COST IS1404 E-READ by Anne Mangen
Basic reading skills is a matter of urgent concern. Research shows that the amount of time spent ... more Basic reading skills is a matter of urgent concern. Research shows that the amount of time spent reading long-form texts is in decline, and due in large part to increasing digitization, reading is becoming more intermittent and fragmented overall. In international reading assessments (TIMSS/PIRLS [2006; 2011]; PISA [2009, 2012]), students from Asia, Canada and Oceania performed better than European students on several measures. In Europe, one in five lacks adequate reading skills. There is much speculation about the cognitive implications of digitization, and empirical evidence indicates that affordances of screen devices might negatively impact cognitive and emotional aspects of reading. The goal of this Action is to improve scientific understanding of the implications of digitization, hence helping individuals, disciplines, societies and sectors across Europe to cope optimally with the effects. Based on a multidimensional, integrative model of reading, and combining paradigms from experimental sciences with perspectives (e.g., diachronic) from the humanities, the Action will develop new research paradigms and a number of metrics for assessing the impact of digitization on textual reading. These metrics support the development of evidence-based knowledge of paper and screen reading, and provide guidance for practitioners, policy makers, publishers and designers.
Papers by Anne Mangen
This article presents the design, methodology and materials of an inter-Nordic study of literary ... more This article presents the design, methodology and materials of an inter-Nordic study of literary reading among students in teacher education, in which relations between literary style and experiential aspects of literary reading (e.g., empathy and transportation) were assessed empirically. The participants in the study read Katherine Manfield’s (1922) short story “The Fly” in the original version vs. in a manipulated version where typical features of literariness (e.g., metaphors and similes) were removed. Combining quantitative measures of empathy, appreciation of literature, and aspects of reading engagement with qualitative methods, the aim of the study was to probe the depths of readers’ subjective reading experience. In reporting the study the article introduces paradigms and measures from interdisciplinary empirical research on literary reading which is less known in a Nordic context but which is rapidly gaining momentum internationally.
[First five pages only; full text available from author on request]
The objective of this article is to review extant empirical studies of empathy in narrative readi... more The objective of this article is to review extant empirical studies of empathy in narrative reading in light of (i) contemporary literary theory, and (ii) neuroscientific studies of empathy, and to discuss how a closer interplay between neuroscience and literary studies may enhance our understanding of empathy in narrative reading. An introduction to some of the philosophical roots of empathy is followed by tracing its application in contemporary literary theory, in which scholars have pursued empathy with varying degrees of conceptual precision, often within the context of embodied/enactive cognition. The presentation of empirical literary studies of empathy is subsequently contextualized by an overview of psychological and neuroscientific aspects of empathy. Highlighting points of convergence and divergence, the discussion illustrates how findings of empirical literary studies align with recent neuroscientific research. The article concludes with some prospects for future empirical research, suggesting that digitization may contribute to advancing the scientific knowledge of empathy in narrative reading.
Several quantitative studies (e.g. Kidd & Castano, 2013; Mar et al., 2009) have shown a positive ... more Several quantitative studies (e.g. Kidd & Castano, 2013; Mar et al., 2009) have shown a positive correlation between literary reading and empathy. However, the literary nature of the stimuli used in these studies has not been defined at a more detailed, stylistic level. In order to explore the stylistic underpinnings of the hypothesized link between literariness and empathy, we conducted a qualitative experiment in which the degree of stylistic foregrounding was manipulated. Subjects (N = 37) read versions of Katherine Mansfield's 'The Fly', a short story rich in foregrounding, while marking striking and evocative passages of their choosing. Afterwards, they were asked to select three markings and elaborate on their experiences in writing. One group read the original story, while the other read a 'non-literary' version, produced by an established author of suspense fiction for young adults, where stylistic foregrounding was reduced. We found that the non-literary version elicited significantly more (p < 0.05) explicitly empathic responses than the original story. This finding stands in contradiction to widely accepted assumptions in recent research, but can be assimilated in alternative models of literariness and affect in literary reading (e.g. Cupchik et al., 1998). We present an analysis of the data with a view to offering more than one interpretation of the observed effects of stylistic foregrounding.
