Handbook of Research Methods in Clinical Psychology

Abstract

In a review of the first edition of this handbook, Barlow1 wrote, “Kendall and Butcher have undertaken the monumental task of presenting in one volume contemporary strategies and tactics of clinical research and have succeeded beyond any reasonable hope” (p. 821). The second edition meets and exceeds the standard set forth by the first. Nearly half of the chapters in the second edition have been substantially revised, expanding and deepening our understanding of the methodological material covered in the first edition. Even more noteworthy are the new chapters that cover contemporary issues and describe recent methodological advances. The remarkably lucid and consistent writing style across chapters makes the material very accessible to graduate students—the intended audience—while the breadth of coverage makes the text an important reference for the seasoned researcher. The text, divided into five parts, generally follows the pattern established in the first edition. The first section consists of five chapters that cover general issues in clinical research and begins with an overview chapter by Allan Kazdin containing clear and practical illustrations that describe the underlying assumptions and components of clinical research. Ethical issues are presented with appropriate humor and simplicity in the second chapter, and the cross-cultural research chapter that follows has been expanded to include pertinent gender and ethnicity considerations. The new chapter on statistical methods advocates the proper match between statistical model and research question and is written in a remarkably approachable fashion. The first section finishes with a timely and forthright treatment of the publication process and describes the economic, political, and cultural forces that operate within the peer review system. The second section consists of seven chapters that focus on assessment research, including two substantially revised chapters on observational assessment and methodological issues in psychophysiological research. An entirely new chapter on self-report assessment uses the development and history of the MMPI to masterfully illustrate issues such as response distortion, cultural considerations, and generalization validity. Although projective assessment is losing favor in some clinical psychology training programs, a chapter is devoted to a compelling theoretical and empirical argument for the value of projective techniques. Neuropsychological assessment is an enormously complex and broad topic, so the chapter addressing this topic appropriately limits its focus to four methodological issues that affect intellectual assessment. Finally, two new measurement chapters are included. The first of these addresses traditional psychometric topics such as reliability and validity, with a particular emphasis on their conditional nature and utility. The chapter on item response theory (IRT) provides a brief overview of the advantages of IRT over classical test theory in understanding the construct validity of assessment instruments and explains how IRT can maximize reliability in scale development. Part three consists of five chapters that focus on treatment research. The chapter on time-series designs carefully explains how one can empirically evaluate the patient's progress. The therapy outcome chapter operationally defines empirically supported therapies and then carefully outlines the salient methodological issues that must be considered when conducting or reading outcome studies. A new chapter uses 22 thoughtfully selected case studies, which are coupled with findings from past research, to skillfully illustrate substantive theoretical considerations (difference between treatment models on verbal behavior, protocol adherence, semantic content) and design considerations (dismantling, events paradigm, and task analysis) in the conduct and interpretation of process research. The chapters on community-based treatment and meta-analysis provide the basic framework needed to understand and interpret findings from these research models. The fourth section is entirely reformatted, containing six chapters on psychopathology and health psychology topics. The two chapters on developmental and adult psychopathology, as well as the pediatric psychology chapter, describe frequently encountered designs as well as important sampling, measurement, and analysis issues. The adult psychopathology chapter is noteworthy for its cogent discussion of vulnerability, a major component of most theories of psychopathology. Smith and Ruiz have contributed a superb chapter that delineates the substantive methodological issues affecting research in three broad domains of health psychology: health behavior/risk reduction, psychosomatics, and the psychosocial impact and management of medical illness. The behavioral genetics chapter provides an informative “consumer's” view of the field and provides over a dozen sites on the World Wide Web that can serve as resources for behavioral genetics. The final chapter begins with an easy-to-read history of sex behavior research that is used to demonstrate the methodological issues involved in studying sexual behavior. At the end of the chapter these issues are brought to bear on a hypothetical research question and an ideal research protocol. The final section has five chapters on research with special populations. The three chapters on research with children, adolescents, and older adults describe typical designs (e.g., cross-sectional, longitudinal), methodological issues (developmental changes, contextual factors, measurement challenges), and current issues in each field. The chapter on adolescents is noteworthy in its description of a developmental-contextual model for understanding and researching adolescent adaptation and adjustment because the model appears equally relevant for research with child and geriatric populations. The last two chapters focus on research methods with couples and families, with special attention given to the sampling, design, measurement, and data-analysis phases of a study. One of the few criticisms of the first edition was the need for greater attention to methodologies in specific sub-areas, and the authors have responded thoroughly with the addition of the chapters on special populations, sexual behavior, health psychology, and therapy process. In sum, this book has lived up to the “handbook” appellation and will continue to be a valuable textbook for a broad-based graduate-level training in research methodology. Its practical and understandable presentation of methodology will encourage the novice researcher to stay engaged in scientifically pursuing answers to clinical questions. Kendall, Butcher, and Holmbeck are to be congratulated for assembling a distinguished group of experts who have done a remarkable job of clarifying substantive and complex methodological topics.

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