Verbatim, Standard, or Edited?: Reading Patterns of Different Captioning Styles Among Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Hearing Viewers

One of the most frequently recurring themes in captioning is whether captions should be edited or verbatim. The authors report on the results of an eye-tracking study of captioning for deaf and hard of hearing viewers reading different types of captions. By examining eye movement patterns when these viewers were watching clips with verbatim, standard, and edited captions, the authors tested whether the three different caption styles were read differently by the study participants (N = 40): 9 deaf, 21 hard of hearing, and 10 hearing individuals. Interesting interaction effects for the proportion of dwell time and fixation count were observed. In terms of group differences, deaf participants differed from the other two groups only in the case of verbatim captions. The results are discussed with reference to classical reading studies, audiovisual translation, and a new concept of viewing speed.

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