This article was downloaded by: [University of Auckland Library]On: 09 October 2014, At: 03:19Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House,37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK

Educational PsychologistPublication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/hedp20

What Do Educational Psychologists Do? An InstitutionalCase StudySamuel S. Wineburg & Louette L. McGrawPublished online: 08 Jun 2010.

To cite this article: Samuel S. Wineburg & Louette L. McGraw (1987) What Do Educational Psychologists Do? An InstitutionalCase Study, Educational Psychologist, 22:1, 45-53, DOI: 10.1207/s15326985ep2201_3

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep2201_3

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE

Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) containedin the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make norepresentations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of theContent. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, andare not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon andshould be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable forany losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoeveror howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use ofthe Content.

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematicreproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in anyform to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGIST, 22(1), 45-53 Copyright o 1987, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

What Do Educational Psychologists Do? An Institutional Case Study

Samuel S. Wineburg and Louette L. McGraw Stan ford University

Between 1974 and 1984, Stanford University's doctoral program in educational psychology awarded 54 PhDs. Fifty-one holders of these doctorates were sur- veyed by telephone. Results showed that nearly half of the alumni work in uni- versities, while others work in independent research and testing agencies, pri- vate corporations, and regional laboratories. Fourteen percent of the alumni no longer work in the field of educational psychology. The study examined re- spondents' views on the vitality of educational psychology, current job pros- pects in the field, skills and knowledge they use as professional educational psy- chologists, and the research areas that occupy their interest. Respondents advised current graduate students to take courses in research methodology and statistics, to get as much research experience as possible, to finish their pro- grams quickly, to undertake independent research projects of their own, and to form close working relationships with faculty.

Although educational psychology has been characterized as everything from a "border province" (Shulman, 1982) to a "leftover" (Grinder, 1967), there are few studies of what educational psychologists do, the settings in which they are found, and the diverse skills they use in their work. Generally, the published studies that touch on such questions focus exclusively on academic settings (e.g., Rand & Ellsworth, 1979), suffer from low response rates (Scandura et al., 1981), or rely chiefly on anecdote and personal impression (Jones, 1985).

This study set out to examine systematically what happens to graduates of one doctoral program in educational psychology once they finish their stud- ies and begin their professional careers. Topics of interest included: (a) the types of jobs graduates hold and the locations of these jobs; (b) the skills and knowledge used most by graduates in their work as educational psycholo-

Requests for reprints should be sent to Samuel S. Wineburg, Center for Educational Research, Room 507, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f A

uckl

and

Lib

rary

] at

03:

19 0

9 O

ctob

er 2

014

gists; (c) employment prospects in educational psychology as viewed by grad- uates, as well as their thoughts about the vitality of the field of educational psychology; and (d) research areas that graduates identify as "hot topics" in educational psychology. Additionally, graduates were asked what advice they would give to students currently enrolled in doctoral programs in educa- tional psychology.

METHOD

Sample

The data for our study were collected as part of a larger study by the Com- mittee on Psychological Studies in Education at Stanford University (Wine- burg & McGraw, 1985).' In that study, 115 recipients of the PhD degree in educational psychology, child development, and counseling psychology be- tween 1974 and 1984 were surveyed.

This study is an analysis of the 54 alumni in educational psychology. Of these, 51 (28 women and 23 men) were surveyed, yielding a response rate of 94%. Three graduates of the program could not be located.

Data Collection

Data were collected using a telephone survey. Telephone surveys have been shown to be valid and reliable for assessing attitudes (Cannell, 1978; Dill- man, 1978; Groves, 1985), especially in obtaining higher response rates com- pared to traditional mail-in questionnaires (Borg & Gall, 1983).

Data were collected using a structured telephone interview that consisted of 8 open-ended and 12 closed questions. The mean interview time was 16.08 min (SD = 6.14 min). Data collection consisted of: (a) an advance-notice let- ter to alumni, which explained the rationale for the study and listed several questions that would be asked; (b) the telephone interviews, in which the in- terviewer reiterated the purpose of the study and insured the confidentiality of the response; and (c) a thank you letter, sent to respondents after the com- pletion of the interview.

Answers to the 12 closed questions were coded using preset categories de- veloped when the questionnaire was tested. An interrater reliability of .87 was obtained in the coding of these responses. Responses to open-ended

'Located within a school of education at a private research-oriented university, Stanford's program in Psychological Studies in Education may not be the typical program of its kind. Hence, generalizations to the larger population of graduates of doctoral programs in educa- tional psychology should be qualified.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f A

uckl

and

Lib

rary

] at

03:

19 0

9 O

ctob

er 2

014

EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGISTS 47

questions were recorded by hand directly on the interview protocol. At the end of data collection, categories were created to analyze these responses.

