Experimental Study on the Effects of Seductive Details and the Individual Differences

Abstract

This study investigated the association between seductive details effect and level of learning vocabulary. An online experiment targeting participants aged 18–29 was conducted in April 2018 (n＝936; 407 men and 529 women). Participants were randomly divided into two groups and provided an educational session on English vocabulary. Only one group was presented seductive details (i.e., a stopwatch and number of learners currently online). KATAGIRI’s (2002) 10-minute vocabulary test was administered before and after the session, and scores were compared across groups. The results showed that seductive details helped lower-level learners, which was mediated by their time spent in learning. In other words, learning seems to be expedited by seductive details among lower-level learners. However, seductive details inhibited higher-level learners. It was interpreted that seductive details inhibited metacognitive monitoring in higher-level, which they often use as a learning strategy.