Going beyond the Dodo bird – a response to Gustavsson, Kittelsaa & Tøssebro

Abstract

Anders Gustavsson, Anna Kittelsaa and Jan Tøssebro describe an important dilemma: most published research shows positive outcomes for the intervention being studied, thus making it difficult to determine which of the interventions would be best suited for any given situation. The author’s discuss this within the context of the Dodo Bird effect, that “all are winners and all should get prizes” and call for a new research paradigm; challenging us to go beyond a surface look at interventions to identify the common factors across interventions that may act as the deeper anchors of success. This response, to the paper, explores why publications tend to focus on positive outcomes, briefly addresses a broader conceptualization of an evidence base, and discusses the possible use of a “root causes” approach to identify common factors that lead to success across interventions.

Keywords:

• Response to DoDo Bird
• Root Cause Analysis for Success
• Evidence Based Practice