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How to Assess Whether an Instructional Intervention Has an Effect on Learning

Educational Psychology Review volume 35, Article number: 64 (2023) Cite this article

Abstract

This commentary critiques Brady et al.’s (2023) paper, “How scientific is educational psychology research? The increasing trend of squeezing causality and recommendations from non-intervention studies” and analyzes six research methods for assessing whether an instructional intervention affects learning outcomes.

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References

  • Brady, A. C., Griffin, M. M., Lewis, A. R., Fong, C. J., & Robinson, D. H. (2023). How scientific is educational psychology research? The increasing trend of squeezing causality and recommendations from non-intervention studies. Educational Psychology Review, 35, 37.

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  • Grosz, M. (2023). Should researchers make causal inferences and recommendations for practice on the basis of non-experimental studies? Educational Psychology Review, 35, 37.

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  • Shavelson, R. J., & Towne, L. (2002). Scientific research in education. National Academies Press.

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  • Zitzmann, S., Machts, N., Hubner, N., Schauber, S., Moller, J., & Lindner, C. (2023). The yet underestimated importance of communicating findings from educational trials to teachers, schools, school authorities, or policy makers. Educational Psychology Review. (in press)

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Funding

Preparation of this paper was supported by grant N00014-21–1-2047 from the Office of Naval Research.

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  1. University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA

    Richard E. Mayer

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  1. Richard E. Mayer
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Correspondence to Richard E. Mayer.

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Cite this article

Mayer, R.E. How to Assess Whether an Instructional Intervention Has an Effect on Learning. Educ Psychol Rev 35, 64 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-023-09783-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-023-09783-9

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