EXPLORING DIGITAL AND PRINT TEXT EXPERIENCES OF ADOLESCENT

READERS

by

Melissa Brown

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A dissertation

submitted in partial fulfillment

of the requirements for the degree of

Doctor of Education in Educational Technology

Boise State University

May 2023
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© 2023

Melissa Brown

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

 BOISE STATE UNIVERSITY GRADUATE COLLEGE

DEFENSE COMMITTEE AND FINAL READING APPROVALS

of the dissertation submitted by

Melissa Brown

Dissertation Title: Exploring Digital and Print Text Experiences of Adolescent Readers

Date of Final Oral Examination: 17 February 2023

The following individuals read and discussed the dissertation submitted by student Melissa
Brown, and they evaluated the student’s presentation and response to questions during the

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final oral examination. They found that the student passed the final oral examination.

Norm Friesen, Ph.D. IE Chair, Supervisory Committee

Patrick Lowenthal, Ph.D. Member, Supervisory Committee

Ross Perkins, Ph.D. Member, Supervisory Committee

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The final reading approval of the dissertation was granted by Norm Friesen, Ph.D., Chair
of the Supervisory Committee. The dissertation was approved by the Graduate College.
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 DEDICATION

This dissertation is dedicated to my family and friends who supported me

throughout the doctoral process. To my husband, Jeff, and my son, Robbie, for their

patience and support. It is also dedicated to the memory of my grandmother for always

believing in me, and to my colleagues for listening to my ideas and providing feedback.

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Thank you for believing in me and supporting me.
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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank my family for supporting me. They have been with me every

step of the way, and I could not have done it without them.

I would also like to thank my advisor, Dr. Friesen, for his time and support, and

for the wealth of feedback that he provided to me throughout this process of helping me

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develop as a scholar and writer. I appreciate all of the time spent on my writing and the

encouragement. Thank you also to the other members of my committee, Dr. Lowenthal
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and Dr. Perkins, for their time and support. I have learned so much from all of my

professors during my time at Boise State in the Educational Technology program, and I
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am appreciative of the support I received as I pursued my educational journey.

Lastly, I would like to thank all of the families and students who participated in
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this study. Their contributions are invaluable, and their stories have taught me so much.

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 ABSTRACT

Digital and print texts, as well as the efficiency of reader engagement with them,

have long been of interest in scholarly literature. Most of the studies undertaken in this

connection seek to compare reader comprehension of these two text media. But what are

the lived experiences of reading digital versus print? And how do those who are still

expected to be growing in their reading skills experience immersion and distraction in

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either medium? This study utilizes a hermeneutic phenomenological approach to

investigate high school students’ experiences of digital texts in order to examine how
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their experiences with digital texts differ from experiences with traditional print media.

The students in this study all had experiences with reading both printed and digital texts
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in the classroom environment and had been exposed to purposeful instruction in digital

literacy. Two rounds of data collection took place; a total of 22 adolescents were
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interviewed virtually and asked about their reading experiences involving both print and

digital texts. Experiences with printed texts were often more emotional and more

connected with the sense of smell. Digital texts were associated with a more deliberate

focus, as well as a greater variety of distractions, many of which are connected with the

device itself, such as notifications. While experiences with printed reading materials were

more likely to be described as immersive, students also described experiences with digital

texts, often shorter ones, having immersive characteristics. Recommendations include

providing materials for adolescent students in a variety of formats and genres, as well as

comfortable and private reading locations and time for adolescents to enjoy reading. By

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connecting with and living out positive reading experiences, adolescents can improve

their reading skills and become lifelong learners because they are lifelong readers.

Keywords: digital texts, reading, phenomenology.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

DEDICATION ............................................................................................................... iv

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................................................. v

ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................. vi

LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................ xii

LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................... xiii

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CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION .............................................................................. 1
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Statement of the Problem ..................................................................................... 2

Affordances ............................................................................................. 4
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Constraints ............................................................................................... 5

Definitions ............................................................................................... 6
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Nuance ..................................................................................................... 7

Purpose of Study ................................................................................................. 9

Chapter Summary .............................................................................................. 10

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................. 12

Importance ........................................................................................................ 13

History .............................................................................................................. 16

Context .............................................................................................................. 18

Literacy ............................................................................................................. 19

Digital Literacy ...................................................................................... 21

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 Artifacts & Affordances ..................................................................................... 22

Comprehension .................................................................................................. 24

