Research activities and perspectives of research members of the American Dietetic Association

The American Dietetic Association (ADA) has always supported research as the foundation of dietetics practice (see sidebar "History of ADA Research"). Research is incorporated into many Association documents (see sidebar "Current ADA, Commission on Accreditation of Dietetic Education [CADE] and Commission on Dietetic Registration [CDR] Initiatives and Documents Related to Research"). During Fall 2001 and early 2002, the ADA Research Committee developed and began implementing its plan of work. The committee (a) explored the philosophy and roles of the Association and its members related to research; (b) initiated a process to develop a research agenda for the Association (1); (c) carried out several research-related initiatives of the House of Delegates (HOD), the Board of Directors (BOD), and other units of the Association; and (d) prepared a report to the HOD. The committee realized they had limited knowledge of the current activities of dietetics professionals involved in research and needed their comments regarding the ADA's research priorities. Therefore, the committee identified the need to survey members of the Association regarding research activities, interests, and perspectives.