The effect of anticipated achievement feedback on students' semantic processing as indicated by the N400 cloze effect
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Publication date
2017-02-01
Authors
Janssen, Eva
van der Ven, S.H.G.
van Hoogmoed, Anne H.
Leseman, Paul
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Supervisors
Document Type
Article
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taverne
Abstract
The present study examined the effects of anticipated achievement feedback on students' semantic processing on the neural level, using event-related brain potentials (ERPs). Participants (N = 79) anticipated either self-referential or normative achievement feedback regarding an announced upcoming test. Additionally, their performance expectations (low vs. no expectations) were orthogonally manipulated. Subsequently, students' on-line semantic processing was assessed by measuring the N400 cloze effect, a component in the EEG signal of which the amplitude is associated with semantic processing. Within the low performance-expectation condition, no effect of anticipated feedback on semantic processing was found. Within the no-performance-expectation condition, participants anticipating self-referential feedback showed a more widely distributed N400 cloze effect than participants anticipating normative feedback. The results confirmed the hypothesis that the mere expectation of a particular type of feedback can affect students' semantic processes.
Keywords
Anticipated achievement feedback, Emotions, Event-related potentials, N400, Semantic processing, Taverne, Education, Developmental and Educational Psychology
Citation
Janssen, E M, van der Ven, S H G, van Hoogmoed, A H & Leseman, P P M 2017, 'The effect of anticipated achievement feedback on students' semantic processing as indicated by the N400 cloze effect', Learning and Instruction, vol. 47, pp. 80-90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2016.10.003