What do we learn from docutainment? Processing hybrid television documentaries

This study examined how hybrid documentary formats, which embed educational contents into narratives, are cognitively processed. Based on existing research and theories, two reception modes were identified: processing with a focus on the narrative plotline and processing with a focus on the thematic structure. In two experiments, two markers of narrative processing could be found for hybrid television documentaries: the experience of transportation and the narrative distance effect. In the first experiment, it could be shown that re-enactments and personal variables enhance the experience of transportation. The second experiment confirmed the narrative distance effect, which occurs independently of reception goals. This means that educational facts which are closely tied to the narrative plotline were learned better than distant facts, regardless of whether the recipients watched the documentary for information or entertainment purposes. The study supplements prior theories on hybrid processing and provides conditions under which narratives are appropriate for learning.

► Hybrid documentary formats (HDF) are narratively processed. ► Transportation is enhanced by the use of re-enactments in HDF. ► Transportation is enhanced by imagery ability and prior involvement. ► Educational facts close to the narrative are better learned than distant facts. ► The narrative distance effect is not influenced by different reception goals.