Fact · Typing and writing speed
A 2026 methods paper says the difficulty of the typed text can affect typing performance, adding variability that is unrelated to skill, so typing comparisons need to control for it.
Checked against its source on October 16, 2026
In the source's own words
“can impact typing performance, introducing variability that is unrelated to skill”
The Typability Index: A tool for measuring and controlling for typing difficulty in text stimuli, Emily A. Williams et al., Behavior Research Methods, 2026, Abstract.
Open the original (DOI 10.3758/s13428-025-02877-y)- What it measures
- The authors study typing proficiency tests used in job recruitment and research. They define the difficulty of a typed text as its typability.
- What it does not show
- This is a methods paper that proposes a way to control for text difficulty. It shows the effect is possible and worth controlling, but it does not measure how large the effect is on any particular commercial test.