eLearning in Short Bursts: Examining Professional Development Microlearning Videos

YouTube viewers watch over a billion hours of videos monthly and have multiple choices on professional development resources. Individuals create user-generated content (UGC) on YouTube and use different typologies of video production styles. This quantitative content analysis study examined 80 YouTube microlearning videos that provided insight into how consumers viewed the UGC using the thumbs up/down ratings and comments. The aim was to examine the consumers’ ratings and comments using Morain & Swarts (2012) instructional design quality framework and the ARCS Model (Keller, 1987) to determine any relationships among these variables. This study found that higher scores in the IDQ framework and the ARCS Model showed a relationship with the thumbs up/down icon and consumers’ comments. The highest production and consumption ratings were in Relevance and Satisfaction in the ARCS Model and the affective design in the IDQ framework. Consumers indicated that the talking head video typology allowed them to see the presenter in the UGC to display their confidence, self-efficacy, and engage with the audience as a subject matter expert. Combining a talking head with a demonstration or text overlay also resonated well. Data were collected using a codebook related to Morain & Swarts instructional design quality framework. The findings provided insights for technical communication instructors, or anyone interested in creating relevant video content to meet the consumers’ expectations for a microlearning video of four minutes or less.