How character complexity modulates eye movement control in Chinese reading

Abstract

This empirical study examined whether the visual complexities of the first and second characters in two-character words play similar roles in modulating the fixation time and saccade target selection during un-spaced Chinese reading. Consistent with prior research, words with low-complexity characters were fixated for shorter times than words with high-complexity characters. Critically, saccade target selection was primarily influenced by the visual complexity of the first character of a two-character word: words with low-complexity first characters were skipped more frequently, and fixation was localized nearer to the center of the word compared with the words with high-complexity first characters. These results are important for understanding the mechanisms of eye movement control in Chinese reading and thus provide benchmark data to test models of eye movement control in Chinese reading.