RESULTS

Job Activity and Job Location

The majority of the educational psychologists in this sample (63%) were en- gaged in full-time teaching or research. Twelve percent worked as evaluators and measurement specialists, while 8% held administrative positions in school districts. Two respondents (4%) worked as private consultants.

Seven respondents, six of whom were women, no longer considered them- selves to be working in educational psychology. Five of these seven respond- ents cited the lack of job opportunities in educational psychology as their rea- son for leaving the field. Low salaries and a change in career interests were cited as reasons by the other two respondents.

Nearly half of the sample (49%) held jobs in university or college settings. The next most frequent setting was business and industry, where 14% of the alumni were engaged in applied research, evaluation, systems analysis, and training and development. Other employment settings included private re- search firms (8%), regional laboratories (8%), school districts (6%), the mili- tary (4%), and the federal government (2%).

Respondents who worked in areas that were not well represented in the sample were enthusiastic about employment opportunities in those areas. One respondent, who worked in the area of federal educational policy, said that the federal government and what it supports has plenty of jobs for edu- cational psychologists. Another respondent, who was a self-employed consultant, said that job opportunities for educational psychologists in med- ical education were "absolutely terrific." And a respondent who worked for a private corporation implementing training courses extolled the job opportu- nities in all of adult education - and especially in industrial training.

Respondents were asked how they view job prospects for psychologists working in the field of education. Responses were coded using a 5-point scale as follows: (1) dismal, (2) not good, (3) fair, (4) good, ( 5 ) excellent. The mean (n = 37) was 2.9 (SD = 1.31); differences due to sex were not significant.

SKILLS USED BY EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGISTS

Respondents were asked to name the three kinds of skill or knowledge they used most in their work. The results, ranked by frequency of response, ap- pear in Table 1. Analytical and quantitative skills were mentioned more fre-

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f A

uckl

and

Lib

rary

] at

03:

19 0

9 O

ctob

er 2

014

TABLE 1 Skills and Knowledge Used on the Job

- - - - -

SkrN/Knowledge Number of Trmes Cited % of Sample -- - -

Stat~stlcs 23 45 Research methodology and lnqulry skills 23 45 Analyt~cal and crit~cal thlnklng skills 17 3 3

Writmg 14 27

Research design 14 2' Computer skills 8 I6 Paradigms or theoretical frameworks 8 16 Measurement 7 14 Information retrieval and organizing 3 6

Evaluation 3 6 Specific knowledge from courses 3 6 Teaching skills 2 4 Communication skills 2 4

Note. Twenty-six respondents mentioned unique skills or knowledge. Examples of skills or knowledge mentioned once include time management skills, self-confidence, and theabil- ity to type rapidly.

quently than more general skills such as communicating, gathering and organizing information, and writing. Knowledge gained from specific courses was mentioned by only three respondents.

VITALITY OF EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

Respondents were asked to give a global assessment of the vitality of the field of educational psychology and were presented with three choices: (a) on the rise, (b) holding steady, and (c) on the decline. Overall, 38% of the re- spondents characterized the field as holding steady, 35% as on the rise, 10% as on the decline, and 17% replied "don't know" or not applicable. Differ- ences between the responses of men and women approached significance, x2(2, N = 42) = 5 . 0 3 , ~ = .08, as men tended to be more sanguine in their as- sessment of the vitality of the field than women.

Optimism

Respondents who saw the field as on the rise cited several developments: computers and instructional technology, research in cognitive psychology, research in health and medical settings, and expanding opportunities in adult education. According to one graduate:

The field is definitely on the move. Cognitive psychology overlaps with educa- tional and instructional psychology, and these areas are now center stage- the

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f A

uckl

and

Lib

rary

] at

03:

19 0

9 O

ctob

er 2

014

EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGISTS 49

problems of cognitive psychology are educational problems. This is the impetus for substantial work, and it will continue to be so.

A respondent who is a professor in medical education complained that he cannot find enough people for all the positions he is asked to fill. Respond- ents who cited opportunities in adult learning specified industrial training, the military, human resource development, and aging as growing areas. A di- rector of training in a major computer firm said that industrial training and development is "coming of age," with many corporations moving to create new training programs or enhance existing ones. This respondent predicted that these developments will lead to new opportunities for educational psychologists.

A professor of education said that there are objective reasons for believing that the field is on the rise - reasons such as an increase in the number of pa- pers submitted to the American Educational Research Association and the vigor of publishers of books in educational psychology. Another respondent told of a dawning recognition by practitioners that research on teaching is valuable and "extremely applicable." This respondent also noted that a good market exists for consultants who can "bridge the gap between theory and research."

