James P. Byrnes

Temple University | TU · Department of Psychological Studies in Education

The present article presented updated pretenure publishing norms from 300 tenured faculty at top rated departments of psychology

The authors discuss the continued viability of the working memory construct by examining its origin and historical development in the field of psychology and critiquing it on theoretical, philosophical, and methodological grounds. They do so by asking and answering the following questions: (a) When and why did the construct first emerge in psycholo...

All the preceding chapters have built up to this final and perhaps most important chapter. As the title of this chapter suggests, the goal is to present a clear answer to the question, “What does it mean to be a developing Christian in today’s world?” Although there are many pressing problems in today’s world that a developing Christian and allies...

Although studies have demonstrated a relationship between working memory and achievement in math and reading, it is still unclear why working memory might be related to these abilities. In the present article, we examined the viability of several possible theories in 2 separate analyses of math and reading. In each case, we contrasted the predictio...

The Opportunity-Propensity (O-P) model was created to explain individual and group differences in achievement and cognitive development. In this paper, we continued to revise and expand the comprehensiveness and accuracy of the O-P model to better meet this goal. In a secondary analysis of the ECLS-K 2011 dataset (n = 15,595), path analyses showed...

As the U.S. experiences greater income inequality, more and more students experience an early science achievement gap. This study tests several competing theoretical models of early science achievement on a longitudinal sample of 14,624 children, following them from kindergarten entry to end of first grade. In order to understand why and when diffe...

In this chapter, we discussed how the Opportunity-Propensity (O-P) framework could be used to conceptualize and test the effects that children’s (0–8 years) background, mathematics learning opportunities, self-regulation, and prior achievement have on mathematics learning. In prior studies of the O-P framework, we identified and verified the predic...

Over the last 20 years, ethnic/racial identity (ERI) has been regarded as a component central to identity for minority students, and often proposed to be positively associated with academic achievement. However, the findings of individual studies scattered across the literature suggest that the size and direction of the correlation is somewhat inco...

Overview Research has examined a wide range of factors that are associated with adolescent risk-taking, drawn from across academic subdisciplines. These factors and their role in adolescent risk-taking tend to be examined in isolation of other factors, which poses problems for gaining a clear understanding of adolescent risk-taking. The present ess...

Research Findings: The early childhood years are critical in developing early mathematics skills, but the opportunities one has to learn mathematics tend to be limited, preventing the development of significant mathematics learning. By conducting a meta-analysis of 29 experimental and quasi-experimental studies that have been published since 2000,...

In this study, we hope to accomplish three aims as follows: (1) provide greater clarity regarding the nature and scope of the field of educational neuroscience, (2) propose a framework for understanding when and how neuroscientific research could be informative for educational practice, and (3) describe some examples of neuroscientific findings fro...

In this article, we attempt to provide an overview of the features of the abilities, aptitudes, and frames of minds that are attributed to critical thinking and provide the broad outlines of the development of critical-analytic thinking (CAT) abilities. In addition, we evaluate the potential viability of three main hypotheses regarding the reasons...

When teachers provide instruction to students, they provide opportunities for students to learn information. To be maximally effective, these opportunities should present information in ways that are compatible with the way the mind works. Using a US Department of Education Practice Guide as a structure for our review, we review 'second wave' cogni...

Studies examining students’ achievement goals, cognitive engagement strategies and performance have found that achievement goals tend to predict classes of cognitive strategy use which predict performance on measures of learning. These studies have led to deeper theoretical understanding, but their reliance on self-report data limit the conclusions...

Academic achievement is an important developmental outcome because of its association with economic prosperity, physical health, and mental health. Given its importance, policy makers at the international, national, and local levels regularly administer tests of academic achievement to determine whether children are learning what they need to learn...

The term cognitive development refers to age changes in the ability to acquire, manipulate, or reason about information in particular contexts. When the intellectual capacities of at least two age groups are compared and the oldest group has not yet reached middle age, changes in performance are usually for the better, in the sense that they reflec...

Recent research suggests that technologically enhanced learning environments (TELEs) represent an opportunity for students to build their ability to self-regulate, and for some, leverage their ability to apply self-regulated learning (SRL) to acquire knowledge. This chapter reviews 55 empirical studies and interprets their findings to answer the fo...

