Reading in Print v. Digital: What Do You Prefer?

Whether you consider yourself a "print native" or a "digital native", it turns out you might prefer print materials for pleasure and learning.  Research based on student surveys, which was recently published by Naomi S. Baron, an American University linguist who studies digital communication,  reveals that may be the case.

Baron's book, titled Words Onscreen: The Fate of Reading in a Digital World, was discussed in a recent article in the Washington Post.  According to the article, Baron's research found that one of the key downsides to digital reading was distraction.  Baron's survey results showed that students were far more likely to "multitask" while reading on-screen (90 percent) than in hard copy (1 percent).

However, the survey results found that students do prefer digital textbooks for classes in which locating information quickly is key, and where using the Ctrl-F function can help them easily find keywords. 

The Law Library continues to offer both print and digital resources.  New print titles are available in the Law Library's New Book Display, directly inside the main double doors to the Library.  New print titles are also added each month to the Law Library's e-book database, available from our Research Databases page.

(H/t to the WisBlawg of the University of Wisconsin Law Library for their recent post on this topic.)