Typographic Research
The choice of a typeface in print or on screen has consequences. This study tests how repeated exposure shapes perceived familiarity and provocativeness across 10 typefaces, and what that means for UI type systems.
- READABILITY
- LITERATURE REVIEW
- TYPE SYSTEMS
Repeated exposure changes perception
This study examined perception through typeface familiarity and provocativeness. Typeface presentation frequency was set as the independent variable; perceived provocation and familiarity as the dependent variables. Participants were presented 30 slides displaying 1 of 10 typefaces, each typeface appearing once within every set of 10 slides, and recorded their perceived provocation and familiarity after each. There was a significant effect of typeface frequency on both perceived familiarity and perceived provocativeness at the p < .05 level across the three conditions. The results would most likely benefit typographic designers and endorse design that employs multiple sets of typefaces.
What the literature shows
- THEME 01Familiarity aids readingFamiliarity with a typeface affects reading performance, while uncommon letterforms within a category do not significantly impair it (Beier & Larson, 2013).
- THEME 02Type carries emotionFamiliar typefaces show an emotional effect during word recognition; letterforms carry information absent of word creation and can shift sentence meaning (Kuchinke et al., 2014).
- THEME 03Attention precedes readingTypefaces in natural settings compete with other type; the most attention-grabbing typefaces are the ones that get read, which is why this study measures provocativeness (a raise in mental arousal).
The choice of a typeface in print or on screen has consequences, and the effect of this stimulus is increasingly explored, from readability against familiarity to the emotional effect a typeface has on a viewer. These require initial interest by a viewer to investigate; attention comes first.
This experiment tests typeface provocativeness and the role familiarity plays in it: through a series of trials, participants were shown typefaces and asked to record their level of provocation and familiarity. If either measure shifts with repeated exposure, exposure itself shapes perception.
Participants, materials, procedure
- PARTICIPANTS7 Fordham University undergraduates (5 female, 2 male, ages 20–32; multiracial, Hispanic/Latino, African American, Caucasian, and Asian), largely from the psychology department.
- MATERIALS10 Google Fonts typefaces (Open Sans, Lora, Prosto One, Sofadi One, Ubuntu, Merriweather, Libre Baskerville, Istok Web, Cantarell, Tinos) set as 60pt lorem-ipsum specimens; three 10-page documents, each independently randomized, combined into one.
- PROCEDUREParticipants viewed each page and rated “How provocative is this typeface?” and “How familiar is this typeface?” on a 1–5 scale (1 = not at all, 5 = extremely) across all 30 presentations.
Both effects significant
One-way between-subjects ANOVAs compared the effect of presentation frequency on each measure across the first, second, and third presentation instances. Typeface frequency significantly affected perceived familiarity, F(2, 177) = 5.45, p = 0.005, and perceived provocativeness, F(2, 177) = 28.25, p = 0.001.
How it shapes my work
These findings inform the type systems in my product work: legibility-first at body sizes, character reserved for display sizes, and repetition used deliberately. The same principles govern the type on this site.