Cognitive Load ....................................................................................... 28

Reading Experiences .......................................................................................... 30

Foundational Studies .............................................................................. 30

Educational Research Studies ................................................................. 33

Chapter Summary .............................................................................................. 41

CHAPTER THREE: METHOD..................................................................................... 42

Research Questions ............................................................................................ 42

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Research Design ................................................................................................ 43
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Phenomenology ................................................................................................. 44

Hermeneutic Phenomenology............................................................................. 47
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Reflexivity.............................................................................................. 48

Reduction ............................................................................................... 49

Context .............................................................................................................. 52
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Sample of the Study ........................................................................................... 54

Data Collection .................................................................................................. 62

Data Analysis ..................................................................................................... 64

Coding ............................................................................................................... 64

First Cycle Coding.................................................................................. 65

Second and Subsequent Cycle Coding .................................................... 67

Quality ............................................................................................................... 68

Credibility .............................................................................................. 69

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 Transferability........................................................................................ 72

Confirmability........................................................................................ 73

Positionality ........................................................................................... 75

Possible Limitations of the Study....................................................................... 77

Timeline ............................................................................................................ 78

Chapter Summary .............................................................................................. 80

CHAPTER FOUR: FINDINGS ..................................................................................... 82

Research Questions ........................................................................................... 83

Print vs. Digital ................................................................................................. 86

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Reading Spaces ................................................................................................. 89
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Immersion: Grasping the Book vs. Getting off the Page ..................................... 90

Affordances: Physical vs. Intellectual ................................................................ 99

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Attention and Distraction ................................................................................. 101

Print Reading with the Always-on Internet ...................................................... 106

Chapter Summary ............................................................................................ 109

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CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION.............................................................................. 111

Print Experiences ............................................................................................. 114

Digital Experiences ......................................................................................... 116

Differences and Similarities ............................................................................. 119

Supporting Diverse Learners in an Educational Context .................................. 121

Suggestions for Future Analysis ...................................................................... 124

Final Thoughts................................................................................................. 125

REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 128

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APPENDIX A ............................................................................................................. 144

APPENDIX B ............................................................................................................. 150

APPENDIX C ............................................................................................................. 157

APPENDIX D ............................................................................................................. 159

APPENDIX E.............................................................................................................. 161

APPENDIX F .............................................................................................................. 163

APPENDIX G ............................................................................................................. 165

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 LIST OF TABLES

Table 1 Participant Demographics ...................................................................... 59

Table 2 Participant Notes with Pseudonyms ........................................................ 60

Table 3 Alignment of Research Questions to Data Analysis ................................ 66

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 LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1 Research and Analysis Timeline- Phase 1 ...............................................79

Figure 2 Research and Analysis Timeline- Phase 2 and Final Analysis .................79

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 1

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

“How can I tell what I think till I see what I say?” – E.M. Forster

“Never trust anyone who has not brought a book with them.” – Lemony Snicket

Digital texts are an integral part of modern literacy (Burke & Rowsell, 2008; Ross

et al., 2017). However, scholars question whether digital texts are inherently different

from print texts and whether readers process them differently (Baron, 2017; Ben-

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Yehudah & Eshet-Alkalai, 2014; Fesel et al., 2018; Mangen, 2008; Ong, 2013; Shapiro &

Niederhauser, 2004; Wolf et al., 2009). This in turn leads scholars to question whether
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one medium is superior or inferior to the other (Eshet-Alkalai & Amichai-Hamburger,

2004, Eshet-Alkalai & Chajut, 2010; Eshet-Alkalai & Geri, 2007; Kang et al., 2009;
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Noyes & Garland, 2008). A wide range of literature focuses exclusively on the issue of

functional superiority or inferiority of these two media forms (Ben-Yehudah & Eshet-
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Alkalai, 2014; Eshet-Alkalai & Amichai-Hamburger, 2004, Eshet-Alkalai & Chajut,

2010; Eshet-Alkalai & Geri, 2007; Kang et al., 2009; Lauterman & Ackerman, 2013;

Noyes & Garland, 2008).

Readers report having different experiences with print and digital texts. For

example, some readers prefer the more tactile and sensory experience of print books

(Evans, 2017; Loh & Sun, 2019), while others report how digital texts can provide

greater variety and make it possible for some readers to increase the amount they read

(Dalton & Proctor, 2008; Hillesund, 2010). While readers can sometimes choose whether

to read a print or digital version of a text, in educational contexts, students often do not
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have a choice (Baron, 2021). Further, as digital technology becomes more prevalent, it is

likely that students will encounter, by either choice or necessity, more digital texts (Cull,

2011; Thoms & Poole, 2017).

