Introducing the basic principles of research theory and practice, this book is the ideal starter text for any counselling trainee or practitioner learning about the research process for the first time. Structured around common training topics, the book: - Explains why you need to do research at all: what it is, why it's important and its historical and philosophical context - Guides you through the confusing mass of research literature - Covers the ins and outs of actually doing research: practical and ethical issues - Helps you get the most out of research - how to evaluate the outcomes and use research to investigate the process of therapy. Written in a language familiar to first-year trainees and using a range of features to enhance learning, this accessible introduction will equip both trainees and qualified therapists with the essential nuts and bolts to understand research. John McLeod is Emeritus Professor of Counselling at the University of Abertay Dundee and adjunct Professor at the University of Oslo, Norway.
John McLeod has held appointments in universities in the UK, New Zealand and Italy, and is currently Professor of Counselling at the Institute for Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy, Dublin, and Professor of Psychology, University of Oslo. He is committed to promoting the relevance of research as a means of informing therapy practice and improving the quality of services that are available to clients, and has received an award from the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy for his exceptional contribution to research. His writing has influenced a generation of trainees in the field of counselling, counselling psychology and psychotherapy, and his books are widely adopted on training programmes across the world.
About the author Preface Acknowledgements Why Research Is Important Research in Counselling and Psychotherapy: A Historical Overview How Do We Know What We Know? The Philosophical Context of Research Entering the World of Therapy Research: Finding Your Way Around the Research Literature Doing Research: Practical and Ethical Issues Understanding Quantitative Methods Understanding Qualitative Methods Evaluating the Outcomes of Counselling and Psychotherapy Investigating the Process of Therapy Critical Issues in Research on Counselling and Psychotherapy: Continuing the Conversation References Index
'This book provides an excellent access route into counselling and psychotherapy research for trainees and practitioners alike. It does a great job in de-mystifying research and conveying the sense that research is something really everyone can understand and do.' Dr Andreas Vossler, Director of the Foundation Degree in Counselling at The Open University McLeod has a capacity to take the most complex (and sometimes potentially boring) subject and bring it to life in writing that is clear, accessible and just simply very readable...Having read this book from beginning to end, there is simply nothing bad I want to say about it. I would unquestioningly and without hesitation recommend it to any new or, indeed, experienced counselling and psychotherapy researcher and it will become, I have no doubt, a key text. -- Andrew Reeves * Therapy Today *
