The paradoxical effect of long instructions on negative affect and performance: When, for whom and why do they backfire?

Goemaere, Sophie; Beyers, Wim; Muynck, Gert‐Jan De; Vansteenkiste, Maarten

doi:10.1016/j.actaastro.2018.03.047

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…10 SCHNEIDER, NEBEL, MEYER, AND REY see Table 1). First, the induced differences in task difficulty did not result in a difference in learning results, which contradicts hypothesis H1a and previous research (Goemaere et al, 2018); though in this experiment task difficulty was only verbally induced. Possibly, a verbal instruction of the difficulty of a following task is set against the perceptions of the "real" task difficulty of the learning text.…”

Section: Im Scorecontrasting

confidence: 68%

“…Tasks that are perceived as too difficult were found to be negatively related to learners’ perceived competence ( Patall et al, 2018; Schmierbach et al, 2014; this may lead to worse goal-setting behavior (Horvath et al, 2006) and reduced task performance (Goemaere et al, 2018). Regarding the influence of perceived task difficulty on metacognition, Rhodes and Castel (2008); as well as Undorf and Erdfelder (2011), assumed that learners’ ease of processing, which might be lower for tasks with a low perceived difficulty, will increase learners’ judgments of their learning success.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous studies have proven that learners’ perceptions of task difficulty influence their learning performance and intrinsic motivation, with a negative influence resulting from high perceptions of task difficulty (for example, Goemaere et al, 2018; Patall et al, 2018). According to the results from Schmeck and colleagues (2015) and Su and Chen (2010); a high estimate of task difficulty leads to an increase in ICL perceptions and a decrease in JOL ratings.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The interdependency of perceived task difficulty and the choice effect when learning with multimedia materials.

Schneider¹,

Nebel²,

Meyer³

et al. 2022

Journal of Educational Psychology

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According to self-determination theory, both provision of choice and reduced task difficulty facilitate learners' motivation via an increase in 2 basic psychological needs. This study examines the moderating role of the autonomy-changing effect of choice on the competence-altering effect of differences in perceived task difficulty in a multimedia learning setting. To measure this, 2 experiments (N 1 = 108; N 2 = 86) with secondary school (Experiment 1) and university (Experiment 1) students were conducted using a 2 (with a choice vs. without a choice of an additional topic before learning) 3 2 (induced low vs. high perceived task difficulty) between-subjects design. While learners read texts about geographical data about Antarctica, 1 group was able to choose a subject matter of a second learning material's content. Learning performance, judgments of learning, and cognitive and motivational processes after the first learning material were measured in both experiments, while Experiment 1 additionally measured perceived autonomy and perceived competence. Results showed that induced differences in perceived task difficulty did not yield learning differences. However, the autonomy-enhancing effect of choice moderated differences in perceived task difficulty. Overall, this experiment provides evidence for an interaction between possibilities of autonomy and competence support defined in the self-determination theory. Educational Impact and Implications StatementWhen learners perceive their learning material to be difficult, their motivation to further process the instructional material decreases. In contrast, providing a choice of learning topic can help to increase learners' motivation. This study revealed that both the autonomy-enhancing effect of choice and the competence-enhancing effect of reduced perceived task difficulty lead to an increase in learning outcomes. Moreover, the negative effects of high-perceived task difficulty were reduced when earners were given a task-related choice before learning. Instructional designers and teachers should be aware of their learners' perceptions of task difficulty in order to counteract the possible risks of highly perceived difficulty through a choice for future learning tasks.

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Section: Im Scorecontrasting

confidence: 68%

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The interdependency of perceived task difficulty and the choice effect when learning with multimedia materials.

Schneider¹,

Nebel²,

Meyer³

et al. 2022

Journal of Educational Psychology

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“…Effective communication thus needs to achieve two tasks at once: Support autonomy while providing clear structure. While sometimes structure-providing and autonomy-support can seem to contradict each other -too detailed instructions, while providing structure, can be interpreted as controlling (Goemaere et al, 2018) -research has shown that for the most part, they represent two compatible dimensions of motivating interactional style (Aelterman et al, 2019). The opposite of autonomy support is not structure, but control, where people feel that authorities are demanding and domineering, whereas the opposite of structure is chaos, in which people feel authorities are not providing clear guidance on what they should do and how they can get there.…”

Section: Providing Structure and Guidance On How To Adhere To Necessamentioning

confidence: 99%

Motivating voluntary compliance to behavioural restrictions: Self-determination theory–based checklist of principles for COVID-19 and other emergency communications

Martela

Hankonen

Ryan

et al. 2021

European Review of Social Psychology

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An effective response to crises like the COVID-19 pandemic is dependent on the public voluntarily adhering to governmental rules and guidelines. How the guidelines are communicated can significantly affect whether people will experience a sense of self-initiation and volition, protecting compliance from eroding. From the perspective of Self-Determination Theory, a broad theory on human motivation and its interpersonal determinants, effective communication involves the delicate combination of providing rules and structure in a caring and autonomy-supportive way. Research in applied domains from public messaging to education and health has shown that when social agents set limits in more autonomy-supportive, caring, and competence-fostering ways, it predicts autonomous forms of compliance, which in turn predict greater adherence and long-term persistence. Building on SDT, integrated with insights from social identity theory, we derive a practice-focused checklist with key communication guidelines to foster voluntary compliance in national crises such as the prevention of COVID-19 spread.

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“…Positive pedagogy relates to incorporating pedagogical approaches in teachers' daily practice that make positive impact on students' and teachers' wellbeing. This includes pedagogies encouraging students' creativity that stretch beyond the arts subject and towards maths, language, science, technology, social sciences, physical education classes (Patston et al, 2021), shortening teacher long-winded instructions (Goemaere et al, 2018), or structured group play (Woolf, 2011). Alternatively, it incorporates a range of pedagogies that relate to positive learning experiences (e.g.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Positive education to promote flourishing in students returning to school after COVID-19 closure

Arslan

Burke²

2021

JOSEP

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The paradoxical effect of long instructions on negative affect and performance: When, for whom and why do they backfire?

Cited by 7 publications

References 55 publications

The interdependency of perceived task difficulty and the choice effect when learning with multimedia materials.

The interdependency of perceived task difficulty and the choice effect when learning with multimedia materials.

Motivating voluntary compliance to behavioural restrictions: Self-determination theory–based checklist of principles for COVID-19 and other emergency communications

Positive education to promote flourishing in students returning to school after COVID-19 closure

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