Handbook of Research Design and Social Measurement

"Potential users will want to know whether there is enough new material in the fifth edition to justify its purchase . . . . We believe there is. The fifth edition has entirely new sections on Applied Research and Evaluation Research, which should enhance the value . . . . Recommended to librarians and graduate students attempting to apply social and behavioral science research methods to library problems, as well as for purchase in academic libraries as a general reference and as a source for locating sociometric scales and indexes."

--The Library Quarterly

"This fifth, updated version of Delbert C. Miller′s book has so much information packed between its covers . . . . As a professor of both sociology and business administration, Miller brings together in a cogent way the practical concerns of the research scientist and the lab director who must consider money issues as well. Each section contains a very useful and well-considered reference section, and each reference is followed by an annotation describing its nature, how it might be best used, and other reasons for its inclusion. A large number of modern research scales are introduced and discussed, each with a reference list for further study and notes on where to obtain the scale . . . . Should be used as the definitive source that it is, as a text for a class, or as a resource to keep handy on the shelf. It is a densely packed tome that should have something of interest to nearly any social researcher. Yet Miller′s interstitial text binds with a simplicity and straightforwardness that ought to make this book accessible to anyone from an advanced undergraduate on up. He makes good use of tables, lists, and examples to get his points across in more than one fashion, a feature that speaks volumes about his understanding of and respect for potential readers′ cognitive styles."

--Psychological Reports

"This is the most comprehensive collection of social research methods that was ever designed to fit in one book. I am . . . quite interested in Miller′s text because it is so remarkably comprehensive. More of what I usually teach is included in Delbert C. Miller′s Handbook than is the case in any single text that I have used before."

--Brent C. Miller, Utah State University

"The coverage is impressive, as with earlier editions. The information on old and new scales is valuable, and Delbert C. Miller has given careful thought to the matter of deleting outdated scales and adding new ones . . . . The writing style is easygoing but accurate. Miller is a pro; he is writing for just about every audience imaginable. There is probably no other work in the general area of research methods that appeals to such a wide audience. The book is suitable for advanced undergraduate students, graduate students, and for researchers actually going about the business of social research."

--Clifford C. Clogg, The Pennsylvania State University

"I have examined this book and found it eminently satisfactory for use in my graduate methods course. It is an indispensable tool for every graduate student in the social sciences."

--Paul M. Baker, Director, Centre on Aging, University of Victoria

"A unique contribution of the handbook is the centralized presentation of sociometric scales and indexes, many given in full with citations to published works. Particularly good presentations are made of measures of social status, the premier sociological individual difference variable, and social indicators in general."

--Contemporary Psychology

"Qualifies as a true desk reference . . . . Readers familiar with previous editions will be pleased to see the inclusion of new material of direct relevance to marketing research, and new readers will find this edition packed with classic articles and excerpts from the methodological literature."

--Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science

From the Third Edition: "Throughout the work, Delbert C. Miller provides many services for the reader: instructions on how to use an excerpt from an article or a measure that is reproduced, bibliographic references to sources and commentaries involving specific measures, along with numerous citations of specific studies in which the instruments have been used. The bibliographic resources, classic to contemporary, are almost incredible . . . . I feel happily intimidated by this remarkable research manual. I wouldn′t dare start work on the development of a scale without checking Miller first!"

--Journalism Quarterly

Successful with over 73,000 buyers for its step-by-step procedures and practical guidance for collection and data analysis, Handbook of Research Design and Social Measurement offers both the beginning and seasoned social scientist the basic mechanics of how contemporary research is being designed and carried out. This revision has a new orientation that emphasizes social scientists′ three major research activities: basic, applied, and evaluative. New coverage includes software used in research, and new methodological tools such as event history analysis, Delphi techniques, network analysis, meta-analysis, and probit and logit models. Plus, this edition includes a thorough review and critique of sociometric scales and an updated guide to federal and private funding.

1913-1998: Professor emeritus of sociology and business administration at Indiana University

Neil J. Salkind received his PhD in human development from the University of Maryland, and after teaching for 35 years at the University of Kansas, he was Professor Emeritus in the Department of Psychology and Research in Education, where he collaborated with colleagues and work with students. His early interests were in the area of children’s cognitive development, and after research in the areas of cognitive style and (what was then known as) hyperactivity, he was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of North Carolina’s Bush Center for Child and Family Policy. His work then changed direction to focus on child and family policy, specifically the impact of alternative forms of public support on various child and family outcomes. He delivered more than 150 professional papers and presentations; written more than 100 trade and textbooks; and is the author of Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics (SAGE), Theories of Human Development (SAGE), and Exploring Research (Prentice Hall). He has edited several encyclopedias, including the Encyclopedia of Human Development, the Encyclopedia of Measurement and Statistics, and the Encyclopedia of Research Design. He was editor of Child Development Abstracts and Bibliography for 13 years. He lived in Lawrence, Kansas, where he liked to read, swim with the River City Sharks, work as the proprietor and sole employee of big boy press, bake brownies (see www.statisticsforpeople.com for the recipe), and poke around old Volvos and old houses.