Abstract
A practical and theoretical review is made of CAI system costs for small-scale instructional and training programs. CAI costs are broken down into its components, with each component described and evaluated in terms of its contribution to total system costs. A detailed example of an educational system is provided as an illustration of a CAI cost analysis. Future developments in CAI are briefly sketched, and presented in terms of their potential effect on CAI costs in the future. The effectiveness and role of CAI is examined in relation to costs, and a breakeven analysis is applied to cost-justify a computer-based training program. Finally, conclusions are drawn concerning CAI's current affordability and applications in both public and private environments.