The Effects of Spatial Constraints on the Legibility of Handwritten Alphanumeric Codes

Abstract

Abstract Lists of typewritten alphanumeric codes were copied by hand into one of three spatial arrays typical of those employed in the preparation of information for computer analysis. The resulting manuscripts were then checked for accuracy by another group of subjects. It was found that arrays of blank lines gave faster performance, both copying and checking than arrays of small boxes where each alphanumeric character was written in a separate box. However, both copying and checking was faster with arrays of boxes than with arrays in which each alphanumeric character was separated by a small rising mark. These findings were consistent with those of Barnard and Wright (1976) who used familiar names instead of codes. Therefore the deleterious effects of these spatial constraints seem to have wide generality across different materials.