Does high perceptual load assist in reducing the seductive details effect?

Negative effects of seductive details have been well documented. One current line of research focussed on solutions to reducing the seductive details effect is becoming increasingly promising. Contributing to this line of research, this study investigated whether perceptual load moderated the seductive details effect. The study used a 2 × 2 factorial design with seductive details (seductive details vs. no seductive details) and perceptual load (high vs. low) as two independent variables. Participants (N = 123) were randomly assigned to one of four groups to study materials on atomic structure. The dependent measures were tests of free recall and of conceptual understanding. Results indicated that under high perceptual load, participants performed equally on measures of free recall and conceptual understanding, regardless of the seductive details condition. Under low perceptual load, participants not receiving seductive details outperformed those who received seductive details on both dependent measures. These findings suggest that learners are susceptible to the seductive details effect when perceptual load is low. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.