This book provides a detailed overview of current or recent research exploring a wide range of id... more This book provides a detailed overview of current or recent research exploring a wide range of ideas, theories, and practices around written text production. European researchers from a broad range of disciplines brought together under the European Research Network on Learning to Write Effectively were instructed to contribute short papers summarising their current activity. The papers are grouped around the four main themes. The first deals with issues around the development of basic ("low-level") writing skills, mainly in the early years of education. The second section focuses directly on … read moreissues around the teaching and learning of writing. This is divided into five parts that describe: evaluations of different forms of writing instruction, research exploring the processes by which writers learn, methods of text assessment in educational contexts, research exploring the effects of various learner and teacher variables on the development of writing skill, and conceptions of and variation in educational text genres. The third section reports research exploring effective document design. The final section has a main focus on tools for exploring the writing process
Reading and writing are increasingly digitized at all levels of education, and in beginning writi... more Reading and writing are increasingly digitized at all levels of education, and in beginning writing instruction, children are often introduced to writing by using keyboards rather than by pen-and-paper handwriting. The short-term and long-term cognitive, educational and socio-cultural implications of such a transition are largely unknown. In this article, we discuss some urgent questions relating to the ongoing marginalization of handwriting. By reference to extant research particularly addressing the motor component of writing, and drawing on key theoretical insights of embodied cognition, we address the role of the material affordances and sensorimotor contingencies of keyboards and handwriting implements in the development of basic writing skills.
Reading and writing are increasingly performed with digital, screen-based technologies rather tha... more Reading and writing are increasingly performed with digital, screen-based technologies rather than with analogue technologies such as paper and pen(cil). The current digitization is an occasion to "unpack," theoretically and conceptually, what is entailed in reading and writing as embodied, multisensory processes involving audiovisual and ergonomic interaction with devices having particular affordances. Highlighting the sensorimotor contingencies of substrates and technologieshow movement and object manipulation affect perception, experience, and sensory "feel" -this article presents an embodied approach to reading, writing, and literacy, using three cases of digitization as illustrations of some educational implications: (1) beginning writing by hand or by keyboard; (2) dialogic reading with iPads and print picture books in kindergarten; and (3) deep reading of long, linear texts on paper and on screens.
In the course of digitisation, the range of substrates for textual reading is being expanded to i... more In the course of digitisation, the range of substrates for textual reading is being expanded to include a number of screen-based technologies and reading devices, such as e-readers (e.g. Kindle) and tablets (e.g. iPad). These technologies have distinctly different affordances than paper has. Given that textual reading is at the same time likely to remain important as a cultural practice, and is undergoing massive change as digital screens are supplementing paperwith the potential to replace it as the dominant substratethere is an urgent need to investigate what effects such change might have on the reading of different kinds of texts, for different purposes. This article proposes the need for an integrative, transdisciplinary model of embodied, textual reading accounting for its psychological, ergonomic, technological, social, cultural and evolutionary aspects. The envisaged model aims to be partly explanatory, in the sense that it aligns and integrates existing knowledge, and partly exploratory, in the sense that it points to blank spots in our knowledge where further research is needed. The model will thus serve to guide the planning of such further research, and to make research more compatible and research outcomes more widely useable.
Abstract: The objective of this study was to explore effects of writing modality on word recall a... more Abstract: The objective of this study was to explore effects of writing modality on word recall and recognition. The following three writing modalities were used: handwriting with pen on paper; typewriting on a conventional laptop keyboard; and typewriting on an iPad touch keyboard. Thirty-six females aged 19-54 years participated in a fully counterbalanced within-subjects experimental design. Using a wordlist paradigm, participants were instructed to write down words (one list per writing modality) read out loud to them, in the three writing modalities. Memory for words written using handwriting, a conventional keyboard and a virtual iPad keyboard was assessed using oral free recall and recognition. The data was analyzed using non-parametric statistics. Results show that there was an omnibus effect of writing modality and follow-up analyses showed that, for the free recall measure, participants had significantly better free recall of words written in the handwriting condition, compared to both keyboard writing conditions. There was no effect of writing modality in the recognition condition. This indicates that, with respect to aspects of word recall, there may be certain cognitive benefits to handwriting which may not be fully retained in keyboard writing. Cognitive and educational implications of this finding are discussed.
