Scholars and practitioners of workplace learning have put forward the claim that the use of film (and other forms of multimedia) enhances learning.  However, the evidence of film’s usefulness in a corporate learning setting has been far from convincing.  The research showing the impact of film on learning is largely anecdotal and the empirical research that has been done has not focused on workplace learning but rather on other contexts such as language learning and the traditional college setting.  Often, the anecdotal evidence suggested that the use of film increased participants’ engagement, perhaps leading to enhanced learning.

The Total Recall Study

My doctoral research study, “Total Recall: Using Film to Enhance Learning,” involved an experiment that takes a step toward building such a theory that using film in a corporate learning setting can have a significant improvement on information retention.  Compared to existing literature on this topic, the results of this dissertation’s research offered the most comprehensive randomized experiment available.

The experiment included four differing instances of “film versus no film” for participants in a similar workplace learning setting.  It included an identical workshop survey (test) to measure information retention from control and treatment groups.  The experiment was conducted over a five-month period, on three continents and five countries, including 339 participants from different country cultures.  The results of the experiment show: a) increased retention, of which most of the increases are statistically significant, in all four instances when film was used versus no film and; b) contrary to existing research, the use of film did not significantly increase participants’ level of engagement.  Deeper quantitative statistical analyses, including multi-regression analyses when controlling for variables, further supported the experiment’s findings and led me to create a pedagogical model that I call “Total Recall.”  The model consists of four recommendations, based on the evidence of my findings, when using film in a corporate learning setting:

• Shorter is Better:use shorter clips lasting up to 2 to 5 minutes
• Signaling Effect: edit keywords into the video so they will appear visually at approximately the same time that the key words are spoken or after messages are delivered.
• Leader Effect: compared to participants who are individual contributors, people managers scored significantly higher with messages that featured leaders.
• Language Effect:using video when delivering training in participants’ secondary language, not their primary language, will boost retention.

Implications of Total Recall

Companies are faced with two particular employee development challenges.  The first challenge is due to the scrutiny of learning and development budgets during the past several years in reaction to difficult global economic conditions.  The second challenge is specific to global companies with employees who are spread over various countries.  The employees have different communication and learning styles and come from various country cultures.  It may be necessary to deliver training in their secondary language rather than their mother tongue.  Based on these two particular challenges, it is essential for companies to optimize its investment in training and to demonstrate that the learning function is thoughtfully and effectively adding value to organizational performance.  The learning intervention choices we make are coming under greater scrutiny.  Therefore, it is best to make those choices supported by evidence of effectiveness.

The “Total Recall” study resulted in empirical evidence that information retention was significantly increased when film was used and, contrary to existing literature, participant engagement levels, which were the same with or without film, had no impact on increased retention.  If this is the case, workplace learning leaders – particularly given the increasing pressure for them to do more with less – should take note and consider incorporating film into their curricula if they have not already done so.

Leadership FilmWorks is a leadership development firm that uses the synergy of creative technology, film, and storytelling to inspire, teach and develop leadership. Incorporating Dr. Douglas Clayton’s groundbreaking “Total Recall” approach to training, our program upskills your leaders to manage their teams and responsibilities through changing times, facilitate a productive and engaged environment in the virtual workplace, retain talent, build strong teams, and stay competitive. If you’re interested in learning more, contact us to set up a free consultation.