This chapter describes tools that have been used to measure the effectiveness of corrective feedback ranging from classic instruments such as interactive tasks, to innovative methods recently adopted from related fields like psychology and educational measurement. As part of describing these measurement tools, we also discuss how factors in their use, such as the instructions, the participants, and their roles, need to be considered when assessing the efficacy of feedback. We describe tools used in classrooms and laboratory settings, including introspective methods such as think-alouds, immediate recalls, stimulated recall, interviews, journals, blogs, and uptake sheets, as well as external measurements. We outline the use of tasks in both face-to-face and computer-mediated contexts. We conclude our chapter with a discussion of future directions in measuring the effectiveness of corrective feedback on linguistic development and pedagogical implications.

This chapter explores various aspects of lab-based research and considers its merits and limitations. We begin with a discussion and definition of lab-based research, considering not only the research venue, the instructor, and the instructional tasks, distinguishing amongst three types of research contexts: lab, classroom with intervention, and classroom without intervention. This differentiation is important in understanding the continuous nature of corrective feedback studies, ranging from lab-based to classroom-based. We further differentiate studies based on the amount of manipulation that is involved, with lab study and classroom intervention studies being characterized by manipulation and nonintervention classroom studies characterized by not having manipulation. We discuss a variety of lab-based studies where there are different degrees of researcher control, illustrating a wide range of research types. Finally, in this chapter we present results from meta-analyses that compare lab-based corrective feedback studies with classroom studies showing greater evidence of the effectiveness of corrective feedback in lab-based studies. Future directions for research in corrective feedback in classroom- versus lab-based studies are outlined.