Advanced Design in Nursing Research

Is there a framework to help the nursing researcher make sense of the wide variety of research methods now available? Is there a context in which the research designer can consider which method is most appropriate to her or his specific study, given the research topic and the extent of research that has gone before? The answer to both of these questions is an emphatic yes!--as seen in this second edition of Pamela J. Brink and Marilynn J. WoodÆs seminal work, Advanced Design in Nursing Research. Using the principle that "the level of knowledge available on a research topic determines the level of design that can be used to study that topic," the authors clearly and succinctly present discussions of research at the three levels of design, moving from rigidly controlled, theoretically-based experimental designs to comparative and correlational survey designs, and concluding with the exploratory-descriptive research designs that frequently initiate the study of a topic. Within the basic categories, authoritative researchers explore a broad range of specific design types, noting their characteristics, strengths and weaknesses, applicability to nursing research, ethical considerations, reliability and validity, and methods of data analysis. Advanced Design in Nursing Research, Second Edition provides not only a context for design decision making, but an orientation and point of departure for the research design process itself. These features make this volume an excellent text for advanced-level nursing students and a superb library addition for the researcher or clinician desiring a comprehensive self reference on research design.

Pamela Brink is the founder of the WJNR and has been its editor throughout its history. She initiated a number of innovations in nursing research journals such as: commentaries and author rebuttal on clinical articles; publication of successful NINR grant proposals with their pink sheets ; research briefs on such topics as cultural diversity, historiography, and research ethics; educational issues in research; publication of full research symposia with guest editors; and special issues on timely research topics. In addition, she has always tried to interest an

international audience by soliciting and publishing research reports from scholars outside north America. 

Marilynn J. Wood, RN, DrPH, received her doctorate in gerontology and biostatistics from the School of Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles. A recipient of an American Journal of Nursing Book of the Year Award in 1984, Dr. Wood has co-authored a basic nursing research text and co-edited a text titled Advanced Design in Nursing Research. Her current research is in the area of lifestyle changes related to the treatment of obesity.