Convergence
Abstract: Ever since their appearance in the early 1990s, hypertext novels were presented as the ... more Abstract: Ever since their appearance in the early 1990s, hypertext novels were presented as the pinnacle of digital aesthetics, and claimed to represent the revolutionary future of literature. However, as a literary phenomenon, hypertext novels have remained marginal. The article presents some scientifically derived explanations as to why hypertext novels do not have a mass audience, and why they are likely to remain a marginal contribution in the history of literature. Three explanatory frameworks are provided: (1) how hypertext relates to our cognitive information processing in general; (2) the empirically derived psychological reasons for how we read and enjoy literature in particular; (3) the likely evolutionary origins of such a predilection for storytelling and literature. It is shown how hypertext theory, by ignoring such knowledge, has yielded misguided statements and uncorroborated claims guided by ideology rather than by scientifically supported knowledge.
Keywords
Hypertext novels, cognitive processing, literary reading, evolutionary origins, interdisciplinarity
Scientific Study of Literature
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of reading medium and a paratext m... more Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of reading medium and a paratext manipulation on aspects of narrative engagement. In a 2 (medium: booklet vs. iPad) by 2 (paratext: fiction vs. nonfiction) between-subjects factorial design, the study combined state oriented measures of narrative engagement and a newly developed measure of interface interference. Results indicated that, independently of prior experience with reading on electronic media, readers in the iPad condition reported dislocation within the text and awkwardness in handling their medium. Also, iPad readers who believed they were reading nonfiction were less likely to report narrative coherence and transportation, while booklet readers who believed they were reading nonfiction were, if anything, more likely to report narrative coherence. Finally, booklet (but not iPad) readers were more likely to report a close association between transportation and empathy. Implications of these findings for cognitive and emotional engagement with textual narratives on paper and tablet are discussed.
Orbis Litterarum
With the growing popularity of e-readers such as Kindle, literary reading is increasingly digitiz... more With the growing popularity of e-readers such as Kindle, literary reading is increasingly digitized. The transition from paper-based to screen-based literature invites theoretical and empirical reconsiderations of a number of basic research questions which might at first glance seem trivial: does it make a difference for aspects of the literary reading experience if the text is read on a screen-based device rather than on paper? Findings from a recent experiment suggest that affordances of surf tablets such as iPad might negatively affect emotional aspects of reading. Referring to empirical research on emotional aspects of literary reading, the article aims to demonstrate the usefulness of more interdisciplinary approaches in studies of the literary reading experience.
Nordisk Tidsskrift for Informationsvidenskab og Kulturformidling årg. 4, nr. 1
Sammendrag: Bibliotekene ivrer etter å kunne tilby e-bøker til lånerne. I Norge har de fleste fag... more Sammendrag: Bibliotekene ivrer etter å kunne tilby e-bøker til lånerne. I Norge har de fleste fagbibliotekene lenge hatt store samlinger av e-bøker, mens folkebibliotekene først fra 2013 kunne tilby norskspråklige titler.
I denne artikkelen undersøker vi hvordan bibliotekenes e-boktilbud understøtter deep reading, som betegner konsentrert og sammenhengende lesing av lineær og hovedsakelig skriftbasert tekst. Denne typen lesing blir ansett som truet av leseadferden på Internett, som kjennetegnes av multitasking og hyppige avbrudd.
I artikkelen presenteres tverrfaglig empirisk forskning på digital lesing med spesiell vekt på ulike leseteknologiers affordanser, og funnene derfra ses i sammenheng med e-boktilbudene i henholdsvis fag- og folkebibliotek i Norge.
Gjennomgangen viser at fagbibliotekenes e-bøker i liten grad gir støtte til deep reading i læringssammenheng, mens folkebibliotekenes tilbud fungerer bedre. Dagens leseteknologier i kombinasjon med bibliotekenes utlånssystemer gjør at e-bøker ikke kan erstatte papirbøker, men vil kunne fungere godt som et supplement til fysiske eksemplarer.
