Fully updated in this second edition, this book introduces students to basic principles in social research. Taking a public health approach the book covers areas such as health promotion, public health and health services management and is aimed at helping a variety of health professionals. The book uses examples from a range of settings to illustrate how qualitative and quantitative methods from the disciplines of sociology, psychology, history and anthropology have been used to understand health related behaviour.Praised for its clarity and breadth, this popular book has been thoroughly updated and now includes: Extended further readingMore indepth chapters reflecting the most current topics in the field of social researchExpanded material on the use of secondary sources More coverage on the usage of studies within larger public health programmes, including mixed methods and integration of dataIncreased number of international examples and updated case studiesAll chapters have extensive pedagogy to engage readers and bring the theory to life, and is ideal for students taking a real variety of social research modules as part of a health program. It is particularly valuable for public health students.Understanding Public Health is an innovative series published by Open University Press in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.Series Editors: Rosalind Plowman and Nicki Thorogood.Contributors: Sarah Bernays, John Browne, Tracey Chantler, Mary Alison Durand, Martin Gorsky, Andy Guise, Judith Green, Tim Rhodes and Sarah Smith. "Public health is basically shaped and determined by human actions. The editors and contributors to this book provide clear, authoritative guidance to those who will use social research to understand human actions and promote public health. The book is very evidently grounded in the expertise of authors both as teachers as well as researchers."
Ray Fitzpatrick, Professor of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Oxford, UK

Mary Alison Durand is a lecturer, based in the Department of Health Services Research and Policy at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), UK. She is an experienced health services researcher and is a previous organiser of the in-house Principles of Social Research module at LSHTM.Tracey Chantler is a Health Services and Systems Research Fellow at the George Institute for Global Health based in the Nuffield Department of Population Health at the University of Oxford, UK. She is also a distance learning tutor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and was the module organiser and deputy module organiser of the distance learning Principles of Social Research module from 2007-2012.