I guess I’m confused about your use of the word “necessary”.
But you’re right. What is the motivation of the test-taker? How much are they trying to get the answers right and how much they want to “just get it over with”? At least part of the cognitive system is lazy/avoidant, but it doesn’t seem that test-takers consciously think “I’ll just write down the first answer that comes to mind”.
But the real question is this: when they read the smaller text, do they feel less anxiety? Probably not. Then, maybe solving the problem requires less effort once you have spent more time at reading the question. But take a look at the CRT: to me, it seems that problems are clear any way you read them.
At least part of the cognitive system is lazy/avoidant, but it doesn’t seem that test-takers consciously think “I’ll just write down the first answer that comes to mind”.
True, but it does tend—if true—to imply that the test-taker would have a desire of “minimize all extraneous functions”.
Then, maybe solving the problem requires less effort once you have spent more time at reading the question.
My hypothesis here is that by making the font harder to read it’s causing the test-takers to invest more cognition into properly reading the questions than their drive to “optimize” that labor to its bare minimum would otherwise imply.
I guess I’m confused about your use of the word “necessary”.
But you’re right. What is the motivation of the test-taker? How much are they trying to get the answers right and how much they want to “just get it over with”? At least part of the cognitive system is lazy/avoidant, but it doesn’t seem that test-takers consciously think “I’ll just write down the first answer that comes to mind”.
But the real question is this: when they read the smaller text, do they feel less anxiety? Probably not. Then, maybe solving the problem requires less effort once you have spent more time at reading the question. But take a look at the CRT: to me, it seems that problems are clear any way you read them.
True, but it does tend—if true—to imply that the test-taker would have a desire of “minimize all extraneous functions”.
My hypothesis here is that by making the font harder to read it’s causing the test-takers to invest more cognition into properly reading the questions than their drive to “optimize” that labor to its bare minimum would otherwise imply.