In research practice, it is common to measure cognitive load after learning using self-report scales. This approach can be considered risky because it is unclear on what basis learners assess cognitive load, particularly when the learning material contains varying levels of complexity. This raises questions that have yet to be answered by…

Context information can guide cognitive control, but both the extent and the underlying processes are poorly understood. Previous studies often found that the congruency sequence effect (CSE) is larger when perceptual context features (e.g., modality and format) of task-related distractors and targets repeat compared to change. However, it is…

This study reports the results of 4 experiments that addressed whether the domains of deictic time and number exert a cross-domain link. Such a link would be consistent with A Theory of Magnitude (i.e., ATOM). In contrast, no link between the two domains would support the conceptual metaphor theory (CMT), which assumes that each domain is only…

According to the multimedia principle, adding relevant pictures to text is beneficial for learning. This beneficial effect is particularly true for text depicted in pictures (illustrated text information) but not for a text that is not illustrated in pictures (non-illustrated text information). The multimedia principle was examined for…

Knowing what one knows and accurately monitoring one's own capacities and performance on a moment-to-moment basis are important determinants of task success. Individual differences in such metacognitive monitoring are well documented, but what determines an individual's monitoring accuracy in a particular context is yet to be fully understood. One…

If a target stimulus is presented together with a response-irrelevant distractor stimulus, both stimuli can be encoded together with the response in an event file (see Hommel, 2004). The repetition of any feature of such an event-file can then retrieve the previously encoded response. This kind of feature-based retrieval is an important mechanism…

The picture-word interference paradigm (participants name target pictures while ignoring distractor words) is often used to model the planning processes involved in word production. The participants' naming times are delayed in the presence of a distractor (general interference). The size of this effect depends on the relationship between the…

Concept Mapping (CM) is a learning strategy to organize and understand complex relationships, which are particularly characteristic of the natural science subjects. Previous research has already shown that constructing concept maps can promote students' meaningful learning in terms of deeper knowledge and its more flexible use. While researchers…

Assessing text quality as an indication of underlying skills still remains challenging; irrespective of the approach, many studies struggle with reliability or validity problems. If writing is considered problem-solving, a report must make the reader understand the described situation and call for its mental reconstruction. Therefore, text quality…

Ratings of perceptual experience on a trial-by-trial basis are increasingly used in masked priming studies to assess prime awareness. It is argued that such subjective ratings more adequately capture the content of phenomenal consciousness compared to the standard objective psychophysical measures obtained in a session after the priming…

This eye-tracking study examines how differences in sources' trustworthiness are used by readers to regulate and resolve conflicting scientific claims. One hundred forty-four university students were sequentially presented with two conflicting scientific claims (regarding nanotechnology) across two texts. The claims were indicated to stem from two…

In the future, learning will be essentially characterized by the ability to regulate the learning process and monitor success independently from a teacher. The technical possibilities offer better access to learning contents, precise and more individualized feedback, and learning phases adapted precisely to the needs of the learner in terms of…

Observers represent everyday actions in event models along multiple dimensions such as space, time, or goals. Whenever new information along those dimensions is perceived, the event model is updated accordingly. In 3 experiments, we investigated event model updating associated with goal changes during ongoing actions that involved both an agent…

The study investigates automated and controlled cognitive processes that occur when university students read multiple documents (MDs). We examined data of 401 students dealing with two MD sets in a digital environment. Performance was assessed through several comprehension questions. Recorded log data gave indications about students' time…

This is the first study to investigate the effects of test methods (while-listening performance and post-listening performance) and gender on measured listening ability and brain activation under test conditions. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) was used to examine three brain regions associated with listening comprehension: the…