Effects of Feedback Providers' Positive Emotional Tone and Gender on Learning From a Multimedia Lesson

ABSTRACT Background and Objective The positivity principle states that students learn better from instructors who display positive rather than negative or neutral emotions in multimedia lessons (Lawson et al. 2021a). This study extends this work by exploring the role of affective and social cues displayed by feedback providers, such as their emotional tone and gender, on multimedia learning. Method In this between‐subject study, 160 college students received a five‐section video lesson on human vision, with two practice questions inserted after each section. After each question, students received explanatory feedback videos presented by either a male or female feedback provider who displayed either positive or neutral emotion through gesture and voice. Results Students who received feedback from providers with a positive emotional tone rated the provider higher on perceived positive emotion, supportiveness and competence, as well as on their own feelings of positivity. However, the emotional tone of the feedback provider did not impact posttest scores. Additionally, female feedback providers were perceived to be more negative, less supportive and less competent than male feedback providers, but the gender of feedback providers had no effect on posttest scores. Conclusion This study expands the positivity principle (Horovitz and Mayer 2021) and the cognitive‐affective model of e‐learning (Lawson et al. 2021a) by showing that positive emotional cues from feedback providers enhance learning, similar to the impact of the instructor's emotional cues in presenting the main lesson. These findings highlight the broader role of positivity in creating engaging and supportive multimedia learning environments across contexts.