Model-comparison approach for linear vs non-linear mental-effort relations (Models 0–4)

Research Method · All research methods
Evidence · 3 claims (3 for) · 1 study (1 associational), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 3 claims rest on one study

Description

A reusable analytic procedure the article introduces: five competing two-level mixed-effects models (random participant intercepts) ordered by complexity — no relation, linear, quadratic, cubic, and more complex than cubic (mental effort as factor) — compared on marginal R2, AIC and BIC. Model 4 sets "the maximum possible R2M for a set of fixed effects", letting researchers quantify what is lost by simplifying. The authors state "the approach we have provided is applicable to any study that involves sufficiently large samples and/or includes multiple measurements from the same participants".

Accounts

• Model-comparison approach for linear vs non-linear mental-effort relations (Models 0–4): A reusable analytic procedure the article introduces: five competing two-level mixed-effects models (random participant intercepts) ordered by complexity — no relation, linear, quadratic, cubic, and more complex than cubic (mental effort as factor) — compared on marginal R2, AIC and BIC. Model 4 sets "the maximum possible R2M for a set of fixed effects", letting researchers quantify what is lost by simplifying. The authors state "the approach we have provided is applicable to any study that involves sufficiently large samples and/or includes multiple measurements from the same participants". (Jimmie Leppink et al. (2019))

Claims

• Mental effort relates to response time in a J-shaped quadratic rather than linear pattern [+M]
• Mental effort relates to self-rated certainty in a cubic (declining–flat–declining) rather than linear pattern [+M]
• Evidence on the mental effort–workload relation is mixed: AIC prefers quadratic, BIC prefers linear [+M]

Related Research Methods

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Key Sources

• Jimmie Leppink & Patricia Pérez-Fuster. (2019). Mental Effort, Workload, Time on Task, and Certainty: Beyond Linear Models. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-018-09460-2

Page metadata

Field	Value
type	research-method
id	model-comparison-approach-for-linear-vs-non-linear-mental-effort-relations-models-04
title	Model-comparison approach for linear vs non-linear mental-effort relations (Models 0–4)
description	A reusable analytic procedure the article introduces: five competing two-level mixed-effects models (random participant intercepts) ordered by complexity — no relation, linear, quadratic, cubic, and more complex than cubic (mental effort as factor) — compared on marginal R2, AIC and BIC.
status	review
generated	by process:settle-candidates on 2026-10-21
trust	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content

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