Reader-Controlled Computerized Presentation of Text

In five experiments new methods of computer-supported reading were introduced and tested. Self-pacing was permitted in rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP), in which words are presented sequentially at a fixed locus. In Experiments 2 through 5 regressions were also allowed in RSVP. Larger regressions yielded slower reading. Regressions back to the beginning of the sentence were more frequent than regressions back two words. There was no difference in reading speed or comprehension caused by the nature, analogue (mouse), or digital (keystroke) of the control over reading speed, but there was a greater tendency to change speed in the analogue condition than in the digital condition. In Experiment 5 subjects read for over two hours in an RSVP condition with self-pacing and regressions or in a normal page condition: subjective reports of discomfort were not different in the two conditions, but reading speed in the RSVP condition was approximately half that in the page condition. Overall these results indicate that permitting reader control in RSVP is feasible but that permitting regressions sometimes results in slow reading.