At first, digital learning was all about efficiency and presenting learners with clear information in the right order. As online learning began to evolve, it quickly became evident that learners needed more to engage them.
Emotionally intelligent e-learning videos don’t just offer facts; they make effective use of emotion and storytelling. When learners feel that emotional connection, they engage more and retain more information. As an online course creator, using emotional learning strategies can help learning to stick.
If you’re a corporate trainer, your employees will connect emotionally with content when you use relatable scenarios. This enhances their recall and application of the knowledge. Integrating emotion and meaning into information can significantly enhance memory and performance. Using the right video hosting platform for your emotionally intelligent videos can also go a long way toward transforming your workplace training.
Research on emotional connection and memory retention
Research indicates that the link between emotions and memory is a strong one. Emotions are strongly involved in the formation and recall of memories. Various studies show how people tend to have vivid recollections of emotional events and remember them for longer.
Emotional relevance attracts attention
Activating the attention of learners is essential for effective learning. Neuroscience studies show that emotional relevance causes learners to pay attention. When you can link information to emotional context, it engages more of the brain, such as the areas that process emotion and memory formation.
Deeper encoding
According to neuroscience research, learners encode content that engages them emotionally on a deep level and it stays in their long-term memory. Emotion gives memories a ‘tag’ that can improve recall at a later stage.
Human-centered learning videos that use stories and relatable examples help learners to remember key concepts. This is much more effective than giving them purely rational explanations. Emotions help the brain to determine what’s important to retain.
Lower drop-off rates
A growing amount of online learning analytics shows that encouraging, supportive delivery in videos results in lower drop-off rates. This helps learners to stay more engaged than when the tone is more like lecturing. Online learning can feel impersonal but friendly guidance can make all the difference.
Shaping motivation and self-efficacy
When instructions are given in a motivating way, they feel more achievable. The correct pacing of videos can also prevent overwhelm and give learners a sense of self-efficacy. This can make them more persistent about overcoming struggles and lead to better performance.
According to science, there’s a strong connection between emotion and memory and online education providers can make use of this.
Elements of emotionally intelligent video design
Emotional design in education isn’t about being sentimental but about being intentional. Every design choice you make must incorporate the core principles of emotional intelligence, such as empathy, if you want to create a deeper connection with your learners.
Empathy
Learners want to feel that you understand them and can relate to their specific needs. The voice and tone you use in your videos can help them to feel your empathy. It can communicate confidence without being condescending and enthusiasm without putting too much pressure on learners. A calm and friendly voice can help learners to feel supported when learning new skills.
Visual cues
Your visual choices can make learning feel more human. For example, a clean layout can reduce visual stress. The colors you choose can help to calm learners down or increase their excitement. On-screen characters or guides that show enthusiasm for a topic help to motivate learners. Visual clarity helps to reduce the cognitive load on them and they have more energy to learn.
Thoughtful pacing
A narration style that’s emotionally intelligent won’t overwhelm learners. It will have a steady and reassuring pace. If the pacing is too fast, they may feel anxious. If it’s too slow, they may become bored. A pacing strategy should include clear transitions and breaks between segments. Learners should also have time for reflecting on the material. Giving them more control over the pace at which they learn helps to increase their self-confidence.
Emotional framing
Emotional framing is using stories or challenges that make facts feel relevant to learners. You should use inclusive language such as “let’s explore this together.” In a learner motivation video, learners will understand exactly why the information matters to them in real life.
The Cincopa video hosting platform gives you the tools to create emotionally engaging learning experiences. You can use customizable video players and interactive features to help you. Its advanced analytics allow you to track the impact of your emotionally intelligent videos and gain insights on how to improve them.
Examples of emotionally intelligent video design
The impact of emotionally intelligent video design is easy to see in the workplace. It is a well-documented way to tackle onboarding, compliance, and skill-building.
Onboarding programs
New hires often feel a mixture of excitement and trepidation when they join a company. Cold and impersonal onboarding videos will do nothing to reassure them.
- The CEO of the company can give new hires a warm greeting in a welcome video. He can give them quick insight into core company values such as always making sure customers are happy.
- Current employees can tell stories about when they first started at the company and give new hires their top tips.
- You can take new hires on a visual journey as you explain the growth opportunities and career prospects within the company.
The emotional goal of these onboarding videos is to reassure new hires and to give them a sense of belonging. This helps to accelerate their integration into a company.
Compliance training
Compliance training is often seen as boring and employees may not really understand why they need it and how it applies to them. Emotionally intelligent compliance videos can change this. Rather than giving employees lists of regulations, they use relatable scenarios that employees can identify with. This emotional reframing turns compliance from being an obligation into something positive.
- Videos that help to address safety in the workplace can use scenarios about safety hazards employees often encounter in the workplace. For example, a video could show how a customer had a fall due to a spill that wasn’t cleaned.
- A video dealing with harassment could use training scenarios to help employees recognize inappropriate behavior and learn how to respond.
- A compliance training video could focus on ethical behavior and use scenarios to illustrate how to act with integrity in various situations. For example, a video could illustrate how to handle a gray area such as receiving gifts from customers.
- For cybersecurity training, you could create a whole series of video scenarios on important topics. It isn’t difficult to come up with scenarios relating to topics such as password hygiene or phishing.
Skill-building
Content related to building skills can benefit greatly from being emotionally intelligent. It means breaking down skills into easy-to-learn steps and dealing with common errors. You must use encouraging language and it’s helpful to show diverse individuals succeeding at mastering skills. Learners shouldn’t feel too pressurized but should have the chance to keep trying.
- Dealing with customers is often a challenge for new employees and teaching customer service skills with a mix of comedy and live-action material can work.
- For soft skills like communication and active listening, the emotional component makes a big difference. Video scenarios can model empathy and show good social skills.
- An emotionally intelligent video can teach employees how to communicate on a conference call. You can use graphics to illustrate behaviors and combine them with voiceover descriptions that give more clarity about the organization’s policies and processes.
Conclusion – Emotional intelligence as a competitive advantage
Emotionally intelligent e-learning videos are becoming a core differentiator in online learning. They help to improve learner motivation, reduce drop-off and create a more human-centered online learning experience. On Cincopa home page, you can sign up for a free trial and find out more about how it will help you to create and deliver emotionally intelligent e-learning videos.