A secondary analysis of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study – Kindergarten Sample (N = 17,401) was conducted to determine the factors that are most strongly associated with math achievement during kindergarten, first grade, and third grade. Factors from the following three categories were considered: antecedent factors (e.g., family socio-econom...

Developmental research has examined individual differences, cognitive developmental bases, and psychosocial factors of adolescent risk-taking. The current paper presents a general adolescent risk-taking model that adopts aspects of each of these primarily independent areas. This model is based on the premise that adolescents take risks when (a) the...

IntroductionWhat Is Cognition?How Does Cognition Develop during Adolescence?Why Does Cognition Develop during Adolescence?What Factors Moderate the Expression of Cognitive Skills in Adolescents?Implications

This reprinted chapter originally appeared in Minds, brains, and learning: Understanding the psychological and scientific relevance of neuroscientific research, James P. Byrnes, New York: Guildford, 2001. In this chapter, I shall examine several scientific theories regarding the nature of mathematical abilities. In the first section, my focus is on...

In the present study, the authors propose a new framework that integrates literature on achievement, supports the testing of novel hypotheses, and stresses the importance of examining a large number of factors in the same study. This framework assumes that high achievement is a function of three categories of factors: (a) opportunity factors (e.g.,...

This article describes an analysis of the productivity of psychology faculty during their first 7 postdoctoral years. The primary goal was to provide objective data regarding the typical rates of productivity for untenured cognitive, developmental, and social psychologists who hold appointments at highly ranked institutions. Although the median rat...

The present study examined characteristics of students who took advantage of the opportunity to learn Algebra II from a highly skilled teacher. In particular, student information was gathered concerning: (a) the amount of mathematics students knew prior to the class, (b) their motivation for learning mathematics, (c) the number and types of interac...

In this chapter we discuss development during the early and middle adolescent years (approximately ages 10 to 20), updating the chapter on this topic from the first edition of this Handbook. Because this Handbook is for the educational psychology audience, we focus primarily on changes in adolescents' cognition and motivation, and how these changes...

Scientists and nonscientists alike construct theories to explain variations in the environment (Byrnes, 2001a). For example, zoologists devise theories to explain observable differences in the physical appearance of species, and developmental scientists create theories to explain changes in performance that occur between early childhood and adultho...

In this study, a secondary analysis of the National Assessment of Educational Progress was conducted to provide insight into ethnic differences in 12th-grade math achievement. Using the 3 conditions model (3C model) of achievement as a guide, regression analyses showed ethnicity accounted for less than 5% of the variance in math performance once in...

In this chapter, we focus on two major aspects of adolescent development: cognitive development and achievement/achievement motivation. First, we discuss cognitive development, pointing out the relevance of recent work for both learning and decision making. Most of the chapter focuses on achievement and achievement motivation. We summarize current...

Two studies were conducted to determine the extent to which feedback could improve the decision-making of adolescents and adults. In Experiment 1, 96 eighth graders and adults engaged in a task that required a choice between easy and hard questions. Two types of feedback (i.e., verbal and outcome) were used to help participants identify the type of...

To describe what is currently known and not known about the development of decision-making skills during adolescence. The author provides a definition of competent decision-making, gives a brief overview of the literature on the development of this competence, and describes the kinds of studies that should be conducted in the near future. Although...

In 2 studies, the authors investigated the utility of the self-regulation model of decision making for explaining and predicting adolescents' academic decision making. Participants were mostly 9th and 11th graders. The 1st study consisted of all boys, and a 2nd similar study consisted of boys and girls. Measures included a newly developed assessmen...

The primary goal of the present article was to describe a comprehensive and data-based analysis of North American doctoral programs in the developmental sciences (e.g., developmental psychology and human development). Ninety-seven doctoral programs were evaluated with respect to four indices of quality: (a) the productivity of their faculty, (b) gr...

In the present paper, the authors describe the rationale for, and contents of, the current special issue of the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology (2001, volume 22, number 3) on the Development of Decision making. In addition, they provide a primer of what is currently known about age changes in this ability, discuss some of the issues tha...

Two studies investigated the utility of the Self-Regulation Model of Decision Making (SRMDM) for explaining and predicting adolescents' decision making in social situations. Participants were mostly ninth and eleventh graders, with a first study consisting of all boys and a second similar study composed of boys and girls. Measures included a new as...