English abstract:
Libraries are eager to offer e-books to their patrons. Most Norwegian academic libraries have large collections of e-books, while public libraries could offer Norwegian titles for the first time in 2013.
In this article, we explore how libraries’ e-book collections support deep reading, which refers to concentrated and coherent reading of linear and mostly written text. The reading behaviour on the Internet, with multitasking and frequent distractions, is considered as a threat to this type of reading.
The authors present interdisciplinary empirical research on digital reading with special emphasis on different reading technologies and their affordances. Findings from this research is then compared to the handling of e-book in academic and public libraries in Norway.
The review shows that the implementation of e-books in academic libraries are undermining libraries’ mandate to support deep reading practices and purposes. In contrast, e-book solutions in public libraries seem, in this respect, more successful. The combination of current reading technologies and the systems for e-book lending in libraries – academic as well as public – means that e-books cannot yet replace paper books, but they will work well as a supplement to physical copies.
Library & Information Science Research
Abstract: A comparison of 10th graders’ reading of a narrative, literary text on a Sony E-reader ... more Abstract: A comparison of 10th graders’ reading of a narrative, literary text on a Sony E-reader and in print showed that preferences for reading devices are related to gender and to general reading habits. 143 students participated in the study. In a school setting, students were asked to begin reading a novel on one device, and then continue reading the same novel on the other device. A survey was administered before and after the reading session, measuring reading habits in general, device preferences, and experiences with screen and paper reading. Results showed that, overall, most students preferred reading on the e-reader. This preference was particularly strong among boys and reluctant readers, whereas avid readers were more in favor of print. Implications of these findings for library policies and priorities are discussed.
Balling, G., Dahl, T.-A., Mangen, A., Nilsson, K., Lund, H., & Höglund, L. (2014). E-bogen: Skandinaviske perspektiver på forskning og uddannelse Nordisk Tidsskrift for Informationsvidenskab og Kulturformidling, årg. 3, nr. 1
In: M.-L. Ryan, L. Emerson, and B. J. Robertson (Eds.). Johns Hopkins Guide to Digital Media, 2014
International Journal of Educational Research, 2013
Objective: To explore effects of the technological interface on reading comprehension in a Norweg... more Objective: To explore effects of the technological interface on reading comprehension in a Norwegian school context.
Participants: 72 tenth graders from two different primary schools in Norway.
Method: The students were randomized into two groups, where the first group read two texts (1400 – 2000 words) in print, and the other group read the same texts as PDF on a computer screen. In addition pretests in reading comprehension, word reading and vocabulary were administered. A multiple regression analysis was carried out to investigate to what extent reading modality would influence the students’ scores on the reading comprehension measure.
Conclusion: Main findings show that students who read texts in print scored significantly better on the reading comprehension test than students who read the texts digitally. Implications of these findings for policy making and test development are discussed.
Exploring technology for writing and writing instruction. , 2013
Abstract: Due to increasing digitization, more and more of our writing is done by tapping on keyb... more Abstract: Due to increasing digitization, more and more of our writing is done by tapping on keyboards rather than by putting pen to paper. As handwriting is increasingly marginalized both inside and outside of schools, and children learn to write by typing “ready-mades” on different kinds of keyboards rather than by shaping each letter from scratch, we ought to acknowledge the physical and sensorimotor aspect of writing, in addition to the more typically studied cognitive and linguistic aspects. The shaping of letters and words involved in handwriting involves distinct kinesthetic processes that differ markedly from the kinesthesia involved in tapping keys on a keyboard. The ways in which we use our fingers and hands play an important role in perceptual and cognitive processing; hence, the shift from handwriting to typewriting might entail far-reaching cognitive as well as educational implications. This article reflects on some largely neglected aspects of the ongoing shift from handwriting to typewriting, focusing in particular on potential cognitive and phenomenological implications of the increasing abstraction of inscription entailed in typing on a keyboard, and the intangibility of the resulting text on screen compared to that produced by handwriting with pen on a material substrate such as paper.
