Written by a proven author and top scholar in research methods, Practitioner's Guide to Using Research for Evidence-Based Practice gives essential and practical guidance on how to integrate research appraisal into evidence-based practice endeavors to ensure best client care.

Preface xiii Acknowledgments xxi About the Authors xxiii PART I: Overview of Evidence-Based Practice Chapter 1 Introduction to Evidence-Based Practice 3 Emergence of Evidence-Based Practice 5 Defi ning Evidence-Based Practice 6 Types of EBP Questions 7 Evidence-Based Practice Is Not Restricted to Clinical Decisions 17 Developing an Evidence-Based Practice Process Outlook 17 Easier Said Than Done 23 Key Chapter Concepts 25 Review Exercises 26 Additional Readings 27 Chapter 2 Steps in the EBP Process 28 Step 1: Question Formulation 29 Step 2: Evidence Search 30 Step 3: Critically Appraising Studies and Reviews 38 Step 4: Selecting and Implementing the Intervention 40 Step 5: Monitor Client Progress 43 Feasibility Constraints 44 Key Chapter Concepts 47 Review Exercises 48 Additional Readings 49 Chapter 3 Research Hierarchies: Which Types of Research Are Best for Which Questions? 50 More Than One Type of Hierarchy for More Than One Type of EBP Question 51 Qualitative and Quantitative Studies 53 What Types of Research Designs Apply to What Types of EBP Questions? 54 Key Chapter Concepts 65 Review Exercises 67 Additional Readings 67 PART II: Critically Appraising Studies for EBP Questions About Intervention Effectiveness Chapter 4 Criteria for Inferring Effectiveness: How Do We Know What Works? 71 Internal Validity 72 Measurement Issues 78 Statistical Chance 83 External Validity 88 Synopses of Research Studies 90 Key Chapter Concepts 95 Review Exercises 96 Exercise for Critically Appraising Published Articles 97 Additional Readings 98 Chapter 5 Critically Appraising Experiments 99 Classic Pretest Posttest Control Group Design 100 Posttest-Only Control Group Design 102 Solomon Four-Group Design 103 Alternative Treatment Designs 104 Dismantling Designs 106 Placebo Control Group Designs 107 Experimental Demand and Experimenter Expectancies 109 Obtrusive Versus Unobtrusive Observation 110 Compensatory Equalization and Compensatory Rivalry 111 Resentful Demoralization 111 Treatment Diffusion 112 Treatment Fidelity 113 Practitioner Equivalence 113 Differential Attrition 115 Synopses of Research Studies 117 Key Chapter Concepts 123 Review Exercises 124 Exercise for Critically Appraising Published Articles 125 Additional Readings 125 Chapter 6 Critically Appraising Quasi-Experiments: Nonequivalent Comparison Groups Designs 126 Nonequivalent Comparison Groups Designs 127 Additional Logical Arrangements to Control for Potential Selectivity Biases 130 Statistical Controls for Potential Selectivity Biases 134 Propensity Score Matching Using a Policy Example 144 Pilot Studies 145 Synopses of Research Studies 147 Key Chapter Concepts 152 Review Exercises 153 Exercise for Critically Appraising Published Articles 153 Additional Readings 154 Chapter 7 Critically Appraising Quasi-Experiments: Time-Series Designs and Single-Case Designs 155 Simple Time-Series Designs 156 Multiple Time-Series Designs 159 Single-Case Designs 161 Synopses of Research Studies 168 Key Chapter Concepts 174 Review Exercises 175 Exercise for Critically Appraising Published Articles 176 Additional Reading 176 Chapter 8 Critically Appraising Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses 177 Advantages of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses 179 Risks in Relying Exclusively on Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses 180 Where to Start 181 What to Look for When Critically Appraising Systematic Reviews 182 What Distinguishes a Systematic Review From Other Types of Reviews? 190 What to Look for When Critically Appraising Meta-Analyses 191 Synopses of Research Studies 205 Key Chapter Concepts 209 Review Exercises 211 Exercise for Critically Appraising Published Articles 212 Additional Readings 212 PART III: Critically Appraising Studies for Alternative EBP Questions Chapter 9 Critically Appraising Nonexperimental Quantitative Studies 215 Surveys 216 Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Studies 228 Case-Control Studies 229 Synopses of Research Studies 231 Key Chapter Concepts 240 Review Exercises 242 Exercise for Critically Appraising Published Articles 242 Additional Readings 242 Chapter 10 Critically Appraising Qualitative Studies 243 Qualitative Observation 245 Qualitative Interviewing 247 Qualitative Sampling 250 Grounded Theory 252 Frameworks for Appraising Qualitative Studies 252 Mixed Model and Mixed Methods Studies 257 Synopses of Research Studies 258 Key Chapter Concepts 266 Review Exercises 271 Exercise for Critically Appraising Published Articles 272 Additional Readings 272 PART IV: Assessing Clients and Monitoring Their Progress Chapter 11 Critically Appraising and Selecting Assessment Instruments 275 Reliability 276 Validity 280 Sensitivity 285 Feasibility 287 Sample Characteristics 288 Locating Assessment Instruments 289 Synopses of Research Studies 291 Key Chapter Concepts 296 Review Exercises 297 Exercise for Critically Appraising Published Articles 298 Additional Readings 298 Chapter 12 Monitoring Client Progress 299 A Practitioner-Friendly Design 301 Feasible Assessment Techniques 304 Summary 313 Looking Ahead 316 Key Chapter Concepts 318 Review Exercises 319 Additional Readings 319 Appendix A Illustrative Answers to Selected Review Exercises 321 Chapter 3 Review Exercises 321 Chapter 4 Review Exercises 322 Chapter 5 Review Exercises 323 Chapter 7 Review Exercises 324 Chapter 8 Review Exercises 324 Chapter 12 Review Exercises 325 Appendix B What You Do and Don t Need to Know About Statistics When Critically Appraising Studies 327 Why Do We Need Inferential Statistics? The Bottom Line 328 The Benchmark Made Simple 329 Is That Really All You Need to Know? 330 The Benchmark Is Not Sacred! 331 What Else Do You Need to Know? 332 Conclusion 333 Glossary 335 References 345 Index 351

