Learning from Text or Video? The Role of Cognitive Load and Interest in Knowledge Acquisition

Ela Bakmaz, Nina Pavlin-Bernardić

Abstract


In contemporary education, video is often considered a more effective and engaging learning format than text, yet previous research has not provided consistent conclusions about its actual advantages. The aim of this study was to examine whether knowledge acquisition differs depending on the type of learning material (text with static images vs. video) and whether possible differences can be explained by cognitive load and interest in the learning material. The sample consisted of 194 university students who were randomly assigned, in an online experiment, to either a video-based learning condition or a text-based learning condition. After studying the material, participants completed a knowledge test and measures of prior knowledge, cognitive load, and interest. The results showed that participants who learned from the text-based material achieved higher scores on the knowledge test than those who learned from the video material(c = -2.142, p < .01). Mediation analyses did not confirm that cognitive load or interest mediated the relationship between type of material and knowledge acquisition, as the indirect effect via cognitive load (ab = -0.040, 95% bootstrap CI [-0.279, 0.208]) and the indirect effect via interest (ab = -0.397, 95% bootstrap CI [-0.879, 0.024]) were not statistically significant.These findings suggest that video does not necessarily lead to better learning outcomes than text and highlight the importance of careful instructional design regardless of the format in which learning materials are presented.

Keywords


knowledge acquisition; video material; text-based material; cognitive load; interest

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.51558/2490-3647.2026.11.1.907

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