Creswell, John. Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative and Mixed Methods Approaches. Los Angeles: SAGE Publications, Ltd., 2009.
Research Design as an introduction to dissertation planning is a rather technical read. In that way, it is probably quite appropriate, since a dissertation is a massive undertaking and deserves to be introduced in all its complexity. The introduction of the philosophies behind the different methods is a little like jumping into the deep end of the pool. Fortunately the explanations in the book tend to enhance the reader's understanding of these philosophical bases for research. In that way, one gathers that there is no one way to study for a particular philosophical leaning. Instead, the approach is guided by the question being answered, by the purpose stated.
The primary value of Research Design is as a reference tool. Like many such tools, it is only useful once a familiarity with it has been established. So, though reading Research Designwas tedious and fraught with much the average researcher will never use, in order to discover what is useful, the survey is necessary. I am hoping that as I research for my dissertation, I will find returning to it to be a helpful practice. I suspect, however, that its usefulness may be in merely introducing an idea and then guiding me to further resources to understand that idea better. Review by Timothy Darling

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