The imagination effect (cognitive rehearsal of example procedures) enhances learning only for learners with prior knowledge¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · review r3 · q2
Currency · newest study 2010 · checked against its sources 2026-10-21 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Imagining or cognitively rehearsing the procedure presented in examples enhances learning compared to studying only, but only for students with prior knowledge; for students without prior knowledge, imagining is detrimental. → Tamara van Gog & Nikol Rummel 2010

Evidence¶

Tamara van Gog & Nikol Rummel 2010¶

Tamara van Gog & Nikol Rummel. (2010). Example-Based Learning: Integrating Cognitive and Social-Cognitive Research Perspectives. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-010-9134-7

q2 · i? · review · r3

Narrative review citing Cooper et al. and Ginns et al.: imagining benefits knowledgeable learners while being detrimental for novices, an instance of the expertise reversal effect. Leahy and Sweller showed the effect is more likely with complex, high-intrinsic-load materials.

"The imagination effect shows that imagining or — as Bandura ( 1986) calls it — cognitively rehearsing the procedure presented in examples enhances learning compared to studying only — at least for students with prior knowledge"

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• 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 — possibly the same claim (merge candidate)
• The relative effectiveness of instructional methods reverses as levels of learner knowledge in a domain change (the expertise reversal effect) — a broader claim this one bears on
• Variations in cognitive activation are reflected in the germane cognitive load scale: prompted imagination and disfluent text raise GCL — related
• Expertise reversal: high-guidance worked examples become ineffective or detrimental once learners have developed cognitive schemata — related
• Design guidelines beneficial for novice learners can be ineffective or even detrimental when applied to experts (expertise reversal) — a broader claim this one bears on
• Imagining worked examples benefits learners with adequate prior knowledge but harms performance for low-knowledge learners — possibly the same claim (merge candidate)