Lights, Cameras (on), Action! Camera Usage During Zoom Classes Facilitates Student Engagement Without Increasing Fatigue

Abstract. Video conferencing software such as Zoom has facilitated the recent explosion in online learning. As online learning becomes ever more widespread, video conferencing software such as Zoom. In two field experiments, we explored how students having their cameras on versus off affected their engagement during, and their fatigue after, a large, lecture-based class. In an affective forecasting experiment (Study 1), we asked 81 students across two university classes to predict how they would feel if they had their cameras on versus off during a particular class session. Consistent with popular concerns about “Zoom fatigue,” students expected to feel both more engaged and more fatigued when their cameras were on than when they were off. A subsequent longitudinal, experience-based study (Study 2) with 319 observations across 65 students, however, only bore out one of these expectations. As anticipated, students felt more engaged during class when they were assigned to have their camera on, but they were no more fatigued afterward. Our findings suggest that at least in the context of large online lectures, asking students to have their cameras on can increase engagement without increasing fatigue.