Social research plays a crucial role in the development process as it provides the tools to bring about social change. This book presents an in-depth look at social research - its fundamental postulates, tools and techniques of analysis - and assesses its relevance for the development and social sectors in India. The author explores how development changes take place and their impact on rural life, especially on the underprivileged and marginalised sections of society. Divided into two sections, the book first discusses all aspects of social research - its various methods, scope, sampling methodology and significance, and presents quantitative, univariate, bivariate and multivariate data analysis with the help of software packages such as SPSS and STATA. In the second section, the author examines the impact of social research on health and nutrition, poverty and rural development, education, water and sanitation, environment and natural resource management.