Asymmetrical transfer in reading texts produced by teleprinter and by typewriter

Abstract

60 good readers and 66 poorer readers were given 90 sec. to read passages of about 450 words. They had then to answer 10 open-ended questions on the content. The passages and questions were reproduced in Siemens teleprinter capitals with triple spacing, and in IBM 72 elite upper- and lowercase letters with single spacing. Length of lines averaged 6.5 in. After reading 2 passages in 1 style, 2/3 of the Ss were transferred to a passage in the other style. The remaining 1/3 read 1 style throughout. The poorer readers found elite easier to comprehend than Siemens (p < .05). They showed positive transfer when reading Siemens after elite (p < .05). and negative transfer whey reading elite after Siemens (p < .05). The good readers did not find elite any easier than Siemens, and showed no reliable transfer effects. The r between the scores on the 1st 2 passages was only. 32, because the rate of comprehension depends upon previous knowledge. After correcting for attenuation, the correlation between the pooled rate of comprehension of the 1st 2 passages and Part 2 of the Tinker speed of reading test was .84. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)