Perceiving versus inferring movements to understand dynamic events: The influence of content complexity

Abstract Objectives What type of visual presentation is best in helping learners to understand the functioning of a dynamic system and under what conditions? This study investigated the effect of content complexity on perceived cognitive load and performance resulting from studying depicted movements of team play either in an explicit manner (animation) or via arrow symbols (static diagram). Design A 2 (treatment: diagram vs. animation) × 2 (content complexity: low vs. high) between subjects design was adopted in the experiment. Methods Forty-eight university students were randomly assigned to the four study conditions and required to perform a reconstruction test and rate their perceived cognitive load following the study phase. Results Data analyses revealed that for low-complexity content, participants exposed to the animation treatment learned more efficiently – based on the combination of learning and cognitive load scores – than those exposed to the diagram treatment. On the other hand, for high-complexity content, participants exposed to the diagram treatment learned more efficiently than those exposed to the animation treatment. Conclusion The findings stress the importance of considering the task complexity factor when designing and presenting instructional materials to learners.

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