There is a large body of literature regarding the efficacy of digital reading, but

many of the studies have conflicting conclusions, ranging from a comprehension deficit

related to digital text processing to how reading tasks can be modified so that digital

experiences are comparable to print (Annand, 2008; Dillon, 1992; Eshet-Alkali &

Amichai-Hamburger, 2004; Fesel et al., 2018; Rouet et al., 1996). Additionally, much of

the literature focuses on very specific data points, particularly reading comprehension of

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digital and/or hyperlinked texts compared to print as measured by a small number of
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multiple choice items (Hassaskhah et al., 2014; Just & Carpenter, 1980; Lauterman &

Ackerman, 2013; Shapiro & Niederhauser, 2004; Schugar et al., 2011). This study takes a
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different approach, focusing not on the factors perceived to immediately affect attention

or comprehension, but looking at readers' experience with digital and print texts, in an

effort to understand what is important to them.

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Statement of the Problem

Literacy has traditionally been defined as “the ability to read and write” print

media (Rintaningrum, 2009, p. 3). Literacy skills are critical for participation in nearly

every career, as well as in a democratic society (Hultin & Westman, 2013). During the

last two decades, though, new definitions of literacy have emerged with the growth of

information and communication technology (Livingstone, 2004). The increasing presence

of digital technologies is requiring mastery of a new set of literacy skills, commonly

referred to as digital literacy. Digital texts are becoming more common, and the skills that
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are required for reading digital texts are both similar to and different from those required

to read and comprehend print texts (Rowsell, 2014). Digital texts may require additional

cognitive processing related to navigation and evaluation, but both print and digital texts

require similar decoding and comprehension skills. Aviram and Eshet-Alkalai (2006)

defined digital literacy as the “cognitive skills [required] to perform and solve problems

in digital environments” (p. 1).

Advanced reading ability is a necessary educational outcome. According to Coiro

and Dobler (2007), “proficient readers actively construct meaning using a small set of

powerful reading comprehension strategies” (p. 214). Advanced readers also utilize

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active reading skills such as highlighting and annotating (Schugar et al., 2011). In-depth
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knowledge of student experiences of reading is a key component of understanding and

supporting this outcome. Reading for pleasure and independent reading also are key
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components of advanced reading ability in students (Clark & Rumbold, 2006; Krashen,

2003). Students who read for pleasure and are engaged readers are more likely to be

proficient readers (Cull, 2011; Sullivan & Brown, 2015) and this also needs further
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exploration and support. Higher level thinking skills (e.g., evaluating digital materials

and processing multimedia) are an indispensable component of the educational process

(Eshet-Alkalai & Chajut, 2010). Research suggests that these skills may best be

supported by printed texts (Kaufman & Flanagan, 2016). For instance, Kaufman and

Flanagan (2016) found, in a randomized study with 81 participants, that digital readers

had an “inferior performance on inference-focused items” (p. 2773). Other studies have

conflicting findings. For example, Dyson and Haselgrove (2000) found in their study

involving 24 university students that digital texts may actually better support rapid
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reading in order to acquire concrete knowledge. Both print and digital reading activities

are necessary to support developing readers with diverse interests and preferences and

differing levels of access to print and digital texts (Loh & Sun, 2019), although their

specific roles in literacy acquisition are still being explored. For example, students are

more likely to read books recommended by peers, both in traditional printed formats and

via technology through social websites such as Goodreads, and although older

adolescents read less, they are more likely to read online and electronic articles and texts

than younger children (Loh & Sun, 2019).

Affordances

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Some studies report that the physical experience of digital reading causes more
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strain and fatigue than reading printed materials (Johnston & Salaz, 2019; Kang et al.,

2009), although this is not a universal finding (Siegenthaler et al., 2012). There is
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considerable research that seeks to understand how to optimize digital reading practices

with current technology (Aaltonen et al., 2011; Ben-Yehudah & Eshet-Alkalai, 2014; Bus

et al., 2015; Dalton & Proctor, 2007; Ross et al., 2017; Thoms & Poole, 2017). Many
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print texts are available in traditional bound manuscript, or codex form, which is well-

suited for holding, bookmarking, and viewing. Digital texts can be accessed and viewed

on a variety of devices, including a desktop or mobile computer, a tablet, a smartphone,

or an e-reader, and each of these provides a different experience for the reader (Flatworld

