EXPERTS PROVIDE INTRODUCTIONS TO TECHNIQUES CONTAINING DRUG-SPECIFIC EXAMPLES SO THAT RESEARCHERS CAN DEVELOP A CONCRETE PICTURE OF THE APPLICATION OF THESE TECHNIQUES IN THEIR RESEARCH. THE METHODOLOGIES WERE SELECTED ON THE BASIS OF RELEVANCE TO SUBSTANCE ABUSE RESEARCH AND BY APPLYING A THEORY OF DATA WHICH EMPHASIZES EXPLORATION, CONFIRMATION, AND CLASSIFICATION AS THE THREE MAIN PURPOSES OF DATA MANIPULATION. A DISCUSSION IS INCLUDED ON SINGLE ORGANISM DESIGN, SINCE RESEARCH AT THIS LEVEL IS USUALLY OF HIGH QUALITY AND YIELDS INSIGHTS AND EVALUATIONS OF PROCESSES AT WORK IN SPECIFIC CASES. THE DISCUSSION ON LONGITUDINAL DESIGNS ANSWERS THE NEED FOR AN OVERVIEW OF METHODOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN RESEARCH ASSOCIATED WITH CHANGES ACROSS TIME IN A GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS. DISCUSSIONS ARE INCLUDED ON THE FOLLOWING EIGHT DATA ANALYTIC METHODOLOGIES: AUTOMATIC INTERACTION DETECTION, ACTUARIAL PREDICTION, CLUSTER AND TYPOLOGICAL ANALYSIS, PATH ANALYSIS, FACTOR ANALYSIS, GENERAL MULTIPLE REGRESSION AND CORRELATION ANALYSIS, MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE, AND DISCRIMINATE ANALYSIS. SPECIFIC ASSUMPTIONS REQUIRED BY GIVEN METHODS ARE DISCUSSED WITHIN THE INDIVIDUAL ARTICLES AND IN A SPECIAL SUMMARIES CHAPTER. WHEREVER RELEVANT, THE ARTICLES LIST THE STANDARDLY AVAILABLE COMPUTER PROGRAMS NECESSARY FOR PERFORMING THE VARIOUS ANALYSES AND METHODOLOGIES. A SPECIAL SUMMARIES CHAPTER IS INCLUDED TO ENABLE RESEARCHERS TO DETERMINE QUICKLY WHETHER A GIVEN TECHNIQUE PERTAINS TO THEIR PROBLEMS. THERE ARE TECHNICAL QUESTIONS WHICH ARE NOT ADDRESSED IN THESE MATERIALS, AND THE RESEARCHER IS ADVISED TO CONSULT A SPECIALIST WHEN SUCH QUESTIONS ARISE. BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED AT THE END OF EACH ENTRY. (KJM)