Good research comes from a thorough and creative thought process and is not restricted to any one particular occupation. The academic world certainly offers a suitable research environment but the clinic has a wealth of untapped data and potential for many areas of study. Basic and applied research represent two major categories of research. In basic research the investigator seeks an understanding of some natural processes regardless of its immediate application. Applied research, is conducted to discover knowledge which can be implemented directly into practice.
Clinical research is considered applied research.
In physical therapy both basic and applied research serve a vital purpose. Often, applied or clinical research is mentioned as a less significant class of research behind basic research. This is not necessarily true. Clinical research offers an advantage of being immediate and direct. With health care reform on the horizon, clinical research needs to done and can assist in achieving immediate accountability by justifying measurement, and assessing the effects of various types of treatment.