Legibility of newspaper headlines printed in capitals and in lower case

Abstract

Each of 120 five-word headlines was printed once in capitals and once in lower case. Two sets of tachistoscopic slides were organized. In one set the first headline was in capitals and the second headline was in lower case, etc.; in the other set the first headline was in lower case and the second in capitals, etc. Twenty-two subjects were presented the slides for 50 milliseconds each and asked to reproduce the headlines. Scoring was in terms of number of words correctly produced, omitting the first 20 trials. The scores indicate a statistically significant difference in favor of greater legibility of headlines printed in lower case. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)