Conversations with three highly productive educational psychologists: Richard Anderson, Richard Mayer, and Michael Pressley

This article seeks to answer the question, "What factors characterize highl y productive educational psychologists?" Using qualitative research methods , we identified three top scholars in educational psychology-Richard Anders on, Richard Mayer, and Michael Pressley-and examined factors that influence their work. Although each scholar had a distinctive trademark characterist ic, they had much in common. Each had an impressive lineage, gravitated to centers of excellence, was guided by routine, contributed significantly to educational service, pursued outside interests, strived for clarity in writ ing, collaborated heavily and effectively with students, and shaved the sam e guiding philosophy regarding scholarly productivity. The article conclude s with advice to budding educational psychologists and with unanswered ques tions that perhaps merit further research.