Robert L. Williams’s research while affiliated with The University of Tennessee Medical Center at Knoxville and other places

The educational psychology literature is replete with references to higher-order cognitive constructs, such as critical thinking and creativity. Presumably, these constructs represent the primary processes and outcomes that educators should promote in students. For these constructs to be maximally useful, they must be transformed into specific operational definitions that lead to reliable and valid assessment strategies. Minimizing overlap in the definitions and assessment of different concepts would contribute to an orderly accumulation of knowledge about the constructs in question. The ideal would be for each construct to have a definition that is distinct from the definitions of other cognitive constructs. Although higher-order cognitive constructs have much surface appeal, their utility is tied to the clarity and fidelity of their definitions and assessment procedures.

This article first contrasts the philosophical premises of behaviorism with those of humanism and cognitivism. Behavioral contributions are then examined in three areas of practical importance to educators: description of student performance, explanation of student performance, and evaluation of educational interventions. Student behavior is presumed to be the only dimension that teachers can use as evidence of learning. Alteration of environmental events in the classroom is represented as the principal strategy for promoting student learning. The article asserts that learning research must involve reliable assessment, replicable interventions, and generalizable results. The author concludes that (a) all models make use of behavior in assessing student performance and (b) intervening cognitive and affective constructs contribute little to the explanation and promotion of student performance.