The Moderating Role of Interest in the Relationship between Perceived Task Difficulty and Invested Mental Effort

Bibliographic Data

ID22043441
AuthorsKatrin Schuessler (0000-0002-8486-0344, University of Duisburg-Essen, corresponding author), Vanessa Fischer (0000-0002-2601-3825, University of Duisburg-Essen), Maik Walpuski (0000-0002-3761-1409, University of Duisburg-Essen), Detlev Leutner (0000-0001-5308-9094, University of Duisburg-Essen)
Year2024
Volume14
Issue10
Pages1044
Publication date2024-09-24
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEducation Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2227-7102 • E-ISSN: 2227-7102
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/educsci14101044
OpenAlexW4402850903
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited46

Including motivational variables such as interest in the cognitive load framework is an ongoing process. Of particular interest is the question of how motivational variables influence the investment of mental effort. In this study, we investigated how topic interest affects the investment of mental effort in simple tasks. A total of 1543 students’ judgments regarding invested mental effort, perceived task difficulty, and topic interest for 32 tasks of a chemistry test were analyzed at the task level based on item response theory parameters. Additionally, objective task difficulty was calculated. The Rasch parameters were used for correlation and moderated regression analyses. The results indicated that when perceived task difficulty was low, students invested more mental effort in solving tasks of low topic interest compared to tasks of high topic interest. With increasing perceived task difficulty, the amount of invested mental effort rose for tasks of low as well as high topic interest. However, the difference between tasks of low and high topic interest in the amount of invested mental effort decreased as perceived task difficulty increased and even vanished when perceived task difficulty roughly corresponded to students’ performance capability. These results are in line with flow theory and the expectancy-value-cost model of motivation. When solving tasks that match their performance capability, students can experience a flow situation. However, when solving rather easy tasks of low interest, students can experience motivational costs in terms of additional effort, such as an increased need for motivational self-regulation. The results of this study provide a basis for systematically investigating and better understanding the relationship between interest, task difficulty, invested mental effort, flow experience, and emotional costs

Cognitive psychology · Cognitive science · Mental model · Task Analysis · Applied Psychology · Grit, Self-Efficacy, and Motivation · Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction · Psychology · Social Psychology

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