A Practical Guide to Behavioral Research: Tools and Techniques
Robert SommerSommer and Sommer's central argument is that behavioral research methods are best taught as a multimethod toolkit rather than as separate, specialized techniques. The book presents experimentation, observation, questionnaire, and interview approaches as complementary tools that students should learn to combine and apply across settings—psychology, sociology, anthropology, education, design, and business. Its defining pedagogical claim is that students learn research by doing it, not by memorizing vocabulary. The guide covers observational approaches, behavioral and cognitive mapping, content analysis, case studies, action research, and the 'Big Fuzzies'—difficult-to-define concepts that resist measurement.
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What is the central pedagogical claim of A Practical Guide to Behavioral Research?
The book argues that students learn research methods by doing research, not by memorizing terminology. Oxford University Press describes it as written in an accessible, colloquial style that encourages students to actually do research instead of just learning the concepts and language . The multimethod framework is the vehicle for this pedagogy: rather than presenting experimentation, observation, questionnaires, and interviews as separate specialties, the book treats them as complementary tools any researcher should be able to deploy. Concrete examples of abstract concepts demystify procedures and help students think about research in a variety of settings, not just the laboratory .
What is the 'multimethod approach,' and why does it structure the entire book?
The multimethod approach treats behavioral research as requiring the combination of multiple techniques rather than allegiance to a single method. Chapter 1, 'Multimethod Approach,' establishes this framework before the book examines specific tools . Douglas Candland's 1981 review in Contemporary Psychology organized the book into four areas: asking meaningful questions and ethics, techniques of observation and experimentation, procedures like content analysis and behavioral mapping, and sampling and statistics . The structure enacts the argument: no single method suffices for studying behavior, and students should learn to select and combine approaches appropriate to their research problems.
What are 'The Big Fuzzies,' and why did the authors add this chapter?
Chapter 15, 'The Big Fuzzies: Research on Difficult-to-Define Concepts,' addresses techniques for studying important concepts that resist easy operationalization . The chapter was one of two new additions in the fifth edition stimulated by student interest, alongside Chapter 14 on action research . The 'Big Fuzzies' chapter responds to a genuine gap in research methods textbooks: concepts like love, power, alienation, and well-being are central to behavioral science but cannot be measured with the clean operational definitions used for reaction time or frequency counts. The chapter provides techniques for approaching these concepts systematically without pretending they are simple variables.
How does the fifth edition differ from earlier editions, and what does this reveal about the book's evolution?
The fifth edition (2001) expands coverage of computer-related research methods and adopts an international perspective . It adds two new chapters: Chapter 14 on action research and Chapter 15 on difficult-to-define concepts, both prompted by student interest . Earlier editions had different chapter structures reflecting the state of research methods at the time—the fourth edition (1997) included separate chapters on 'Using the Internet' and 'Equipment' . The evolution from 1980 through 2001 tracks the incorporation of new technologies (internet research, computer analysis) and emerging methodological concerns (action research, qualitative approaches) into the behavioral research toolkit.
What did reviewers identify as the book's most distinctive feature?
Douglas Candland's 1981 review praised the book as 'a well-marked footpath' for students beginning their journey into behavioral research . The review highlighted the book's treatment of statistics as a 'cookbook approach' designed to help students interpret data rather than derive formulas. The PsycCRITIQUES review of the second edition (1987) noted the book's 'hands-on, multimethod, and interdisciplinary approach,' with chapters covering observational methods, experimental design, survey design, materials and procedures, and statistics . The consistent theme across reviews is accessibility and practicality: the book prioritizes helping students actually conduct research over theoretical exposition.
How has the book been used in teaching, and for which disciplines is it intended?
The book is ideal for undergraduates in research methods classes and serves as a reference for students in communications, education, nursing, design, and business, according to Oxford University Press . A ThriftBooks customer review noted using various editions in classes for many years, finding it provides an excellent overview of basic research methodologies that is clear and understandable for individuals with no research background . The interdisciplinary scope reflects the Sommer framework: behavioral research methods are not the property of psychology alone but apply wherever human behavior is studied systematically.
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Who was Barbara Sommer, and how did the collaboration shape the book?
Barbara Baker Sommer (1938–) co-authored the book with Robert Sommer from at least the second edition (1986) onward . Her background in psychology and education informed the pedagogical orientation and the book's accessibility. The collaborative authorship is significant for understanding the book's voice: it is not a research monograph but a teaching text, and the Sommers brought complementary experience in research practice and undergraduate instruction. Some catalog records list Barbara Sommer as first author on certain editions, reflecting her substantive role in the project . The companion website maintained by the authors (psychology.ucdavis.edu/Sommerr/pg5/) further indicates their active involvement in supporting the book's use in classrooms .
How does this book relate to Robert Sommer's earlier work in environmental psychology?
A Practical Guide to Behavioral Research formalizes the methodological commitments that underlie Sommer's environmental psychology research. Personal Space (1969) and Design Awareness (1972) depended on observational methods, behavioral mapping, and user-centered evaluation—techniques that the Practical Guide teaches systematically. The book's strong treatment of observational approaches, behavior and cognitive mapping, and action research reflects Sommer's conviction that studying behavior in real settings requires methods beyond laboratory experimentation. In effect, the Practical Guide is the methodological manual for the kind of research Sommer conducted throughout his career: empirical, setting-based, and oriented toward practical application.
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