An Experimental Study of the Relationship of Peripheral Perception to Factors in Reading

Abstract

purpose of this investigation was to determine manner in which reading abil ity and reading habits are related to accuracy of perception in peripheral vision. More spe cifically, purpose of study was to find out how factors involved in or associated with such as intelligence, spelling, vocab ulary, reading speed, reading comprehension, reading span, and regressive movements, are related to: (i) accuracy of perception in right peripheral field of vision, (2) accuracy of perception in left peripheral field of vision, and (3) preference for, or comparative superiority in, right peripheral field. Many writers have defined importance of peripheral perception in and way in which peripheral stimuli operate in reading process. Dearborn points out that reading, like efficient driving of an automo bile in traffic, demands a very skillful use of peripheral vision.2 Dodge3 has explained that as reader's eyes move across line, cues received through peripheral vision operate as partial perceptions which furnish premonitions of coming words and phrases. Furthermore, Dodge4 and also Meumann, cited by Tinker,5 contend that word forms in peripheral vision act as stimuli for reflex movement of eyes across line. Gray,6 in his discussion of factors involved in anticipation of meaning in emphasizes importance of the marginal impressions made upon retina; these, he contends, function in reading as preperceptions which initiate process of interpretation.7 impressive array of experts in field thus seem agreed in stressing importance of peripheral factors in reading. Consistent with this emphasis, Dearborn interprets reading disability caused by aniseikonia,8 presumably a foveal anomaly, as seemingly attributable to its interference with peripheral vision. In his own words: is with this peripheral view of line of print, which is so requisite for proper spacing of fixa tion pauses, that aniseikonia may interfere.9 question of optimal length of line, as Dearborn points out, is also related to periph eral factors. In this connection, he makes observation that those lines are best suited to rapid reading which give opportunity for a wide span of attention, but which are not of such length that peripheral perceptions from end or beginning of a line are too inexact and confused to be of value in deter mining general character of a large part of line.10 It is thus generally accepted by students of reading process that, with out perceptions in peripheral vision, read ing would be both slow and difficult. Periph eral stimuli help govern width of reading span, as well as duration of indi vidual fixations. Notwithstanding importance that has been attributed to peripheral perception in few data have been gathered con cerning manner in which individual vari ations in peripheral perception are related to reading. Although Ruediger11 approached this problem in his study of relationship between reading and area of clear vision, except for work of Crosland12 there is little experimental evidence bearing directly on this problem. 1This article is a part of a Doctor's dissertation in educa tional psychology at University of Texas. 2W. F. Dearborn, On Possible Relations of Fatigue to Reading Disabilities, School and Society, LU (1940), 536. 3 R. Dodge, An Experimental Study of F;xation, Psychological Review, Monograph Supplements, Vol. VIH, No. 4 (1907). 4 Ibid. 5 M. A. Tinker. Visual Apprehension and Perception in Psychological Bulletin, XXVI (1929), 231. 6 C T. Gray, The Anticipation of Meaning as a Factor in Reading Ability, Elementary School Journal. XXIII (1923), 614-626. 7 Ibid., p. 615. 8 See W. F. Dearborn and I. H. Anderson, Aniseikonia as Related to Disability in Journal of Experi mental Psychology, XXIII (1938), 559-577. 0 W. F. Dearborn, On Possible Relations of Fatigue to Reading Disabilities, School and Society, LII (1940), 536. 10 W. F. Dearborn, Psychology of Reading, Archives of Philosophy, Psychology and Scientific Methods, No. IV (1906), p. 131. 11 W. C Ruediger, Field of Distinct Vision, Archives of Psychology, Vol. I, No. 5 (1907). 12 H. R. Crosland, Superior Elementary-School Readers Contrasted with Inferior Readers in Letter-Position. 'Range of Attention' Scores, Journal of Educational Research, XXXII (1939), 410-427.