The goal of this second edition is to provide a comprehensive overview of the philosophical, ethical, methodological, and analytical fundamentals of social science and educational research, as well as specify aspects of special education research that distinguish it from scientific inquiry in other fields of education and human services. Foremost among these distinctions are the research beneficiaries: children with disabilities, their parents, and special educators; the availability of federal funds for research and demonstration projects that seek to improve educational outcomes for children with disabilities; and the historical, philosophical, and legislative bases for the profession of special education. This new edition represents a revision of over 40 percent of the text, with all chapters thoroughly updated with new developments in research topics, designs, and methods that have emerged over the past decade in the field of special education. Also presented is considerable text related to evidence-based practice and quality indicators for special education research in a design-specific context. In offering a broad-based examination of the role of scientific inquiry in contemporary special education, this new edition serves as a text and resource guide for graduate-level students, practitioners, and teachers in the fields of special education, disability studies, early intervention, school psychology, and child and family services. Further, the book aims to not only orient the student or practitioner to the fundamentals of research design, but also introduce him or her to the professional literature in this dynamic field. This book contains the following chapters: (1) Introduction to Research in Special Education; (2) Getting Started in Special Education Research--Variables, Research Questions, and Hypotheses; (3) Measurement and Statistics in Special Education Research (Shawn Fitzgerald, Phillip D. Rumrill, Jr. and Andrew L. Wiley); (4) Ethical Issues and Guidelines for Special Education Research; (5) Research Validity; (6) Quantitative Research Designs; (7) Qualitative Research Designs (Lynn C. Koch and Dent Gitchel); (8) Synthetic Literature Reviews; (9) Guidelines for Composing and Evaluating Research Articles; and (10) The Future of Special Education Research (Bryan G. Cook, Jenny C. Wells, Lysandra Cook and Scott L. Thomas). A bibliography and an index are included.