Mental rotation ability moderates the alignment benefit: higher-ability participants benefit more from recording–expected angle alignment¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (2 entries) · causal r2 · q3 · i2 medium
Currency · newest study 2026 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i2 MRT significantly moderated the effect of recording–expected angle alignment on task performance (β = 0.23), with higher MRT associated with greater benefit from alignment. → de Jonge 2026 q3 i2 MRT had a significant main effect on cognitive load during the task (β = 0.20), with higher MRT scores associated with lower load. → de Jonge 2026 (2)

Evidence¶

de Jonge 2026¶

de Jonge, T. H. S., de Koning, B. B., & van Wermeskerken, M. (2026). It's all a matter of expectancy: How expectancies about task execution perspective influence learning through video modeling examples. Learning and Instruction, 105, 102422. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2026.102422

q3 · i2 · causal · r2

Exploratory linear mixed-effects model adding MRT as moderator. MRT significantly moderated the alignment effect on task performance, "β = 0.23"; higher MRT ability meant more benefit from alignment. MRT did not significantly moderate the three-way match effect (p = .164).

"MRT significantly moderated the effect of alignment between the recording angle and the expected angle (t(123) = 2.51, p = .013, SE = 0.08, β = 0.23), with a moderately small effect size. Specifically, the higher their MRT ability, the more participants appeared to benefit from alignment between these angles."

de Jonge 2026 (2)¶

de Jonge, T. H. S., de Koning, B. B., & van Wermeskerken, M. (2026). It's all a matter of expectancy: How expectancies about task execution perspective influence learning through video modeling examples. Learning and Instruction, 105, 102422. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2026.102422

q3 · i2 · causal · r2

Exploratory model for cognitive load during the task: MRT main effect significant, "β = 0.20"; higher MRT scores were associated with less cognitive load during the task. MRT did not significantly moderate the recording–task angle alignment effect (p = .118).

"In the model for cognitive load during the task, MRT had a significant main effect (t(126) = 2.36, p = .020, SE = 0.04, β = 0.20). On average, individuals with higher MRT scores experienced less cognitive load during the task (a moderately small effect)."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Spatial Ability — moderator: an instructional effect differs with it

Related Claims¶

• Alignment between recording angle and expected task angle strongly improves task performance, supporting the Expectation Alignment Hypothesis — related
• First-person video modeling examples yield better task performance than third-person videos regardless of expected or task angle, supporting the Embodied Resonance Hypothesis — related
• Participants informed in advance about a misaligned task angle performed worse and reported higher video cognitive load than those surprised by the misalignment — related
• Mismatch between recording angle and expected angle increases cognitive load both during video observation and during task execution — related
• Recording angle alone does not affect self-reported cognitive load during video observation or task execution — related