ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces some commonly used methods to study online processes occurring during reading: the self-paced reading time paradigm, eye movement recordings, and probe reaction time paradigms. It discusses the advantages and restrictions of these methods, future directions in measuring comprehension processes during reading. Tracking the movements of the eyes during the course of reading provides extremely accurate information about the time-course of processing. Text is presented on a computer screen line-by-line, sentence-by-sentence, or word-by-word, and the reader proceeds through the text by pressing a button. In a typical eye tracking study, participants read text presented on a computer screen while their eye movements are recorded. The development of automated facial recognition software that recognizes affective states from video images can also be combined with eye tracking. Moreover, combining eye tracking with motion capture systems will open up new avenues for researchers interested in theoretically important topics including embodied cognition.
