Research of the Instructional Design and Management Lab

The research interests of the lab often varies as the membership of the lab changes, but in general we investigate behavior-based approaches to improving performance of employees through the use of field and laboratory research. We also investigate the empirically-supported techniques for improving instruction.

Past, current, and future research projects include:

• Operant approaches to complex behaviors such as creativity, problem-solving, novelty, discovery learning, and generative instruction
• Behavior-based coaching to improve the performance of salespeople
• Application of behavioral techniques to the enhancement of coaching and athletic performance
• Strategies to extend the endurance of performance change over time
• Looking at different approaches for delivering feedback and how this influences performance
• Improving safety behaviors of traditionally underserved workers
• Collecting data on the effectiveness of various implementations of employee-of-the-month
• Integrating the findings from applied social psychology and organizational behavior management
• Using proven educational psychology strategies to improve the development of employee training
• Promoting more effective methods for implementing computer-based instruction
• Examining the empirical basis of behavioral systems analysis
• Investigating how various presentation approaches influence learner satisfaction and retention of material
• and more...