"Persistence and Fadeout of Educational Intervention Effects: Mechanisms and Potential Solutions"

Associate Professor Drew Bailey (first author, left) and Distinguished Professor of Education Greg Duncan (right) have authored an article with colleagues in the April issue of Psychological Science in the Public Interest.

The title of the article is "Persistence and Fadeout of Educational Intervention Effects: Mechanisms and Potential Solutions."

Co-authors are Flavio Cunha (Rice University), Barbara Foorman (Florida State University), and David S. Yaeger (University of Texas at Austin).

Bailey's research interests include mathematical development, individual differences, and longitudinal methods. Duncan studies the economics of education, program evaluation, and child development​.

Abstract

​Some environmental influences, including intentional interventions, have shown persistent effects on psychological characteristics and other socially important outcomes years and even decades later. At the same time, it is common to find that the effects of life events or interventions diminish and even disappear completely, a phenomenon known as fadeout. We review the evidence for persistence and fadeout, drawing primarily on evidence from educational interventions. We conclude that 1) fadeout is widespread, and often co-exists with persistence; 2) fadeout is a substantive phenomenon, not merely a measurement artefact; and 3) persistence depends on the types of skills targeted, the institutional constraints and opportunities within the social context, and complementarities between interventions and subsequent environmental affordances. We discuss the implications of these conclusions for research and policy.   
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