Praise for the previous edition

"An extraordinary and important book. Its approach to evidence-based practice (EBP) is very sound, realistic, and generous to the complexities of everyday practice. Reading and using this book is a must."
—Haluk Soydan, PhD, School of Social Work, University of Southern California

"This book has the potential to change practice in the helping professions. Rather than focusing on how to conduct research, Practitioner's Guide to Using Research for Evidence-Based Practice instead shows readers how to understand the literature.... [The] generous use of humor and the inclusion of simple, practice-relevant examples make this book a pleasure to read."
—Aron Shlonsky, PhD, Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto

"I particularly like the integration of research methods and EBP; this is the book's major innovation in my mind as it allows readers to see the connections between research and practice. [The book] also succeeds by taking very complex EBP principles and explaining them in practical terms."
—Jeffrey M. Jenson, PhD, Graduate School of Social Work, University of Denver

Hands-on guidance for research-informed practice and practice-informed research

Now in a second edition, Practitioner's Guide to Using Research for Evidence-Based Practice offers a clinician-oriented approach to appraising and using research as part of the EBP process. This accessible guide presents essential and practical guidance on how to integrate research appraisal into EBP endeavors to determine which interventions, policies, and assessment tools are supported by the best evidence.

It introduces:

• Increased attention to macro-level EBP questions and studies
• New discussion on defining EBP, including the addition of a transdisciplinary model of EBP
• More detailed guidance on EBP question formulation and conducting Internet searches, including the PICO framework
• New content on multivariate designs, including propensity score matching, and on mixed-model and mixed-methods studies

Praise for the first edition:

"I particularly like the integration of research methods and EBP; this is the book's major innovation in my mind as it allows readers to see the connections between research and practice. Rubin also succeeds by taking very complex EBP principles and explaining them in practical terms."
—Jeffrey M. Jenson, Ph.D., University of Denver, Graduate School of Social Work

"An extraordinary and important book. Its approach to evidence-based practice is very sound, realistic, and generous to the complexities of everyday practice. It provides an excellent practitioner's desk book to students and professionals who want to implement evidence-based practice. Reading and using this book is a must."
—Haluk Soydan, Ph.D., University of Southern California, School of Social Work

"Rubin keeps the reader engaged in a topic that otherwise might have been less than exciting. This book is informative to old-timers like me and I would imagine to those new to the research enterprise and evidence-based practice. Allen Rubin has done it again! Another fine contribution to research and the advancement of evidence-based practice."
—Kevin Corcoran, Ph.D., J.D., Portland State University, School of Social Work

"This book has the potential to change practice in the helping professions. Rather than focusing on how to conduct research, the Practitioner's Guide to Using Research for Evidence-Based Practice instead shows readers how to understand the literature.... This is a monumental shift. Evidence-based practice requires the use of evidence, yet students often struggle with interpreting what they find in the literature and will sometimes give up on the entire process. Rubin solves this dilemma by giving us a comprehensive yet readable text for the uninitiated and he does so in a manner that may even engage the uninterested. In particular, his generous use of humor and the inclusion of simple, practice relevant examples make this book a pleasure to read for students at almost any level. Imagine laughing while learning what you need to know about research! I never thought I'd see the day."
—Aron Shlonsky, Ph.D., University of Toronto, Faculty of Social Work

PART I OVERVIEW OF EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE   Chapter 1  INTRODUCTION TO EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE   Chapter 2 STEPS IN THE EBP PROCESS   Chapter 3 RESEARCH HIERARCHIES: WHICH TYPES OF RESEARCH ARE BEST FOR WHICH QUESTIONS?   PART II CRITICALLY APPRAISING STUDIES FOR EBP QUESTIONS ABOUT INTERVENTION EFFECTIVENESS   Chapter 4 CRITERIA FOR INFERRING EFFECTIVENESS: HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT WORKS?   Chapter 5 CRITICALLY APPRAISING EXPERIMENTS   Chapter 6 CRITICALLY APPRAISING QUASI-EXPERIMENTS: NONEQUIVALENT COMPARISON GROUPS DESIGNS   Chapter 7 CRITICALLY APPRAISING QUASI-EXPERIMENTS: TIME-SERIES DESIGNS AND SINGLE-CASE DESIGNS   Chapter 8 CRITICALLY APPRAISING SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS AND META-ANALYSES   PART III CRITICALLY APPRAISING STUDIES FOR ALTERNATIVE EBP QUESTIONS   Chapter 9 CRITICALLY APPRAISING NONEXPERIMENTAL QUANTITATIVE STUDIES   Chapter 10 CRITICALLY APPRAISING QUALITATIVE STUDIES   PART IV ASSESSING CLIENTS AND MONITORING THEIR PROGRESS Chapter 11 CRITICALLY APPRAISING AND SELECTING ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS   Chapter 12 MONITORING CLIENT PROGRESS   APPENDIX A Illustrative Answers to Selected Review Exercises   APPENDIX B What You Do and Don?t Need to Know about Statistics When Critically Appraising Studies   Glossary   References