We focus on four issues in commenting on Royer et al.'s work testing their hypothesis that sex differences in test performance can be explained by differences in math-fact retrieval latency. The first issue is whether the studies conducted by Royer et al. directly test their hypothesis; we argue that they do not. The second issue involves questions...

The authors conducted a meta-analysis of 150 studies in which the risk-taking tendencies of male and female participants were compared. Studies were coded with respect to type of task (e.g., self-reported behaviors vs. observed behaviors), task content (e.g., smoking vs. sex), and 5 age levels. Results showed that the average effects for 14 out of...

The authors conducted a meta-analysis of 150 studies in which the risk-taking tendencies of male and female participants were compared. Studies were coded with respect to type of task (e.g., self-reported behaviors vs. observed behaviors), task content (e.g., smoking vs. sex), and 5 age levels. Results showed that the average effects for 14 out of...

The present authors wrote a paper on cognitive neuroscience (i.e., Byrnes and Fox, 1998) that spawned a number of commentaries. In the present paper, they respond to these commentaries. Using a theme-based approach, they reveal an emerging consensus regarding the educational relevance of neuroscientific research.

The benefits of incorporating findings from cognitive neuroscience into the field of educational psychology are considered. The first section begins with arguments against the idea that one can ignore the brain when positing a model of student learning or motivation. The second section describes limitations in the methods used to reveal brain-cogni...

In the present article, we conducted an exploratory study of student persistence and performance in a key course in the engineering sequence (i.e., Statics). At issue was whether certain characteristics of students (i.e., their gender, SAT-math scores, GPA) and institutions (i.e., class size, percentage of female enrollment, gender of instructor) w...

The primary aims of the present studies were to (a) add to the sparse developmental database on risk taking and (b) conduct initial tests of a self-regulation model (SRM) of risk taking. According to the SRM, inappropriate risk taking is associated with overconfidence, falling prey to dysregulating influences (e.g., impulsivity, peer presence, etc....

Cross-cultural studies can shed new light on theories of gender differences in cognition. In the present study, Chinese students were given items from the math subtest of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) that have been found to produce the largest gender differences in American students. The authors describe how four different explanations of gen...

The primary aims of the present studies were to (a) add to the sparse developmental database on risk taking and (b) conduct initial tests of a self-regulation model (SRM) of risk taking. According to the SRM, inappropriate risk taking is associated with overconfidence, falling prey to dysregulating influences (e.g., impulsivity, peer presence, etc....

In this article, the citation counts of 490 senior developmental psychologists were analyzed. Results showed that the 3-year citations totals from 1992 to 1994 ranged between 0 and 2248. Whereas the work of half of the sample was cited in 15 or fewer articles per year, the top 10% were cited in 210–2248 articles over three years. Comparisons betwee...

Attempted to show how naive theories, age, and education relate to higher order thinking in adolescents and adults. In a structured interview, 54 adolescents and adults were asked to make decisions about 2 political issues: global warming and homelessness. Half of the adolescents had attended an intensive workshop on multiple issues including globa...

In two experiments, 13-year-olds and college students were asked to make "risky" decisions in a game format. Analyses focused on whether adolescents and adults (a) used similar strategies for evaluating their options, (b) were equally optimistic, (c) held similar beliefs about their ability to produce outcomes, (d) were equally likely to choose the...

The practice of using general abilities as independent variables or covariates is reexamined in light of contemporary views of cognition. Byrnes first delineates the current consensus regarding the nature and development of intellectual ability, a view in which domain-specificity and expertise is the main emphasis. Then, the most widely accepted vi...

The primary purpose of the present study was to see whether a cognitive process model of SAT performance could be used to differentiate between successful and less successful students. This model specifies that a student will do well on an SAT math item if he or she correctly defines the problem, accesses prior knowledge, assembles an effective str...

Used a cognitive process approach to explain gender differences on the math subtest of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). This approach specifies that gender differences exist because male students may carry out certain cognitive operations (e.g., knowledge access, strategy assembly) more effectively than female students. High school students were...

