For Whom is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words

Mayer, R.E., Sims, V.K. (1994). For whom is a picture worth a thousand words? Extensions of a dual-coding theory of multimedia learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 86, 389-401.

The paper examines how students' the role of spatial ability in learning from verbal and visual instruction to be able to describe how words and pictures should be used in scientific explanations. The experiments looks at whether giving the verbal and visual information concurrently or successively would help learners understand better.

Dual-coding theory of multimedia learning: three steps process of how visual and verbal presentations can be integrated in learner's working memory during learning.
1- Construction of verbal representation connection,Verbal encoding : from external representation to internal (mental) representation
2- Construction of visual representation connection, Visual encoding : from external representation to internal (mental) representation
3- Construction of referential connections between the two mental representations

According to this model of dual coding theory, instructions that promote these three connections,  promote problem solving.

The contiguity effect: When verbal and visual representations are presented contiguously vs separately.
Role of experience in learning from animations and narrations:  Low experience learners most likely to benefit from the words and pictures that are presented simultaneously. So the experiments are not done for high experience learners.
Role of ability in learning from animations and narrations: spatial visualization, the ability to mentally rotate or fold objects in two or three dimensions and imagine the changing configuration that would result from such manipulations.

High spatial ability learner:

• should be able to construct connections between visual and verbal representations when they are presented simultaneously or separately. 
• has large contiguity effect for high spatial ability learners, because they can enhance the coordinated visual and verbal information

Low spatial ability learner

• can only construct connection when the visual and verbal information are simultaneous. 
• have shorter memory spans

Experiment and results:

• low spatial ability learners need to devote more cognitive resources to build connections then high spatial ability learners 
• low spatial ability learners didn't show a significant difference between the learners that received concurrent, successive presentation or no presentation.
• inexperienced students were better in transferring what they learned when visual and verbal information were concurrent - explains the dual coding theory of multimedia learning
• contiguity effect was strong for high spatial ability learners- spatial ability enhances the coordinated instructions