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COST IS1404 E-READ by Anne Mangen
Papers by Anne Mangen
[First five pages only; full text available from author on request]
Keywords
Hypertext novels, cognitive processing, literary reading, evolutionary origins, interdisciplinarity
I denne artikkelen undersøker vi hvordan bibliotekenes e-boktilbud understøtter deep reading, som betegner konsentrert og sammenhengende lesing av lineær og hovedsakelig skriftbasert tekst. Denne typen lesing blir ansett som truet av leseadferden på Internett, som kjennetegnes av multitasking og hyppige avbrudd.
I artikkelen presenteres tverrfaglig empirisk forskning på digital lesing med spesiell vekt på ulike leseteknologiers affordanser, og funnene derfra ses i sammenheng med e-boktilbudene i henholdsvis fag- og folkebibliotek i Norge.
Gjennomgangen viser at fagbibliotekenes e-bøker i liten grad gir støtte til deep reading i læringssammenheng, mens folkebibliotekenes tilbud fungerer bedre. Dagens leseteknologier i kombinasjon med bibliotekenes utlånssystemer gjør at e-bøker ikke kan erstatte papirbøker, men vil kunne fungere godt som et supplement til fysiske eksemplarer.
English abstract:
Libraries are eager to offer e-books to their patrons. Most Norwegian academic libraries have large collections of e-books, while public libraries could offer Norwegian titles for the first time in 2013.
In this article, we explore how libraries’ e-book collections support deep reading, which refers to concentrated and coherent reading of linear and mostly written text. The reading behaviour on the Internet, with multitasking and frequent distractions, is considered as a threat to this type of reading.
The authors present interdisciplinary empirical research on digital reading with special emphasis on different reading technologies and their affordances. Findings from this research is then compared to the handling of e-book in academic and public libraries in Norway.
The review shows that the implementation of e-books in academic libraries are undermining libraries’ mandate to support deep reading practices and purposes. In contrast, e-book solutions in public libraries seem, in this respect, more successful. The combination of current reading technologies and the systems for e-book lending in libraries – academic as well as public – means that e-books cannot yet replace paper books, but they will work well as a supplement to physical copies.
Participants: 72 tenth graders from two different primary schools in Norway.
Method: The students were randomized into two groups, where the first group read two texts (1400 – 2000 words) in print, and the other group read the same texts as PDF on a computer screen. In addition pretests in reading comprehension, word reading and vocabulary were administered. A multiple regression analysis was carried out to investigate to what extent reading modality would influence the students’ scores on the reading comprehension measure.
Conclusion: Main findings show that students who read texts in print scored significantly better on the reading comprehension test than students who read the texts digitally. Implications of these findings for policy making and test development are discussed.
[First five pages only; full text available from author on request]
Keywords
Hypertext novels, cognitive processing, literary reading, evolutionary origins, interdisciplinarity
I denne artikkelen undersøker vi hvordan bibliotekenes e-boktilbud understøtter deep reading, som betegner konsentrert og sammenhengende lesing av lineær og hovedsakelig skriftbasert tekst. Denne typen lesing blir ansett som truet av leseadferden på Internett, som kjennetegnes av multitasking og hyppige avbrudd.
I artikkelen presenteres tverrfaglig empirisk forskning på digital lesing med spesiell vekt på ulike leseteknologiers affordanser, og funnene derfra ses i sammenheng med e-boktilbudene i henholdsvis fag- og folkebibliotek i Norge.
Gjennomgangen viser at fagbibliotekenes e-bøker i liten grad gir støtte til deep reading i læringssammenheng, mens folkebibliotekenes tilbud fungerer bedre. Dagens leseteknologier i kombinasjon med bibliotekenes utlånssystemer gjør at e-bøker ikke kan erstatte papirbøker, men vil kunne fungere godt som et supplement til fysiske eksemplarer.
English abstract:
Libraries are eager to offer e-books to their patrons. Most Norwegian academic libraries have large collections of e-books, while public libraries could offer Norwegian titles for the first time in 2013.
