Continuum Companion to Research Methods in Applied Linguistics

It says something about the strength and maturity of the field of Applied Linguistics that it can sustain a number of high-quality books on research methods, of which this interesting and useful edited volume is one. Although this work leans heavily towards research methods in language teaching and learning, rather than in Applied Linguistics in its broader sense, this is hardly a criticism, given that its core readership will almost certainly comprise students on MA TESOL-type programmes who are novice researchers. And though this is not the only book they will need, they will be well served by what is here. Not an encyclopaedic handbook of research in language teaching and learning, nor yet exactly a practical guide (though it has elements of that genre), this is—as the series title indicates—a companion: a friendly and reliable ‘how you might’ book to accompany the reader into the research process. With 9 chapters on Research Methods and Approaches (Part 1), and 13 on Areas of Research (Part 2), coverage is broad but by no means exhaustive. Part 1 begins with three chapters on quantitative approaches and methods: ‘Experimental research’, ‘Survey research’, and ‘Analysing quantitative data’, followed by four on (chiefly) qualitative ones: ‘Ethnographies’, ‘Case studies’, ‘Action research’, and ‘Analysing qualitative data’. Two chapters conclude Part 1: welcome and well-written chapters first on ‘Research syntheses’ and finally on ‘Critical research in applied linguistics’.