Cognitive load and the imagination effect

When presented with a procedure or concept to learn, imagining the procedure or concept may be an effective instructional technique compared to conventional studying, thus generating an imagination effect. However, it was hypothesized that the importance of learning through imagining as an instructional technique depends on modes of presentation. Experiment 1 tested adults studying or imagining contour maps as participants and was designed to verify the generality of the imagination effect. Imagination instructions were superior to study instructions on subsequent test questions. Experiment 2 further investigated the effect by comparing much younger students (Grade 4), studying or imagining temperature/time graphs presented in either a split-attention (spatially separated diagram and text) or an integrated (spatially combined diagram and text) format. Results on a subsequent test indicated that the Grade 4 students found imagining beneficial to their learning, compared with studying the material but the effect was only obtained using an integrated rather than a split-attention format. Experiment 3 was conducted to obtain verbal protocols from Grade 4 imagination and study groups using the same instructional materials to throw light on the cognitive mechanisms behind the imagination effect. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

[1]  D. Landers,et al.  The influence of procedural variables on the efficacy of mental practice. , 1996 .

[2]  E. Rawlings,et al.  Rotary Pursuit Tracking following Mental Rehearsal as a Function of Voluntary Control of Visual Imagery , 1974, Perceptual and motor skills.

[3]  P. Chandler,et al.  THE SPLIT‐ATTENTION EFFECT AS A FACTOR IN THE DESIGN OF INSTRUCTION , 1992 .

[4]  John Sweller,et al.  Instructional Design in Technical Areas , 1999 .

[5]  N. Charness,et al.  Expert Performance Its Structure and Acquisition , 2002 .

[6]  F. Bartlett,et al.  Remembering: A Study in Experimental and Social Psychology , 1932 .

[7]  F. Paas,et al.  Cognitive Architecture and Instructional Design , 1998 .

[8]  F. Paas,et al.  Cognitive Load Theory and Instructional Design: Recent Developments , 2003 .

[9]  A. Renkl.  Learning mathematics from worked-out examples: Analyzing and fostering self-explanations , 1999 .

[10]  R. Mayer,et al.  Multimedia Learning: The Promise of Multimedia Learning , 2001 .

[11]  John Sweller,et al.  Cognitive Load During Problem Solving: Effects on Learning , 1988, Cogn. Sci..

[12]  R. A. Tarmizi,et al.  Guidance during Mathematical Problem Solving. , 1988 .

[13]  Arthur C. Graesser,et al.  Reasoning Processes: Preface , 1996 .

[14]  J. Sweller.  COGNITIVE LOAD THEORY, LEARNING DIFFICULTY, AND INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN , 1994 .

[15]  Kurt VanLehn,et al.  A model of the self-explanation effect. , 1992 .

[16]  Alexander Renkl,et al.  Learning from Worked-Out-Examples: A Study on Individual Differences , 1997, Cogn. Sci..

[17]  D. Irby,et al.  The use of mental practice in pelvic examination instruction. , 1983, Journal of medical education.

[18]  R. S. Sackett.  The Influence of Symbolic Rehearsal upon the Retention of a Maze Habit , 1934 .

[19]  P. Chandler,et al.  Cognitive Load Theory and the Format of Instruction , 1991 .

[20]  J. Sweller,et al.  Learning to Solve Compare Word Problems: The Effect of Example Format and Generating Self-Explanations , 1998 .

[21]  M. Chi,et al.  Eliciting Self‐Explanations Improves Understanding , 1994 .

[22]  H Wichman,et al.  “Inner” Darts: Effects of Mental Practice on Performance of Dart Throwing , 1978, Perceptual and motor skills.

[23]  R. S. Sackett,et al.  The Relationship between Amount of Symbolic Rehearsal and Retention of a Maze Habit , 1935 .

[24]  P. Chandler,et al.  When imagining information is effective , 2003 .

[25]  H. Mandl,et al.  Learning from Worked-Out Examples: The Effects of Example Variability and Elicited Self-Explanations , 1998, Contemporary educational psychology.

[26]  W. Sime,et al.  The nomological validity of the Type A personality among employed adults. , 1991, The Journal of applied psychology.

[27]  J. Sweller.  Evolution of human cognitive architecture , 2003 .

[28]  Matthew W. Lewis,et al.  Self-Explonations: How Students Study and Use Examples in Learning to Solve Problems , 1989, Cogn. Sci..

[29]  G. A. Miller.  THE PSYCHOLOGICAL REVIEW THE MAGICAL NUMBER SEVEN, PLUS OR MINUS TWO: SOME LIMITS ON OUR CAPACITY FOR PROCESSING INFORMATION 1 , 1956 .

[30]  J. Sweller,et al.  Structuring Effective Worked Examples , 1990 .

[31]  Robert J. Crutcher,et al.  The role of deliberate practice in the acquisition of expert performance. , 1993 .

[32]  P. Chandler,et al.  Cognitive Load While Learning to Use a Computer Program , 1996 .

[33]  Michelene T. H. Chi,et al.  Expertise in Problem Solving. , 1981 .

[34]  H. Simon,et al.  Why are some problems hard? Evidence from Tower of Hanoi , 1985, Cognitive Psychology.

[35]  K. A. Ericsson,et al.  Verbal reports as data. , 1980 .

[36]  Sharon K Tindall-Ford,et al.  Learning by imagining. , 2001, Journal of experimental psychology. Applied.

[37]  J. Golding,et al.  Mental Practice among Olympic Athletes , 1991 .

[38]  Slava Kalyuga,et al.  The Expertise Reversal Effect , 2003 .

[39]  Richard J. Hazler,et al.  The Effects of Mental Practice on Counseling Behaviors , 1981 .

[40]  Herbert A. Simon,et al.  Models of Competence in Solving Physics Problems , 1980, Cogn. Sci..

[41]  Ann L. Brown,et al.  Training in Self-Explanation and Self-Regulation Strategies: Investigating the Effects of Knowledge Acquisition Activities on Problem Solving , 1995 .

[42]  H. Simon,et al.  Perception in chess , 1973 .

[43]  R. Mayer,et al.  Nine Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load in Multimedia Learning , 2003 .

[44]  P. Chandler,et al.  Why Some Material Is Difficult to Learn , 1994 .