An Eye Tracking Study of the Differential Effects of Mobile Phone, Tablet, Computer, and Paper Media on Incidental Second Language Vocabulary Acquisition and Second Language Reading Comprehension

Abstract

The present study, using a combination of offline and online measures, compares the effects of reading on four media (mobile phone, tablet, computer, and paper) on incidental L2 word learning and L2 global reading comprehension. In the study, 156 Chinese L2 learners of English read a novel, The Elephant Man, under one of the four reading conditions (mobile phone: 41, tablet: 39, computer: 38, and paper: 38) while their eye movements were documented using a computer-mounted eye tracker or tracking glasses. The target words were 20 pseudo words repeated from one to six times across the reading text. We assessed global reading comprehension using 10 multiple-choice and 10 true/false items, and word knowledge using form recognition, meaning recognition, and meaning recall tests. We used eye movement measures to capture cognitive processes during reading. We assessed the processing of the whole text using mean fixation duration, fixation count, and total task time, and the processing of the target words using first fixation duration, gaze duration, and total reading time.

The results demonstrated that word exposure and visual attention significantly predicted word knowledge gains. The processing time of the target words decreased as the number of encounters with the word increased. A strong positive correlation between word knowledge gains and global reading comprehension was established. We also found that the type of media affected learning performance and cognitive processes, and that reading on a computer negatively influenced form recognition and visual attention allocation to some extent. In particular, we found that reading on mobile phones and tablets led to similar results to reading on paper in both offline and online measures. The findings of this eye movement study add to the cognitive knowledge of incidental L2 word learning and L2 reading comprehension from L2 reading and also highlight the effects of medium on L2 learning and the underlying cognitive processes. This study defines the L2 research scenario in a mobile technological context, thus providing important insights into optimal mobile-assisted language learning, including online learning, e.g., during the COVID-19 global pandemic.