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Using a sample of 116 Norwegian undergraduate readers in this experimental study, we investigated whether reading informational text on a tablet versus on paper would lead to differences with respect to strategic text processing and text comprehension. Strategic text processing was measured by means of verbal protocol analysis, and text comprehension was measured by means of postreading written products. Results were inconsistent with the shallowing hypothesis proposing that there are comprehension advantages for printed texts because digital texts are typically processed in a more shallow, superficial way. That is, we found no differences across the reading mediums with respect to strategic text processing or text comprehension. These results may suggest that there are boundaries to the shallowing hypothesis that are related to tasks, individual differences, and reading contexts. Such potential boundaries are discussed in light of the current findings, and suggestions for future research to clarify those boundaries are offered.

Using a path analytic approach with a sample of Norwegian undergraduate readers, we investigated the effects of behavioral engagement on text comprehension as reflected in students’ post-reading written reports on the topic in question. Results indicated that the behavioral engagement components of writing time and the length of the written responses had distinctive, unique effects on comprehension performance, and that behavioral engagement also mediated the effects of cognitive (prior knowledge, working memory) and motivational (intrinsic reading motivation) individual differences on comprehension performance. Prior knowledge about the topic affected comprehension performance directly as well as indirectly through behavioral engagement. The results highlight the importance of behavioral engagement in the context of written comprehension assessment, and both theoretical and educational implications of these results are discussed.

This study focused on the potential effects of screen size (smartphone vs. tablet) and text movement (scrolling vs. paging) on integrated understanding of text information, strategic backtracking, and intrinsic reading motivation when Norwegian university students read an informational text on either a smartphone or a tablet by either scrolling or paging. We expected that paging would lead to better integrated understanding of the text and more strategic backtracking than scrolling. Also, we explored whether scrolling would lower the intrinsic motivation for performing the reading task, and whether there were interactional effects of screen size with text movement on integrated understanding, strategic backtracking, and intrinsic motivation. Results indicated that students tended to obtain better integrated understanding when paging than when scrolling, and that those who paged through the text displayed more strategic backtracking than those who scrolled. Further, scrolling on a tablet led to a more positive reading experience than paging on a tablet or scrolling on a smartphone. In addressing two basic aspects of the reading context and the reading activity when students read digital text for understanding, this study provides new insights into the complex digital reading puzzle that may have both theoretical and practical implications.