An interesting comment came from a respondent employed in applied re- search. He remarked that educational psychology was on the rise, but that educational psychologists were not reaping the benefits:

There is more interest today than 7 years ago. For instance, the Office of Naval Research is starting a new program called "advanced instructional technology ." On the other hand, educational psychologists are not responding very rapidly and the work is going to computer scientists and cognitive psychologists.

A Middle View

A professional researcher who believed that educational psychology is hold- ing steady claimed that competing forces both help and hinder the field. Forces that hinder, according to this graduate, include the "shift toward ac- cepting more qualitative work," which does not coincide with the "rigorous view" of educational psychology. Benefitting the field are developments in cognitive science and the study of specific subject areas.

Another respondent asserted that educational psychology is "still search- ing for what it is" and added that psychological constructs are now merging with other perspectives, such as those drawn from sociology, "as we try to un- derstand the complexity of learning." Two respondents, both professors in schools of education, said that educational psychology is bursting with new ideas, but that the field holds steady because of the unavailability of research funds and the scarcity of jobs.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f A

uckl

and

Lib

rary

] at

03:

19 0

9 O

ctob

er 2

014

Pessimism

One professor of education who saw educational psychology declining in in- fluence thought this shift was in the interest of solving educational problems:

The psychological paradigm, which had a hegemony on research on education, is slipping now in favor of different epistemologies such as sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, and ethnography. For educational research, having more ap- proaches is a good development; [educational psychology] is not declining in- tellectually, but it is losing influence.

Another respondent who saw the field declining pointed to perennial soul searching, exemplified by Block's (1985) article, "What Is Wrong With Edu- cational Psychology?" Several respondents complained about the unavail- ability of research money and mentioned declining membership in Division 15 of the American Psychological Association. Other respondents were criti- cal of intellectual developments in the field. Said one professional researcher: "There is not much new - mostly ideas taken from cognitive science and ap- plied to educational psychology."

"Hot" Topics

Respondents were asked what research issues or areas they see dominating the field of educational psychology. The most frequently mentioned "hot topic" (cited eight times) was the area of computers and educational technol- ogy. Mentioned six times were the various cognitive approaches to the study of motivation. Three topics were each mentioned five times: cognitive pro- cesses, teacher effectiveness, and problem solving/critical thinking. Meta- cognition, teacher knowledge, aptitude-treatment interactions, testing, and instructional improvement were each cited four times. Students' self- regulatory processes and teacher education were each mentioned three times, and research in industrial training was mentioned twice.

ADVICE TO GRADUATE STUDENTS

The study produced a cornucopia of advice for current graduate students in educational psychology. The most frequently mentioned piece of advice (mentioned eleven times) was that graduate students should include many "methods" courses in their study programs. Methods courses include those in statistics, measurement, research design, evaluation, and statistical com- puting. Respondents cited the generic quality of such courses, that is, their applicability in a broad variety of settings, as their chief benefit. One assist-

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f A

uckl

and

Lib

rary

] at

03:

19 0

9 O

ctob

er 2

014

ant professor recommended that students "emphasize a lot of statistics and measurement courses - they are important no matter what you end up doing. I took a heavy component of them, and I have never regretted it." Another respondent remarked, "Good methods and good thinking skills override spe- cialty areas and will serve you well in your later career."

Several alumni reported that a strong methodological background is a plus in the job market, something that prospective employers look for and expect in educational psychologists. One respondent encouraged students to:

Plan the most rigorous program possible; take the complete 250 series [a 4-quarter sequence in statistics and research design at Stanford] plus courses in the statistics department. There are jobs-not a lot-but for well-prepared, thoughtful students there is a market. Also, become immersed in a substantive area; a broad and deep education is critical. Don't take "soft" courses. Demand rigor.

Research Experience

Nine respondents advised current graduate students to get as much "hands- on" research experience as possible. Respondents urged students to be active, to seize opportunities for working on interdisciplinary projects, and to seek out research experience "with different people and teams."

Several respondents reflected on their days as graduate students and said that their research-assistantship experience with faculty was more important, in retrospect, than course work. "Courses played mostly a preparatory role," observed one respondent, "but the most important thing was the actual con- duct of research." Another graduate expressed a similar thought: "The research-assistantship work I did on projects, where I analyzed data and set up and interpreted data analyses, was far and away more valuable than courses." A third respondent, a professor of educational psychology, now finds herself advising graduate students and overseeing their research. "Get lots of 'hands-on' research experience," she urged, "even if paid work is not available."

