How People Read Online: New and Old Findings

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• We can design content that supports scanning by: Using clear, noticeable headings and subheadings to break up content and label sections so that people can scan to find only what they’re most interested in Placing information up front (in other words, “front-loading”) in the structure of our content, as well as in subheadings and links, to allow people to understand the message quickly while scanning Employing formatting techniques like bulleted lists and bold text to allow the eye to focus on the most important information Using plain language to keep content concise and clear

• People rarely read online — they’re far more likely to scan than read word for word. That’s one fundamental truth of online information-seeking behavior that hasn’t changed in 23 years and which has substantial implications for how we create digital content.

• Since 2006, the ways we present language have changed.  Responsive design means that content can be displayed flexibly depending on the window width or device size.

• On pages with distinct cells of content, people often process those cells in a lawn-mower pattern: they begin in the top left cell, move to right until the end of the row, then drop down to the next row, move to the left until the of the row, drop down the next row, and so on.

• The rich, diverse layouts of modern SERPs caused the development of a new pattern: the pinball pattern. In a pinball pattern, the user scans a results page in a highly nonlinear path, bouncing around between results and SERP features.

• For simple information needs, SERP features often answers users’ questions directly on the SERP itself, and users no longer need to click on search result to reach their goals — a phenomenon called good abandonment.

• almost every pattern and behavior we discovered in American users was also demonstrated by Chinese users.

• Compared to 2006, 3 types of content have gained popularity: Tables (including comparison tables) Inline elements (pull quotes and ads) User-generated content (reviews and posts)

• while both pull quotes and inline messages received fixations in our study, we also noticed that they tended to disrupt reading.

• the amount of time any individual user is willing to spend reading depends on four factors: Level of motivation: How important is this information to the user?  Type of task: Is the user looking for a specific fact, browsing for new or interesting information, or researching a topic? Level of focus: How focused (or unfocused) a user is on the task at hand?  Personal characteristics

• Technology changes quickly, but humans don’t.  If anything, we’ve simply observed new behaviors that have developed in response to design shifts (for example, the pinball pattern), but these are all symptomatic of the deeper truth: People don’t want to waste time or effort online.

• People are not likely to read your content completely or linearly. They just want to pick out the information that is most pertinent to their current needs. We can design content that supports scanning by: Using clear, noticeable headings and subheadings to break up content and label sections so that people can scan to find only what they’re most interested in Placing information up front (in other words, “front-loading”) in the structure of our content, as well as in subheadings and links, to allow people to understand the message quickly while scanning Employing formatting techniques like bulleted lists and bold text to allow the eye to focus on the most important information Using plain language to keep content concise and clear Most Gaze Patterns Almost all of the gaze patterns observed in 2006 were present in our 2019 study: F-pattern Layer cake pattern Spotted pattern Commitment pattern Exhaustive review pattern Bypassing pattern Zigzag pattern Sequential pattern Love-at-first-sight pattern

• If anything, we’ve simply observed new behaviors that have developed in response to design shifts (for example, the pinball pattern), but these are all symptomatic of the deeper truth: People don’t want to waste time or effort online. As long as we’re designing content that acknowledges that reality and helps to direct people to only the information they want, we’ll be on the right track.

• Nous avons récemment publié la 2 e  édition de notre   rapport Comment les gens lisent en ligne , près de 15 ans après la publication de la 1 e édition. En revenant sur les résultats des 5 études d'eyetracking menées pour ces éditions, nous pouvons  retracer comment les comportements de lecture en ligne ont changé  (ou non).

• Comme en 2006, les créateurs de contenu doivent accepter ce fait :  il est peu probable que les gens lisent votre contenu de manière complète ou linéaire. Ils veulent simplement sélectionner les informations les plus pertinentes par rapport à leurs besoins actuels. Nous pouvons concevoir du contenu prenant en charge la numérisation en : Utiliser des titres et des sous-titres clairs et visibles  pour diviser le contenu et les sections d'étiquettes afin que les utilisateurs puissent numériser pour trouver uniquement ce qui les intéresse le plus. Placer les informations au premier plan  (en d'autres termes, « front-loading ») dans la structure de notre contenu, ainsi que dans les sous-titres et les liens, pour permettre aux gens de comprendre rapidement le message lors de la numérisation. Utiliser des techniques de formatage telles que des listes à puces et du texte en gras  pour permettre à l'œil de se concentrer sur les informations les plus importantes Utiliser un langage simple  pour garder le contenu concis et clair

• En conséquence, même si les conceptions ont changé au cours des deux dernières décennies, les comportements de lecture en ligne sont restés, fondamentalement, fondamentalement similaires.  La technologie évolue rapidement, mais pas les humains.

• es gens ne veulent pas perdre du temps ni d'efforts en ligne