The expertise reversal effect relies on changes in relative levels of element interactivity due to changes in relative levels of expertise¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · theoretical r2 · q1
Currency · newest study 2017 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q1 i? The expertise reversal effect is attributed to changes in relative levels of element interactivity caused by changes in relative levels of learner expertise. → Chen 2017

Evidence¶

Chen 2017¶

Chen, O., Kalyuga, S. & Sweller, J. (2017). The Expertise Reversal Effect is a Variant of the More General Element Interactivity Effect. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-016-9359-1

q1 · i? · theoretical · r2

Theoretical argument from the article's abstract: the expertise reversal effect is reinterpreted as also depending on element interactivity, but with the changes driven by "changes in relative levels of expertise" rather than by the material. No new data are reported in the available text.

"the expertise reversal effect also relies on changes in relative levels of element interactivity but in this case, due to changes in relative levels of expertise"

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Prior Knowledge — moderator: an instructional effect differs with it

Related Claims¶

• Instructional guidance that helps novices can become redundant or counterproductive as expertise grows. — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it
• The element interactivity effect relies on changes in element interactivity due to changes in the type of material being learned — related
• Both effects are claimed to rely on equivalent changes in element interactivity, with the changes induced by different factors — a broader claim this one bears on
• Expertise reversal: cognitive load effects for novices decrease, disappear, and can reverse as expertise increases — a broader claim this one bears on
• The review reports that the isolated-elements mixed instructional method benefits novices but the benefit disappears for experienced learners, and that the imagination effect reverses with expertise — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Segmentation Benefits Shrink With Expertise — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Reviews report that the split-attention benefit for novices reverses into a redundancy effect for more experienced learners: Kalyuga et al. (2003) cite Kalyuga et al. (1998) and Yeung et al. (1998), and Ginns (2006) cites Kalyuga et al. (1998) — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Instructional method and prior knowledge interact on conceptual understanding of statistics (expertise reversal effect) — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Split-attention and redundancy effects occur for high element interactivity material but disappear for low element interactivity material — a narrower finding that bears on this claim