TITLE:
Digital Media Impact on Reading
AUTHORS:
Joaquim José Xavier da Silveira
KEYWORDS:
Memory, Technology, Education, Reading, Psychology, Digital Media
JOURNAL NAME:
Psychology,
Vol.12 No.7,
July
22,
2021
ABSTRACT: Introduction: This research observes whether there is a difference in the way information is memorized based on the means it is obtained: printed or digital. Objectives: To observe if the memory of information is affected by the media it is obtained from—printed or digital—and also to observe if there is any response time difference, considering participants’ gender and academic area in the information apprehension process. Method: To evaluate these observations, a memory test has been developed and applied to Technology and Psychology graduate students at BandTec Digital School and at Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo (PUC-SP), respectively. The total of 195 students was interviewed, 62 (31.8%) from Psychology area (PUC-SP) and 133 (68.2%) from Technology area (BandTec Digital School). There were 103 (52.8%) interviews with digital media and 92 (47.2%) with printed content, 117 (60%) tests were answered by men and 76 (39%) by women, and the age range was 16 - 43. Conclusion: Based on quantitative research information, expected hypothesis was achieved: information acquired through printed material is better apprehended than when acquired through digital media. This conclusion provides significant information to educators, giving support to the creation of new teaching strategies for future generations.