Using Research Evidence to Inform and Evaluate Early Childhood Intervention Practices

Abstract

This article includes descriptions of a process used to conduct practice-based research syntheses and the manner in which synthesis findings are used to inform and evaluate early childhood intervention practices. The main focus of a practice-based research synthesis is the unbundling of an intervention practice to identify those practice characteristics that are associated with desired outcomes and benefits. Also described are how the characteristics identified as most important are used to develop evidence-based practices and how the characteristics can be used as benchmarks to assess the likelihood that an untested practice will be effective. The article concludes with a discussion of the tension between research and practice and how that tension might be mitigated.