey Methods Studying Families Through Observation Studying Families Through Nonreactive Techniques Types of Nonreactive Research Secondary Analysis of Sample Surveys Some Limitations of Quantitative Methods Study Questions For Further Reading 7. Studying Families: Qualitative Methods Qualitative Research Compared to Quantitative Research Types of Qualitative Strategies Evaluating Qualitative Research Study Questions For Further Reading 8. Studying Families: Mixed Methods Mixed-Methods Approaches to Family Research Mixed-Model Studies in Family Research Some Closing Thoughts on Choosing a Research Strategy Study Questions For further Reading 9. Sampling Issues Defining the Population Sampling Designs How Large Does the Sample Need to Be? How Do We Go About Choosing a Sampling Technique? Study Questions For Further Reading 10. Working With Scales and Indices Types of Scales and Indices Using Existing Scales and Indices How Do We Evaluate Scales and Indices? How Do We Deal With Missing Data in Scales and Indices? Study Questions For Further Reading 11. Analyzing Data on Families Descriptive Statistics Interpreting Cross-classification Tables Inferential Statistics Commonly Reported Tests of Statistical Significance Some Thoughts About Statistical Analysis Study Questions For Further Reading 12. Using Other People's Data Advantages and Disadvantages of Secondary Analysis What Are Some Sources of Data About Families? Sources of Secondary Data Sets Future Trends in Secondary Data Analysis Study Questions For Further Reading 13. Evaluating Family Programs Needs and Social Impact Assessment: What Is the Problem? Outcome Assessment: Does it work? Process Research: How Does It Work? Some Thoughts About Randomization in Evaluation Research The Relationship Between Applied and Basic Research Study Questions For Further Reading 14. The Ethics and Politics of Family Research Ethical Issues in Research on Families and Children What Is the Role of the Institutional Review Board? Political Concerns in Research on Families Some Closing Thoughts Study Questions For Further Reading References Glossary and Index About the Author