Most of Dr. Knafl's research involves the design of mixed methods, and she has contributed to the development of analysis strategies aimed at treating family/binary as an analysis unit. In addition to leading the NIH-funded research on family management of children's chronic diseases, Dr. Knafl is also the chief researcher of the comprehensive research on cross-research between family life and children's chronic diseases. Dr. Knafl has served as a joint researcher and consultant of several NIH and privately funded grants, and often provides guidance for data collection and analysis in family research. She is a founding member of the International Family Care Association, and has served as the finance of the association for six years.