Videodiscs have four characteristics that are valuable to the researcher, namely, that: (1) the contents of the videodisc are permanent, allowing multiple repetitions using the same material; (2) the order and sequencing of the material may be changed according to the focus of an instructional program or research study; (3) videodiscs can be integrated with many types of delivery technologies and teaching models; and (4) a videodisc can be used by different investigators for use in replications of an experiment. Two research paradigms utilize the advantages of a videodisc. Designed to determine the effects of each component of a lesson, the first compares two or more versions of lesson in which the only difference is the component being studied. The second focuses on the interrelationships between instructional components and can be used to relate the components to cognitive styles and other personality variables in complex interrelationships. It is argued that the use of these paradigms in educational technology research would result in a higher quality of research, and in studies exhibiting more sensitivity to the effects of different versions of components of instruction than is the case with most currently available studies. (15 references) (DB)