Abstract:

"The only book they still read is Facebook", is a complaint often expressed by literature teachers. The assumption that on-screen reading is hasty and superficial is widely shared (e.g., Baron, 2021; Wolf 2018), but at the same time researchers and reading promotors underline that digitization also offers possibilities for literature reading in terms of narratology and reading motivation (e.g., Chin Ee & Baoqi, 2018; Clark & Teravainen, 2017). In this presentation we provide an overview of the current state-of-the-art on reading experiences of non-linear digital narratives.

We report on a systematic review of theoretical and empirical studies on reading non-linear digital narratives (NDN), published since 1995 in peer-reviewed journals and edited volumes with the aim to:
(1) analyse definitions of NDN in the literature;
(2) describe the current state-of-the-art on reading NDN; and
(3) identify avenues for future research on reading experiences of NDN.

Through database searches we identified 40 articles that met the eligibility criteria. Findings revealed that current definitions of NDN are in need of revision, and based on this review, we suggest that the adoption of theoretical constructs and/or psychophysiological measures to map narrative absorption in reader-response studies could shed more light on the relationship between non-linear digital narratives and absorbed reading experiences for different groups of readers, particularly children and adolescents, with a view to applying this knowledge within contexts of literacy and education in the digital age.

Keywords:

Reading education, digitization, systematic review.