The effect of display size and text splitting on reading lengthy text from screen

Abstract

This item is not the definitive copy. Please use the following citation when referencing this material: Dillon, A., Richardson, J. and McKnight, C. (1990) The effect of display size and paragraph splitting on reading lengthy text from screen. Behaviour and Information Technology, 9(3), 215-227. Abstract: The present paper reports on an experimental investigation of reader performance and preferences with a screen-presented journal article. The effects of display size (20 lines and 60 lines) and sentence splitting on readers' manipulation, comprehension and subjective impressions are assessed. The results indicate that neither variable significantly affects comprehension but adjusted manipulation levels are significantly higher in the small window condition. Splitting sentences across screens also caused readers to return to the previous page to re-read text significantly more. Subjective data reveal a preference for larger screens and high awareness of text format. Implications for future work are discussed.