Emotional design in multimedia learning: Effects of multidimensional concept maps and animation on affect and learning

This study examines the benefits of multimedia materials that combine animation and multidimensional concept maps. In this quasi-experimental study, 114 students from two classes at the college of business of a private university in Taiwan participated in a 6-week teaching experiment. The research instruments included learning achievement tests and a learning well-being scale. The data analyses used a one-way analysis of covariance, a paired sample t-test, a Sobel's z-test, and a path regression analysis. The results indicated that students who learned with multimedia materials that combined animation and colourful multidimensional concept maps presented significantly higher learning well-being than students who learned with achromatic multidimensional concept maps. Moreover, students who learned with multimedia materials that combined animation and colourful multidimensional concept maps presented significantly higher learning achievement than students who learned with achromatic multidimensional concept maps. A mediation analysis suggested that learning well-being mediated the effect of learning with different multimedia materials on students' learning achievement. This study suggests that multidimensional concept maps and animation have a function in multimedia instruction.