February 2012 - Judy Gregory Writer

Screen reading vs. print reading

I've been doing some research recently about reading from screens - and particularly about whether reading from screens is more difficult than reading from paperPlenty of people argue that screen reading is more difficult than paper reading, but I haven't found much evidence to support their claimsThe discussions that I'm coming across suggest that screen reading encourages:More skipping and skimming A reduced concentration spanA reduced ability to think deeply about informationA 'staccato'...

Ethical issues in commercial research

I've been doing the rounds of car yards lately One sign at a car yard took me by surprise, and got me thinking about the ethical standards relevant for commercial research The car yard displayed a copy of the customer-satisfaction survey I would receive if I purchased a new car from them And next to the displayed survey was a sign stating that the car yard didn't want customers to complete the survey if they didn't feel able to answer 'strongly agree' to every question The sign urged customers...

The power of pronouns

I've just finished a fabulous book called 'The secret life of pronouns: What our words say about us' by James Pennebaker It's a fascinating look at how the structural words in our language (pronouns, articles, prepositions, and so on) reveal a lot about the way we think and connect with others We don't even notice these words as we speak or write But Pennebaker says that they broadcast the kinds of people we are They reveal things like our perceived status and power, whether we're lying, and...

Involving listeners in a presentation

Presenters often use techniques that are intended to involve listeners in their presentation - including things like asking questions, encouraging listeners to talk about an issue to the person sitting next to them, or asking for a show of hands about listeners' opinionsSome presenters use these techniques successfully but, at times, they seem to fall flatI was listening to a presentation yesterday, and I found that the involvement techniques really didn't work for me As my mind wandered, I got...