Effects of Refutational Texts and Seductive Pictures on Conceptual Change

Abstract

As educators, we often seek to engage students’ prior knowledge to help them learn new and potentially difficult science content. However, sometimes our experiences with the world lead us to create misconceptions that run counter to the scientific consensus. Refutational texts have been shown to be more effective at changing individuals’ misconceptions compared to traditional (i.e., expository) texts. Sometimes, conceptual change materials might include irrelevant but interesting pictures geared toward increasing engagement or positive affect while learning. These are referred to as seductive pictures, and although they are intended to promote the situational interest of readers, they may hinder learning since they might cause cognitive overload. The current study sought to investigate the effects of text structure and seductive pictures on individuals’ knowledge of genetically modified foods, situational interest, and cognitive loads. We found significant learning advantages for the refutational text groups and significant disadvantages for the seductive pictures groups. Additionally, the individuals who were exposed to seductive pictures demonstrated higher levels of extraneous cognitive load than those who were not. Implications and limitations of the present study are discussed.

Keywords:

• conceptual change
• refutational texts
• seductive pictures

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Ethics statement

The present study was conducted according to American Psychological Association’s ethical standards.

Data availability statement

The data generated and analyzed in the present study are available upon reasonable request.

Submission disclosure statement

This work has not been previously published nor is it under consideration for publication elsewhere. If the manuscript is accepted for publication, it will not be published anywhere else in any form or language without the written permission from the copyright holder.