Overview

Experimental research is of great value to social work. Well-designed studies help social workers understand which approaches are most effective, with implications for both practice with individual clients and social policy more broadly. Many social work practitioners conduct studies that randomly assign clients to specific interventions and various control groups in order to assess policy outcomes. However, social work programs often do not teach experimental methods. Critics continue to assert that true experiments are impractical, unethical, or simply too blunt a tool to evaluate the effects of social work practices and policies. This book presents a comprehensive overview of the theory and practice of experimental research in the field of social work. Bruce A. Thyer describes the logic and design of experimental methods, helping readers understand the basics and then exploring increasingly complex and sophisticated research. He illustrates key principles through examples of how social workers have evaluated real-world practice approaches. The book considers recruitment and representation of marginalized groups, the ethical issues involved in the design and conduct of experiments, and how social work researchers can ensure that all participants in an experimental study benefit from effective care. An appendix contains a chronological listing of published studies authored by social workers who conducted experimental research. Accessible to social work undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students alike and valuable for professionals from clinical workers to policy analysts, this book demonstrates the utility of experimental research across the entire spectrum of social work practice.

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Reviews

Thyer skillfully engages the reader in comprehending the key reasons and importance of experimental designs to social work. Every word and sentence used by Thyer is essential. Easy to follow yet intellectually invigorating, it seamlessly integrates theory, practice and research methods for consumption and skill. -- Harold Briggs, University of Georgia

Thyer skillfully engages the reader in comprehending the key reasons and importance of experimental designs to social work. Every word and sentence used by Thyer is essential. Easy to follow yet intellectually invigorating, it seamlessly integrates theory, practice and research methods for consumption and skill. -- Harold Briggs, University of Georgia Outcome studies are essential to know whether or not an intervention is effective. This text—written by one of the foremost experts in experimental research—is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in designing, conducting, or evaluating intervention research. -- David R. Hodge, Arizona State University Bruce Thyer has been a long-term advocate for clients receiving careful appraisals of potential service outcomes. Experimental Research Designs in Social Work is an important contribution for its extensive account of social work experiments and an up-to-date description of how to discover opportunities to evaluate practices and policies, adding to our knowledge about outcomes. -- Eileen Gambrill, University of California Berkeley Dr. Thyer has helped to take the “experimenting” out of teaching experimental research design. This text provides a clear blueprint for teaching and learning about experimental research design. I trust that this book will be an invaluable resource for social work scholars for many years to come. -- Javonda Williams, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Author Information

Bruce A. Thyer is a distinguished research professor and former dean at the College of Social Work at Florida State University as well as an extraordinary professor with the Optentia Research Unit, North-West University, South Africa. He is the editor of the journal Research on Social Work Practice and coeditor of the Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal.

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