An Historical Analysis of Reversal Theory Conference Presentations (1995–2015)

Abstract

It has been suggested that reversal theory should endeavour to pursue more empirical studies (Cramer, 2013), yet continue to develop tools and applications; thus the present study examined the category of papers (N = 323) featured at reversal theory conferences from 1995-2015. Conference papers were divided into (initially three but later) five categories: templative, theoretical, empirical, application, and tool development. Empirical (hypothesis testing with statistical analysis of collected data) was the largest category (39%), followed by templative (31%), theoretical (16%), and both tool development and application (7% and 6%, respectively). The number of empirical studies, which declined over time, negatively correlated with both the number of applications and theoretical papers in a given year. Cluster analysis showed three distinct patterns of categorical distribution. Implications for future research are discussed, including how conferences have directed subsequent research and vice versa.