Solutions, 2020). One commonly-expressed concern regarding digital reading is that

ergonomically, many computers are a poor substitute for the codex form and can be

uncomfortable to view, but digital texts can be viewed on an e-reader device

approximately the same size and weight as a book (Merga, 2015). Specialized e-reader
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devices produce high quality rendering of text that more closely simulates the experience

of reading printed materials (Siegenthaler et al., 2012). Additionally, many readers tend

to report a preference for either print or digital texts, often dependent upon the genre or

length of the text (Annand, 2008; Buzzetto-More et al., 2007; Chang & Ley, 2006; Cull,

2011; Hassaskhah et al., 2014; Taipale, 2014).

Constraints

Many studies report that distracting digital affordances such as hypertext and text

scrolling are to blame for shallower reading and a resulting comprehension loss (Dobler,

2015; Hillesund, 2010; Rose, 2011; Shapiro & Niederhauser, 2004), but other studies

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report that users with more digital text experience are better able to navigate digital texts
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than those relatively new to the form (Baek & Monaghan, 2013; Fesel et al., 2018;

Kaman & Ertem, 2018). Some see value in texts that can be marked up and annotated by
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using pencils, highlighters, and sticky notes, while others see value in digital highlighters,

hypertext access to dictionaries, adjustable font sizes, and search features available for

digital texts (Ben-Yehudah & Eshet-Alkalai, 2014; Dalton & Proctor, 2007). According
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to Dalton and Proctor (2007), “the flexibility of digital text makes it possible to redefine

the concept of readability by manipulating the access supports,” which provides tools that

allow students to focus on the text, even when they might otherwise be having related

difficulties (p. 425). Certainly, these features can be beneficial to the readers of digital

texts (Larson, 2010), but they can also be distracting and have been blamed for a

superficial level of reading, and they also require additional teaching support (Burrell &

Trushell, 1997; Mangen et al., 2013; Sutherland-Smith, 2002). Studies with younger

students, some of whom have reading difficulties, indicate that readers can benefit from
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affordances such as the in-text availability of definitions and pronunciations of words

available in the text, although readers can also be distracted by an overabundance of such

options (Dalton & Proctor, 2007; Dillon, 1992).

Definitions

The essential components of reading that are the focus of this study are the reader,

the text, and the nature of the relationship between the two. Nonessential elements of this

reading experience that vary are things such as the presence or absence of a desk, the

digital or print nature of the text, and reading comprehension measurements. Print

reading refers to an engagement with text that is read and held in a traditional printed

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medium, typically in book or magazine formats, while digital reading refers to an
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engagement with text that is reproduced digitally and read on a screen, often a computer

or a mobile device such as a phone. Digital texts are most commonly read on a device
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such as a computer or a mobile phone, backlit devices that are navigated either with a

touch screen or with a mouse/trackpad. Digital texts can also be read on a dedicated

reader such as a Kindle; these devices more closely resemble the experience of reading a
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printed book but are less common. The purpose of the reading task, either academic or

personal, is also an important aspect of the reading experience. For the purposes of this

study, the format of the text is an essential element of the reading experience, and the

definition of reading is an engagement with text; this definition includes both printed and

digital texts but excludes audiobooks. The participants of this study generally defined

reading as happening only when there was a text present in front of the reader, although

some students mentioned listening to audiobooks without a physical copy of the text,
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although the thinking and dreaming that happens during and after reading may also be

part of the reading experience.

Readers of digital and print texts have different lived experiences, and this

dissertation makes the case that their experiences provide valuable insight for educators

and others. In today’s digital climate, sometimes readers can choose whether to read the

print or the digital text, and other times readers are assigned a specific medium, such as

with typical classroom reading assignments. When the ability to obtain printed texts is a

challenge, such as in remote areas of the developing world or during a global pandemic,

sometimes digital texts are the only choice. Students should be supported in developing

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habits and strategies so as to best enhance their reading experiences with both digital and
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print texts in a variety of genres and for different purposes.

Nuance
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Nuance is important, both in reading and in the study of reading and experiences.

