Frank Fan shared a related article with me, written by Lawson and Mayer in 2022. One of the findings from this article is the voice alone is often sufficient to convey emotion. Here's the link: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40593-021-00282-y
This is really wonderful exploration of the issue. As a toolmaker(VoiceThread) I remember starting off in the camp of -- the voice alone, allows better focus on the narrators ideas, rather than on the movement of their human face on the side of the screen. Human faces are so cognitively attractive that we almost cannot help but stare at them rather than the media that they're talking about. While I still think that's true, I now give the advice to first figure out what's most important in an activity and then make a choice about voice vs webcam. If the course is just starting off and no community has yet been established then I think it's a really good idea for the instructor to use a webcam to model the qualities of the community space they are hoping to establish, things like, being friendly, flawed, authentic, and open. Those attributes are usually going to be easier to establish with a video comment than audio alone. Liquid Syllabi are an example of that. But as with most strategies, context, context, context, first! Thanks for the great article and I hope it encourages further research in this area.
Hey Steve, it's so cool that you were involved with the development of VoiceThread. I have always liked that platform. Thank you for engaging with the article and thanks for your insightful comment as well. I agree 100% with you. Context is key and paying attention to what we want to achieve from an instructional video is important. Available evidence can also guide us in the right direction then but it has to start with asking the right questions first - which is what we were attempting to do with this article. We continue to stay on the look out for more evidence. Thanks again!
The key contention here revolves around the balance between fostering a sense of human connection and engagement versus potentially increasing cognitive load, which might hinder learning. It might be valuable to consider how these findings translate across different age groups, cultural contexts, or types of content. Moreover, the technological aspect—how sophisticated video editing or augmented reality tools might help in dynamically managing when the instructor's face is shown—could also be explored further. Regarding learning production, a well-produced video is considerably easier to produce than a quality animated video. Note that this excludes low-quality animations like Vyond or Go Animate cartoons with voice-over. I'd choose a talking head over a Vyond video any day of the week.
Thanks for sharing these insights Cam. You raise some really powerful points. I agree with your thoughts. This further confirms that there's a lot to creating and integrating videos, so many layers to consider and the number of variables are high. Now, we may not always be able to create the expensive versions of videos but paying attention to what the evidence suggests can help us reach some of those learning goals. Again, really appreciate your engagement with the article.
Great article! I've been aware of the mixed results around talking-head vs non-talking-head for a while (it's something I'm often asked by instructors!). I also sometimes come back to the basics of rhetoric and persuasion--does whoever is saying the information have an impact on how persuasive it is? If so, show their face.
The effect of a talking head may depend on the instructor's appearance alone. For instance, if the instructor has a professional, personable, and aesthetically neutral appearance, a talking head can induce minimal extraneous load and improve teacher presence. On the other hand, if the instructor's appearance is either extremely attractive or utterly disturbing, it may do a disservice to learning.
I did not include a talking head in my recorded presentation, but I used my voice to deliver subtle messages through the tone. I can evaluate the effectiveness of this approach once I launch my courses in the market.
Frank Fan shared a related article with me, written by Lawson and Mayer in 2022. One of the findings from this article is the voice alone is often sufficient to convey emotion. Here's the link: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40593-021-00282-y
Thank you for sharing this Jim.
This is really wonderful exploration of the issue. As a toolmaker(VoiceThread) I remember starting off in the camp of -- the voice alone, allows better focus on the narrators ideas, rather than on the movement of their human face on the side of the screen. Human faces are so cognitively attractive that we almost cannot help but stare at them rather than the media that they're talking about. While I still think that's true, I now give the advice to first figure out what's most important in an activity and then make a choice about voice vs webcam. If the course is just starting off and no community has yet been established then I think it's a really good idea for the instructor to use a webcam to model the qualities of the community space they are hoping to establish, things like, being friendly, flawed, authentic, and open. Those attributes are usually going to be easier to establish with a video comment than audio alone. Liquid Syllabi are an example of that. But as with most strategies, context, context, context, first! Thanks for the great article and I hope it encourages further research in this area.
Hey Steve, it's so cool that you were involved with the development of VoiceThread. I have always liked that platform. Thank you for engaging with the article and thanks for your insightful comment as well. I agree 100% with you. Context is key and paying attention to what we want to achieve from an instructional video is important. Available evidence can also guide us in the right direction then but it has to start with asking the right questions first - which is what we were attempting to do with this article. We continue to stay on the look out for more evidence. Thanks again!
The key contention here revolves around the balance between fostering a sense of human connection and engagement versus potentially increasing cognitive load, which might hinder learning. It might be valuable to consider how these findings translate across different age groups, cultural contexts, or types of content. Moreover, the technological aspect—how sophisticated video editing or augmented reality tools might help in dynamically managing when the instructor's face is shown—could also be explored further. Regarding learning production, a well-produced video is considerably easier to produce than a quality animated video. Note that this excludes low-quality animations like Vyond or Go Animate cartoons with voice-over. I'd choose a talking head over a Vyond video any day of the week.
This was a great read. Thank you, Nidhi!
Thanks for sharing these insights Cam. You raise some really powerful points. I agree with your thoughts. This further confirms that there's a lot to creating and integrating videos, so many layers to consider and the number of variables are high. Now, we may not always be able to create the expensive versions of videos but paying attention to what the evidence suggests can help us reach some of those learning goals. Again, really appreciate your engagement with the article.
Great article! I've been aware of the mixed results around talking-head vs non-talking-head for a while (it's something I'm often asked by instructors!). I also sometimes come back to the basics of rhetoric and persuasion--does whoever is saying the information have an impact on how persuasive it is? If so, show their face.
That's a great point Jess. Thank you got engaging with the piece and sharing your insights!!!
Another factor to consider:
The effect of a talking head may depend on the instructor's appearance alone. For instance, if the instructor has a professional, personable, and aesthetically neutral appearance, a talking head can induce minimal extraneous load and improve teacher presence. On the other hand, if the instructor's appearance is either extremely attractive or utterly disturbing, it may do a disservice to learning.
I did not include a talking head in my recorded presentation, but I used my voice to deliver subtle messages through the tone. I can evaluate the effectiveness of this approach once I launch my courses in the market.