In the present article, two studies explored the proposal that conceptual knowledge facilitates the acquisition of procedures. The first study examined children's learning of integer computations. Seventh graders' conceptual knowledge of integers was assessed prior to computational instruction, and their procedural knowledge (i.e., computational sk...

In the present paper, the conceptual and procedural knowledge related to textbook search was examined. It was assumed that certain aspects of conceptual knowledge would help students search texts more quickly and efficiently. Two experiments were conducted to explore this proposal. In Experiment 1, college students were interviewed to determine the...

The present paper considers the centrality of meta-theoretical belief systems (MTBSs) for theories of cognitive development and learning. It is argued that MTBSs guide and constrain the construction of theoretical models and developmental mechanisms. Moreover, it is shown how MTBSs can be effectively used to categorize theories and to address the i...

From the time of birth through the early school years, young children rapidly acquire two complex cognitive systems: They organize their experiences into concepts and categories, and they acquire their first language. How do children accomplish these critical tasks? How do conceptual systems influence the structure of the language we speak? How do...

Conducted 2 experiments to explore the relation between conceptual and procedural knowledge in the domain of mathematics. The simultaneous activation view, which argues that computational errors arise from impoverished concepts and that errors can be eliminated by giving concrete referents to symbols, was compared with the dynamic interaction view,...

The present paper offers a review and analysis of studies of children’s understanding of certainty and uncertainty. It proceeds first by proposing requisite skills needed for insight into uncertainty. Additional skills needed for specific inferences are then considered. It is argued that discrepancies in the literature regarding the apparent age of...

The authors considered how the way in which knowledge is organized influences scientific reasoning. They adopted a constructivist approach to reasoning in which many-to-one schemata, linguistic mapping, and meaningful relations are assumed to be important components of hypothesis-testing skill. College students received a variant of P. C. Wason's s...

The present study examined children's memory for causal expressions as a measure of their implicit knowledge. In experiment I, first-, third-, and fifth-graders were asked to recall descriptions of causal sequences including "if" and "because" statements. Protocols were scored for recall of causal ideas and use of the terms "if" and "because." Resu...

The present study assessed children's knowledge of how speakers use modal auxiliaries such as might and have to to indicate their degree of belief in the truth of their statements (epistemic modality), and to socially regulate behavior (deontic modality). We also considered whether modals comprise a semantic system that is progressively attained in...

Some students thirst for learning. They seek challenges and overcome obstacles sometimes with persistence and sometimes with inventive problem solving. They set realistic goals and utilize a battery of resources. They approach academic tasks with confidence and purpose. This combination of positive expectations, motivation, and diverse strategies f...

The present paper attempts to respond to criticisms made by Keating (1988, Developmental Review, 8, 376-384) regarding the present author's earlier paper which described a recasted model of formal operations ( Byrnes, 1988, Developmental Review, 8, 66-87). This earlier paper made a distinction between conceptual and procedural knowledge at the leve...

The present study focused on the developmental acquisition of the conditional implication interpretation of “if-then”. Three tasks, given to adults and third-, fifth-, and eighth-graders, assessed knowledge of three aspects of this interpretation: (a) the reference relation between “if-then” and an conditional state of affairs; (b) the truth condit...

In the present paper it is argued that the original model of formal operations failed to make a clear distinction between the organization of knowledge and the ability to solve tasks. Additionally, too much emphasis was placed on the scientific reasoning aspect of formal operations in previous accounts. The present paper proceeds by first describin...

Used a combination of observational and experimental methods to assess young children's (aged 2 years, 11 months to 4 years, 9 months) comprehension of "if" and "because" expressions. Found significant increases in spontaneous "if" and "because" expressions between 3 and 4 years, and improvement on "if" questions in a story task. (SKC)

Examined children's comprehension of certainty and uncertainty within the context of concrete and propositional reasoning tasks. 69 1st, 3rd, and 5th graders were given G. Pieraut-LeBonniec's (1980) box task and a multisufficient causality task to assess reasoning about certainty and uncertainty in concrete contexts. Ss were also given conditional...

Examined the development of conditional reasoning from the perspective of the competence-moderator-performance approach discussed by W. F. Overton (1985) and Overton and J. L. Newman (1982). The effects of task interpretation and cognitive style as moderator variables for conditional reasoning were examined, using 36 8th-, 36 10th-, and 36 12th-gra...