For the purposes of this study, reading is an activity that involves making meaning from

text, but there are many different types of reading experiences. Readers read differently
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for different purposes, and materials of different lengths or genres, or presented in a

different format, are experienced differently. According to Just and Carpenter (1980),

“Reading varies as a function of who is reading, what they are reading, and why they are

reading it” (350). Students do not experience classic texts the same way that they might

read a graphic novel or even another type of academic text, and a document read on a

screen in a crowded classroom is experienced differently than a weighty novel read in a

soft chair in a quiet room.

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The type of device used in reading digital text also has a significant impact on the

experience of reading. Kindles and other dedicated e-readers provide an experience that

is more similar to reading a printed book; the device is approximately the same weight

and size, and easy to hold in one hand. Computers and laptops, on the other hand, are a

very different tactile experience. I have seen students change the display settings of their

Chromebook so that the text displays in a portrait format and then prop the Chromebook

sideways on their desk to read. That would appear to be a suboptimal reading experience,

especially when compared to other experiences of being curled in a chair or stretched out

on a couch. Reading on a desktop device generally requires sitting upright in a chair, and

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laptops are too heavy to read comfortably in a lounging position.
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The text presentation is also an important factor in the reading experience. A text

in pdf format that provides an electronic image of the text, websites, novels,
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encyclopedias, and Kindle books are each unique in their presentation and formatting,

and these differences are part of the larger reading experience. A pdf is typically a

reproduction of a printed version of the text and may be most useful for applications in
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which the pagination is critical, such as for research texts, while a Kindle book may

provide a reading experience more similar to that of a narrative book. Websites often

contain distinctive formatting and layouts, such as hyperlinks and sidebars, and in the

earlier days of research about online reading, these features were perceived as distracting

(Burrell & Trushell, 1997; Mangen, 2008; Wolf et al., 2009). Informational text such as

encyclopedias may contain images and other types of formatting that are not often

present in narrative text such as novels and short stories.

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For the purposes of this study, all of these types of reading material and devices

were included in the initial parameters except for multimedia and audio content and no

judgment was made regarding quality of length. However, students nearly always spoke

of novels, academic texts, and articles, and they nearly always read them in book form,

on their phone, or on a computer. Additionally, despite the pressures of assessment scores

and any relationship between an enjoyment of reading and scores on reading assessments,

students were asked to think only about their reading experiences without any

consideration of scores on standardized tests.

Purpose of Study

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The purpose of this study is to examine how adolescent readers experience digital
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texts and to determine how that experience is different from or similar to their experience

with printed texts. This study focuses on the lived experiences of adolescent readers in
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different types of everyday reading tasks (e.g., reading essays or stories for school,

reading a novel for pleasure), including immersive reading, which is any reading

experience which engages multiple senses and fully absorbs the attention of the reader..
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Reading is an experiential activity, and this study explores the lived experience.

This study seeks to explore both the reader’s experience and attitude toward the reading

experience, and how that “reflects the process by which we gain” further, often vicarious

forms of “experience” (Iser, 1972, p. 295). Important phenomenological studies in the

experience of reading print books have been undertaken in the field of literary criticism

and elsewhere. Readers describe how the book disappears when they read, becomes part

of their own existence. As Poulet (1969) puts it, “the book is no longer a material reality.

It … become[s] a series of words, of images, of ideas which in their turn begin to exist
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… [in] my innermost self” (p. 54; see also: Rose, 2011). Given that reading print text can

be such a personal experience, how do digital texts alter that experience? Is it a less

private experience? Is there some “essential” dimension to reading or being a reader that

is unchanged by the medium through which this reading occurs? The purpose of this

study is to investigate and reflect upon the experience of digital and print reading with the

aim of allowing educators and others to identify common structures of experience and

support adolescent readers. Phenomenological investigation also produces results, ones

that can also be used to enrich the educational practice of others, including teachers and

others who work with adolescent readers. This study seeks to illuminate the experience of

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digital and print text reading so as to provide depth and nuance to the understanding of

this key educational phenomenon.

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Chapter Summary
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Because reading and texts are important facets of our culture, it is important to

understand the background and history of reading as well as current reading practices.

Contemporary digital texts are both similar to and different from traditional printed and
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bound texts, and an in-depth understanding of how adolescents experience these

similarities and differences is germane for those who wish to support adolescent readers.

Although reading and reading practices are well-studied, there is often a focus on

comprehension and assessment. In order for educators and others to make informed

decisions about how to help adolescents engage productively with the various text types

that they experience, this study provides depth of understanding about the experiences of

a small number of individuals.

Reproduced with permission of copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.