Rehabilitation research methods for schizophrenia.

Given the ever increasing complexity of rehabilitative models of schizophrenia, research methods testing these models must be rigorous and include a wide range of investigative strategies. This paper reviews four elements of rehabilitation research: definition of independent variables, selection of dependent variables, setting up the research design, and the development of conservative inferences from the data analysis. Methodological decisions must be made carefully prior to implementing a research protocol to assure the most valid conclusions when the study is complete.