A Cognitive Antidote to Boredom: Motivational Effects

of Interspersing Quizzes During Fact Learning

  Alice F. Healy, Matt Jones,

Lakshmi Lalchandani, & Lindsay Anderson Tack

Prolonged work on a single task results in performance deterioration

Speed-Accuracy Tradeoff (Pachella, 1974; Healy, Kole, Buck-Gengler, & Bourne, 2004)

Cognitive Antidote Principle (Kole, Healy, & Bourne, 2008)– Focus of attention can be lost in a long

tedious task– Interrupting the task with additional

cognitive requirements could counteract task disengagement

Experiment

ConditionsStandard (quizzes interspersed throughout learning)Postponed (quizzes at end of learning)

Quiz questions covered only half of learning material.

Testing after a delay covered all material.

The Task

64 true facts about 8 categories of “plants” 8 exemplars in each category

8 Trees8 Shrubs8 Weeds8 Fungi……Etc.

Exemplars were given novel names to control for prior knowledge.

Specific Fact Format

A tree that is sacred in Hinduism is the Buttony.

General Fact Format

A tree that is popular in eastern religion is the Buttony.

Design

Between-Subjects VariableLearning Condition (standard, postponed)

Within-Subject VariablesQuiz status (quizzed, not quizzed)Test (immediate posttest, retention test)Test Fact Format (specific, general)Block (1-8)

Dependent VariableProportion of Correct Responses

Quiz Performance

How Well Does Quiz Performance Predict Subsequent Test

Performance?

Hierarchical Linear ModelPosttest Retention Test

Levels of Model:SubjectItemTrial (within subjects and items)

Predictors:Learning Condition (standard,

postponed)Test Format (specific, general)Quiz Performance (not quizzed,

correct, incorrect)

Subject Item

Trial

How Well Does Quiz Performance Predict Subsequent Test

Performance?

Quiz

Condition Format

Effect of Quiz on Posttest

Trial Level

Interaction of learning condition and quiz performance

Postponed: .060 Standard:.186

Interaction of test format and quiz performance

Specific: .197 General:.048

Effect of Quiz on Retention Test

Trial Level

Interaction of test format and quiz performance

Specific: .118 General:.014

Subject Level

Interaction of learning condition and quiz performance

Postponed: .697 Standard:.352

PosttestTrial Level

Interaction of test format and quiz performanceSpecific: .197 General:

.048Interaction of learning condition and quiz performancePostponed: .060 Standard:.186

Retention TestTrial Level

Interaction of test format and quiz performanceSpecific: .118 General:

.014Subject Level

Interaction of learning condition and quiz performancePostponed: .697 Standard:.352

Conclusions

Interspersed quizzes can serve a motivational function as a cognitive antidote to boredom. Interrupting learning with quiz questions is desirable because it can enhance learner engagement.

The interspersed quizzes can effectively predict delayed test performance on particular items by individual subjects.

Practical Implications

These findings imply that clicker questions interspersed throughout a lecture should be useful for the students to dispel their boredom and for the teachers to enable them to predict subsequent test performance.

NSF Grant DRL1246588 to the University of ColoradoAlice Healy and Matt Jones, Principal Investigators