Does Hypertext Disadvantage Less Able Readers?

Abstract

This article reports on an investigation of the relationship between print and hypertext reading skills in university students. The study employed a counterbalanced repeated measures design that required subjects to answer questions using both print and hypertext versions of a student advising handbook. Two research questions guided the study. One question explored whether readers in general experience greater difficulty with hypertext than they do in traditional print. The second question focused specifically on what, if any, differential disadvantage might be experienced by less able print readers. Significant effects included a practice effect, a general format effect favoring print over hypertext, and a question-set effect. The study supports the claim that readers find hypertext more difficult, but there was no evidence that hypertext differentially disadvantages less able print readers.