Stance, Navigation, and Reader Response in Expository Hypertext

This article reports on two studies investigating reader stance, navigation, and response in expository hypertext. Subjects in the studies included 69 and 147 adult readers prompted to adopt either an efferent or aesthetic stance when reading a 36-node expository hypertext. Reading was followed by recall and essay writing tasks. Results of the studies indicate that prompts can be designed to induce readers to adopt more efferent or aesthetic stances. Main effects for stance on navigation and the essay response measures were found. Aesthetic readers were found to attain higher levels of understanding and tended to rely more heavily on a built-in reading path that was part of the hypertext interface. Graphic analyses revealed wide variability in the navigational strategies of readers, with distinctive visual patterns that appeared to be related to reader stance. Exploratory analyses examining data collapsed across both studies suggest node size may play a role in navigation and response and may interact with reader stance. The studies suggest that navigation has an important role in online literacy transactions and that usability of online materials may be enhanced by accounting for reader variables such as stance in the design of interface elements.