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Controversy over Instructional-design theory

"There has been some controversy over the useful breadth of instructional-design theory. Richard Snow is well known for his work on individual differences under the rubric of ATI, or aptitude-treatment interactions...ATI is a metatheory that in effect states that theories of instruction should prescribe methods (called treatments) on the basis of student characteristics (called aptitudes), because the effectiveness of those methods varies depending on student characteristics. Snow (1977) has stated that ATI (aptitude-treatment interaction) 'makes general theory impossible [p. 12]'---that instructional-design theories must be narrow and local to be of value. On the other hand, Scandura (1977) represented the view of many when he stated that instructional-design theories must be broad and comprehensive to be useful."
(Reigeluth, 1983, p. 31-32)

Reigeluth sias the different of opinion can be traced to a focus on management vs organizational strategies.
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