Abstract
Eye movements were recorded as subjects either read text or searched through texts for a target word. In the reading task, there was a robust word frequency effect wherein readers looked longer at low-frequency words than at high-frequency words. However, there was no frequency effect in the search task. The results suggest that decisions to move the eyes during reading are made on a different basis than they are during visual search. Implications for current models of eye movement control in reading are discussed.
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This research was supported by Grant HD26765 from the National Institutes of Health. K.R. was also supported by a Research Scientist Award from the National Institute of Mental Health (MH01255). We thank John Henderson, Betty Ann Levy, Randi Martin, and an anonymous reviewer for their helpful comments on an earlier version of the paper.
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Rayner, K., Raney, G.E. Eye movement control in reading and visual search: Effects of word frequency. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review 3, 245–248 (1996). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03212426
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03212426