Cognitive load theory (Sweller, 1988) distinguishes three types of mental effort:
1. Intrinsic load: complexity inherent to the material itself 2. Extraneous load: unnecessary complexity added by poor presentation or design 3. Germane load: productive effort that builds schemas and deepens understanding
Effective thinking requires managing cognitive load. When load exceeds working memory capacity, performance degrades sharply — this is why complex decisions made under time pressure or stress are systematically worse.
Metacognitive regulation is partly the skill of managing your own cognitive load: breaking complex problems into manageable chunks, offloading information to external systems, and knowing when to slow down and when you can rely on pattern recognition.