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Article published In: Information Design Journal
Vol. 29:3 (2024) ► pp.223–239

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Enhancing distance reading for low vision

A reading acuity experiment on letter width

ORCiD logo with link | Typotheque
 | Typotheque
 | Typotheque
ORCiD logo with link | Royal Danish Academy
Published online: 18 August 2025
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https://doi.org/10.1075/idj.24012.man
Abstract
This research explores typographic adjustments, specifically letter width, and their impact on patients with various visual conditions. These patients were divided into three groups of interest according to the visual condition they presented: blurry vision (N = 15), central vision loss (N = 11) and peripheral vision loss (N = 15). There was also a control group (N = 14). In an acuity experiment, six typeface variations were tested. Point sizes were used as a measurement of acuity. Results revealed that larger letter widths affected each one of the groups differently. These findings align with recent literature, which highlights that the effect typographic variables exert on readers varies depending on their visual condition.
Article outline
  • Practitioner summary
  • 1.Introduction
    • 1.1Inclusive typography
    • 1.2Case Study: The 1520 Hospital
  • 2.Methods
    • 2.1Materials
    • 2.2Procedure
    • 2.3Pilot
    • 2.4Participants
    • 2.5Pre-analysis
  • 3.Results
    • 3.1Visualisation of data
    • 3.2Study of regression
    • 3.3Study of variance
    • 3.4Post Hoc comparisons
  • 4.Discussion
    • 4.1Letter width
    • 4.2Additional variables: Letter boldness and inter-letter spacing
    • 4.3Differences between patient groups
    • 4.4Limitations and future research
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Ethical approval
  • Authors’ affiliations
  • References
References (40)
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