Are Depleted Learners More Subject to the Seductive Details Effect? A Multimedia Study

• In Event: The Impact of the Learning Environment on Student and Educator Outcomes

Abstract

To investigate the potential impact of ego depletion, a state of depleted self-control strength, on learning with seductive details, we conducted a randomized controlled experiment in which both ego depletion (sufficient versus depleted) and seductive details (present versus absent) were manipulated as two between-subjects independent variables. Undergraduate students studied multimedia materials on deglutition with or without seductive details following either a depleting or a non-depleting task. On transfer performance, seductive details were detrimental for students who experienced ego depletion, but not for those who did not experience it, suggesting a boundary condition of the seductive details effect. On the other hand, ego depletion failed to reveal its negative effects on learning either with or without seductive details.

Author

• Zhe Wang, East China Normal University