Effects of subtitle speed on proportional reading time: Re-analysing subtitle reading data with mixed effects models

Agnieszka Szarkowska*, Breno Barreto Silva, David Orrego-Carmona

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

How much time do viewers spend reading subtitles and does it depend on the subtitle speed? By posing these questions, in this paper we re-analyse previous data to address this issue while promoting two methodological advancements in eye-tracking audiovisual research: (1) the use of proportional reading time (PRT) as a metric of time spent on subtitle reading and (2) the analysis of data via linear mixed models (LMMs). We tested 19 Polish L1 viewers with advanced English proficiency watching two clips with English soundtrack with Polish subtitles. First, we compared PRT at two different subtitle speeds: 12 characters per second (cps) and 20 cps. Then, we used actual subtitle speed rates to better understand the speed-PRT relationship. The results showed a significantly higher PRT for 20 cps compared to 12 cps, with the models predicting a PRT of 45.24% at 20 cps. We have also found strong evidence of the advantage of LMMs over more commonly used statistical techniques.
Original languageEnglish
JournalTranslation, Cognition & Behavior
Volume4
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 3 Dec 2021

Bibliographical note

© John Benjamins Publishing Company. Szarkowska, A., Silva, B. B., & Orrego-Carmona, D. (2021). Effects of subtitle speed on proportional reading time: Re-analysing subtitle reading data with mixed effects models. Translation, Cognition & Behavior, 4(2). https://doi.org/10.1075/tcb.00057.sza

Keywords

  • proportional reading time
  • linear mixed effects models
  • eye tracking
  • subtitle speed
  • subtitle

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