Finish as Soon as Possible

Seven respondents urged students not to linger in their graduate programs. As one respondent succinctly put it: "Find a dissertation topic, get it done, and get the hell out." Several respondents cautioned against trying to write the "ultimate dissertation," characterizing such a tendency as a "trap" that unduly prolongs graduate programs. A respondent, himself the victim of this trap, told students to remember that they will "learn a lot more 'outside' than they will learn 'inside.' " Another respondent, who took a job before finish- ing his dissertation, warned against doing the same:

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f A

uckl

and

Lib

rary

] at

03:

19 0

9 O

ctob

er 2

014

Don't try to do your dissertation long distance. It simply takes too long and it is extremely difficult to get a hold of professors when you need them to read what you have written. It can be a real hassle.

Independent Research and Publications

Six respondents urged students to undertake independent research projects of their own and to try to publish the results of those projects before they graduate. Three respondents counseled students to get experience by con- ducting small studies, especially if they plan on academic careers. As one as- sociate professor put it, "Try to publish -get involved [in research] as early as possible and learn how to do small things. Your dissertation doesn't prepare you for small studies, ones that don't require ten graduate students and hun- dreds of hours." A professor of education offered similar advice:

Get into the publishing game early. Do "pirate research" while in school. Use the free computer time and resources you have at your disposal to get two or three publications before you finish. I've hired a lot of people at the university where I work, and rarely do we consider someone without a half dozen publica- tions in good journals.

Relationship With Faculty

Also occurring six times was the counsel to get to know the faculty well, to take care in selecting one's advisor, and to find a mentor who can "show you the ropes" of research, grantsmanship, and professional conduct. One alum- nus said that he had long forgotten specific content from courses, but lessons he learned from his advisor have stayed with him through the years. Another respondent urged students to get to know faculty well, recalling that students with problems "were those without close connections to faculty."

"Find a mentor, make a friend," urged one respondent. "People are the main resource . . . the course work you will forget." Another professor looked back on her graduate training as a "luxury" and, contrary to other re- spondents, urged students not to rush through their programs:

Work closely with a mentor and don't be in a hurry to leave. This is one of the few times in your life when you have the luxury of learning- take advantage of it because there is no more luxury when you get out. When you are the profes- sor, the shoe is on the other foot. Enjoy the luxury of being able to learn.

Finally, a respondent urged students not to despair: "Your program won't last forever - it only seems that way. Continue to have a sense of humor."

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f A

uckl

and

Lib

rary

] at

03:

19 0

9 O

ctob

er 2

014

EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGISTS 53

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

We are grateful to N. L. Gage for his assistance in the preparation of this manuscript. Any deficiencies that remain are, of course, our sole respon- sibility.

REFERENCES

Block, K. K. (1985). What is wrong with educational psychology? Newsletter for Educational Psychologists, 8, 4-6.

Borg, W. R., & Gall, M. D. (1983). Educational research (4th ed.). New York: Longman. Cannell, C. F. (1978). The telephone interview: Progress andprospects. Ann Arbor: University

of Michigan, Survey Research Center. Dillman, D. A. (1978). Mailand telephonesurveys: The totaldesign method. New York: Wiley. Grinder, R. L. (1967). The growth in educational psychology as reflected in the history of

Division 15. EducationalPsychology, 4, 12-35. Groves, B. R. (1985). An organizational approach to managing incompetent teachers. Unpub-

lished doctoral dissertation, Stanford University, Stanford, CA. Jones, B. F. (1985). Educational psychologists- Where are you? Reflections of an educational

psychologist. Educational Psychologist, 20, 83-95. Rand, D. C., & Ellsworth, R. (1979). A brief survey of criteria used by employers hiring

educational psychologists. American Psychologist, 34, 706-708. Scandura, J. M., Frase, L. T., Gange, R. M., Stolurow, K. A., Stolurow, L. M., & Groen, G. J.

(1981). Current status and future direction of educational psychology as a discipline. In F. H. Farley & N. J . Gordon (Eds.), Psychology and education: The state of the union (pp. 367-388). Berkeley, CA: McCutchan.

Shulman, L. S. (1982). Educational psychology returns to the school. G. Stanley Hall Lecture Series, 2, 73-1 17.

Wineburg, S. S., & McGraw, L. L. (1985). A follow-up study of graduates of Stanford's Psychological Studies in Education: A preliminary report. Unpublished manuscript, Stanford University, Committee in Psychological Studies in Education, Stanford, CA.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f A

uckl

and

Lib

rary

] at

03:

19 0

9 O

ctob

er 2

014