Many digital learning programmes are technically sound, well-produced and full of good intentions. Yet learners are increasingly tired, disengaged and struggling to retain what they’ve completed. One of the clearest explanations for this gap is cognitive load. This blog explores what cognitive load actually is, why digital learning has become cognitively expensive, and what that is quietly costing organisations.

What we mean by cognitive load

Cognitive load is a simple idea. It describes how much mental effort a person needs to process information at any given moment.

People have limited working memory. When too much information arrives at once, the brain starts prioritising survival over learning. It looks for shortcuts, skims detail, and focuses on getting through rather than understanding.

This isn’t a weakness. It’s how humans think. Digital learning that ignores this limit often overwhelms people without realising it.

Why digital learning has become cognitively expensive

Over time, many digital learning experiences have grown heavier rather than clearer.

Courses are longer, often because multiple objectives are combined into a single programme. Screens are dense, filled with text, visuals, interactions and instructions competing for attention. Learners are expected to multitask, completing learning alongside meetings, emails and live work.

On top of this, learning now sits inside an environment of constant notifications. Messages, alerts and platform prompts interrupt focus before it can settle. Even when learning content is well written, the surrounding conditions make sustained attention difficult.

AI has accelerated this trend in some contexts. Content can now be generated faster than it can be thoughtfully shaped. The result is often more material, delivered at speed, without enough consideration for how much a learner can realistically process.

The hidden costs of overload

When cognitive load is too high, learning still appears to function. Courses are completed. Knowledge checks are passed. Reports look reassuring.

But the quality of learning changes. Retention drops because information never fully settles. Transfer to real work remains low because learners haven’t had space to integrate what they’ve seen. False confidence can emerge, where familiarity is mistaken for competence.

Over time, disengagement grows. Learners don’t always complain. Instead, they adapt by doing the minimum required and moving on as quickly as possible.

Why ‘engaging’ content can still overwhelm

There’s a common assumption that engagement solves overload. In reality, engaging content can increase cognitive load if it isn’t designed carefully.

Animations, interactions, branching and storytelling all require mental effort. When they are layered on top of dense content or unclear objectives, they compete rather than support understanding.

Engagement isn’t about adding stimulation. It’s about directing attention. When everything tries to be engaging, nothing truly is.

This is not a learner problem

It’s important to be clear about where responsibility sits.

Learners aren’t struggling because they’re unmotivated or distracted by choice. They’re responding rationally to environments that ask too much of their attention at once.

Cognitive overload is a design problem, not a discipline problem. And until it’s addressed as such, improvements elsewhere will have limited effect.

What this sets up

Understanding cognitive load gives L&D leaders a clearer way to describe what’s going wrong. It moves the conversation away from engagement scores and completion rates, and towards how learning actually feels to process.

In the next blog, we explore what it looks like to design digital learning that respects cognitive limits. Not by simplifying for the sake of it, but by designing in ways that make learning easier to absorb, remember and apply.

FAQs: Cognitive load and digital learning

What is cognitive load in simple terms?

Cognitive load refers to how much mental effort a learner needs to process information. When it’s too high, learning becomes harder rather than more effective.

Why is cognitive overload common in digital learning?

Because content has grown longer and denser, learners are multitasking more, and learning sits inside noisy digital environments.

Does engaging content reduce cognitive load?

Not automatically. Poorly designed interactions and media can increase cognitive load if they compete with core content.

Is cognitive overload a motivation issue?

No. It’s a predictable response to environments that exceed working memory limits.