The advent of e-books has had significant effects on traditional reading patterns. Many academics have carried out research in order to establish the relationship between digital reading and the effect it has on our reading patterns. Although no definitive conclusion has been drawn out yet, some of the impacts have been duly noted.
E-books readers are usually less able to recall plots and events than traditional paperbacks readers. Paper book reading has been found to provide progress through the reading by triggering a tactile sense and providing a visual sense as well. These two factors somehow help the reader to unfold and progress through the text easier, hence making more sense of the story they are reading. Also, in order to be able to store information, long and undisturbed time periods of reading are required. This is not always possible when reading e-books because of all the internet links in the digitized text.
Reading is a process which requires attention. However, our attention span is considerably diminished when reaching out for electronic means of reading. Besides the fact that e-books usually contain digital text which can be searched and accessed, they are also read on devices which are obviously used for more interesting hobbies. Most youngsters use their smartphones to read e-books and use the same phone to access their social media accounts. It also becomes common practice to ‘squeeze’ in some reading time while waiting in a coffee queue or while travelling to school or to work.
In the case of electronic reading, the reader can only view one or two pages at once. This proves to be disorienting compared to being able to see the whole book in front of them. Despite the digital readout which is usually present at the corner of the screen somewhere, it is highly insufficient to orientate the readers. The physical feel of the book and the flipping of pages provide the reader with a more grounded experience rather than simply giving a taste of readout on a screen.
When reading e-books, people tend to skim through the text. That is, they adopt a scroll and catch approach. E-books readers usually start out by reading the first few paragraphs and then begin scrolling down the pages only to catch keywords through the text. After all, reading electronic reading has proven to require more mental effort than reading paperbacks. Therefore, the readers do not focus enough to be able to pinpoint out proofreading errors, in the case of traditional reading.
E-books or Print Books?
There is no right or wrong answer really. Although reading e-books does have rather negative impacts on our reading patterns, some might argue that electronic means of reading provide more flexibility and convenience. The final choice is always up to the reader. After all, some reading is better than no reading at all.
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