atw: Re: Psychophysics of reading, revisited
- From: James Hunt <jameshunt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 11 Apr 2011 22:06:24 +1000
On 11 Apr 2011, at 7:56 PM, Geoffrey Marnell wrote:
> Before I plough through Tinker's papers, do you know off-hand whether Tinker
> did research of font choice and comprehension? In particular, sans serif
> versus serif.
Apparently he did. This abstract is in PsycNET (http://psycnet.apa.org).
Studies of typographical factors influencing speed of reading. X. Style of type
face. By Paterson, D. G.; Tinker, M. A.
Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol 16(6), Dec 1932, 605-613.
"Ten type faces were compared with respect to their effect on reading rate. Ten
groups of 90 college students were tested—a total of 900 subjects. No important
differences in rate of reading text material were found when the following type
faces were used: Scotch Roman; Garamont; Antique; Bodoni; Old Style; Caslon O.
S.; Kabel lite; and Cheltenham. Text printed with American Typewriter type was
read 5.1% more slowly than text printed with Scotch Roman type. Cloister Black
type (Old English) retards speed of reading 16.5%. Type faces in common use are
equally legible."
Kabel Light is a sans serif typeface; Cloister Black is an elaborate Old
English typeface; American Typewriter is a monospaced serif font; and the rest
are conventional serif fonts.
JH
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