Well, this is a forum and no one really offers their credentials to begin with. All we have is anecdotes, many of them from people who are not proficient themselves, which lessens their legitimacy even more.
there are only a few methods to actually learning kanji
mixed-method approaches are the only ones that work.
it helps some people, others it doesn't
heisig is one of many options, though that doesn't make his method less valid
And so on. It would be methodologically impossible to see if it works, since 1. You need a mixed method approach to learn anything 2. Time investment and dedication matter more than method in either case, 3. It would require a longitudinal study that keeps track of at least 100 independent variables which could effect the result, and ain't nobody got time/funding for that (not would it matter since very few people read academic Jsl material before they start learning the language)
At best, all you can say about heisig is that it works for some, but not for others, and that among highly dedicated individuals it tends to show positive results. No reason to dismiss it as a method, no reason to say that it's a surefire technique. But there can be no talk about hard evidence in a question that is not testable, and no evidence of it having better long-term benefits either; just some people giving their opinion. If they make it sound authoritative it is merely people's manner of speaking, you can be certain that 90%+ of anything you read on a forum is subjective or even wrong.
there are only a few methods to actually learning kanji
mixed-method approaches are the only ones that work.
it helps some people, others it doesn't
heisig is one of many options, though that doesn't make his method less valid
And so on. It would be methodologically impossible to see if it works, since 1. You need a mixed method approach to learn anything 2. Time investment and dedication matter more than method in either case, 3. It would require a longitudinal study that keeps track of at least 100 independent variables which could effect the result, and ain't nobody got time/funding for that (not would it matter since very few people read academic Jsl material before they start learning the language)
At best, all you can say about heisig is that it works for some, but not for others, and that among highly dedicated individuals it tends to show positive results. No reason to dismiss it as a method, no reason to say that it's a surefire technique. But there can be no talk about hard evidence in a question that is not testable, and no evidence of it having better long-term benefits either; just some people giving their opinion. If they make it sound authoritative it is merely people's manner of speaking, you can be certain that 90%+ of anything you read on a forum is subjective or even wrong.