Several electrochemical methods have been developed in recent years for the study of the kinetic parameters of electrode reactions. These methods have been used for obtaining an abundance of experimental data for the standard heterogeneous rate constant, k sh, of electrode reactions, mostly limited to reactions at a mercury electrode. As early as 1933, Frumkin recognized the essential correlation between the double layer structure at the electrode interface and electrode kinetics. As enough data for the kinetic parameters are yet available, interest is growing in this correlation, because it may result in a better understanding of heterogeneous reaction rates. According to Frumkin the potential difference existing in the double layer, influences the kinetic parameters for two reasons: (a) It influences the effective potential difference which favours or hinders the reaction, (b) The effective concentration of reacting species is different from the “bulk” concentration. The Frumkin effect with its limitations is discussed. Adsorption of electroinactive species, e.g. organic adsorbates, may have two effects: variation of the potential difference in the double layer and hence of the Frumkin correction and secondly a blocking effect. Some examples, illustrating these effects, are presented. If the anions of the supporting electrolyte were specifically adsorbed at the interface, it appeared that the Frumkin correction did not suffice. For some reactions, e.g. the zinc system in mixed halide solutions, we found a linear relation between log k sh and the amount of specifically adsorbed anions q− 1, from which it is inferred that the energy of activation for the electrode reaction decreases linearly with q− 1. Quite frequently, the electroactive species themselves are adsorbed at the interface. In that case the adsorption complicates matters considerably, e.g. the mass transport equations change, so that the electrochemical methods, as normally used, are inapplicable. Recently Delahay has presented expressions based on the concept of the coupling between faradaic and double layer charging processes. These expressions can be used successfully for systems with adsorption of the electroactive species. Such systems have been investigated with sine wave methods and some results are presented. Almost all systems with adsorption of the reacting species were found to be mass transfer controlled, so that no influence of the double layer structure on the kinetic parameters could be investigated for these cases.