In this article, we explore how libraries’ e-book collections support deep reading, which refers to concentrated and coherent reading of linear and mostly written text. The reading behaviour on the Internet, with multitasking and frequent distractions, is considered as a threat to this type of reading.
The authors present interdisciplinary empirical research on digital reading with special emphasis on different reading technologies and their affordances. Findings from this research is then compared to the handling of e-book in academic and public libraries in Norway.
The review shows that the implementation of e-books in academic libraries are undermining libraries’ mandate to support deep reading practices and purposes. In contrast, e-book solutions in public libraries seem, in this respect, more successful. The combination of current reading technologies and the systems for e-book lending in libraries – academic as well as public – means that e-books cannot yet replace paper books, but they will work well as a supplement to physical copies.
Participants: 72 tenth graders from two different primary schools in Norway.
Method: The students were randomized into two groups, where the first group read two texts (1400 – 2000 words) in print, and the other group read the same texts as PDF on a computer screen. In addition pretests in reading comprehension, word reading and vocabulary were administered. A multiple regression analysis was carried out to investigate to what extent reading modality would influence the students’ scores on the reading comprehension measure.
Conclusion: Main findings show that students who read texts in print scored significantly better on the reading comprehension test than students who read the texts digitally. Implications of these findings for policy making and test development are discussed.
Results show that print readers performed better than Kindle readers when they were asked to sort story events into chronological order. Most subjects also showed an overwhelming preference for print.
Empirical research on literary reading (ES521054).
Funding: NOS-HS Exploratory workshop grant, 11/2013-05/2015.
Project description:
Good reading skills are fundamental for citizens in any modern society. A crucial part of basic reading skills is so-called deep reading, i.e., continuous reading of long linear texts such as novels. Empirical research shows that literary deep reading in particular, by virtue of its appeal to first-person experience, yields unique cognitive and emotional benefits (enhancing or refining the capacity for empathy, social inference, emotional self-regulation, verbal abilities and intelligence). The project is motivated by reports of dramatic decline in literary reading, combined with (and possibly enhanced by) the systematic downplaying of subjective experience at all levels of literary education.
The series of workshops will help establish an interdisciplinary Nordic research group exploring patterns of reader response and reading behavior. The group will investigate literary reading and the consequences of specific reading strategies for education and, by extension, mental health. Leading international scholars will contribute to launching this initiative. Three workshops will set the framework for a joint research program, including a first experimental study to be conducted in several Nordic countries simultaneously. This study will contrast experiential literary reading against the more analytical approaches to literature typical for institutionalized literary instruction.
Dialogisk lesing er i stor grad basert på bildeboka, som ved hjelp av bl.a. multimodalitet innbyr til språkutviklende samtaler mellom barn og voksen. Med nettbrett (iPad) har vi fått en rekke bildebok-app'er og spesielt tilrettelagte digitale fortellinger. Men vi har lite empirisk forskning som kan si noe om hvorvidt egenskaper ved digitale teknologier ivaretar eller underminerer leseaktivitetens språkstimulerende effekt. Lesing er menneske-teknologi-interaksjon der teknologienes affordanser (bruksegenskaper) virker inn på kognitive og emosjonelle prosesser. Digitale teknologier har andre materielle og tekniske egenskaper enn boka: iPad-skjermen utstråler lys, og vi håndterer nettbrett og bok forskjellig når vi blar og peker. Et svært interessant spørsmål er hvordan ulike teknologiers affordanser virker inn på språklig samhandling under dialogisk lesing.
Dette forprosjektet vil etablere en felles kunnskapsplattform for praksisfeltet og forskningsmiljøet, på bakgrunn av feltstudier og erfaringsutvekslinger (workshops og seminar). Kunnskapsplattformen vil danne grunnlag for en innovasjonsprosjekt-søknad der målet er å utvikle et verktøy for å
vurdere ulike teknologiers pedagogiske egnethet til dialogisk lesing.
Partnere rekrutteres gjennom Stavangerprosjektet, et forskningsprosjekt som involverer barnehagesektoren. Forprosjektet vil konsolidere nettverk og videreutvikle samarbeidsformer med praksisfeltet, og resultere i en innovasjonssøknad til FINNUT i 2015.