Optimal Conditions for Effective Feedback.

The paper presents a synthesis and review of the literature in education, psychology, and organizational behavior relevant to the effects of feedback used with postsecondary teachers to improve their teaching. It is concluded that most people will change their behavior if: the feedback recipients are volunteers; a consultant mediates the feedback; the consultant is perceived by the client to be empathic, supportive, nonjudgmental, knowledgeable, and trustworthy; a variety of sources of feedback are available; the sources of feedback are nonthreatening and either equal or lower in status than the recipient; a variety of modes of feedback are available; the recipient identifies his/her own problems and goals; the feedback contains information that is concrete, irrefutable, accurate, specific, and focused toward a few specific goals; the feedback creates only a moderate amount of cognitive dissonance; the feedback reauces the recipient's uncertainty; the feedback is presented in a manner sensitive to the recipient's learning style and amount of teaching experience; the recipient is able to respond to the feedback; and positive feedback is given soon after performance and negative feedback immediately preceding the next performance. An ideal process for instructional improvement based on these findings is described. Contains 68 references. (DB) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document.