Eye-tracking viewers' processing of web-based multimedia information

This study utilized eye-tracking technology to realize how viewers processed web-based multimedia information. Eight non-science major college students participated in this study. The students' eyes were more fixated on the text than on the illustration area when viewing the web pages. The text explanations seemed to provide greater detail than the pictorial information in presenting the content knowledge. Using successive web pages with less information seemed to promote more eye fixations on the illustration area. It was possibly because this reduced students' cognitive workload in information processing. Eye-tracking technology was helpful in exploring students' cognitive processes in multimedia learning. Discussions and suggestions for instructional designers and for future studies are provided in this paper.