Peer-reviewed research
One-handed touch-typing on a QWERTY keyboard
Edgar Matias et al., Human-Computer Interaction, 1996
Read the originalRead on October 17, 2026
- What it is
- A peer-reviewed paper that introduces Half-QWERTY, a one-handed typing method that uses a two-handed QWERTY touch typing skill with one hand, and reports how fast people became with practice.
- How much weight it carries
- A peer-reviewed journal paper from the University of Toronto research group. It is a small lab study with a few participants, tested on the software and hardware of the time, and it reports one-handed speeds rather than everyday typing. Read it as evidence that one-handed touch typing is learnable, not as a typical one-handed speed.
Facts taken from this source
- The authors of the 1996 Half-QWERTY paper say their results are important for giving access to disabled users.
“These results are important in providing access to disabled users” (Abstract)
- In the 1996 study, subjects reached 50 percent of their two-handed typing speed after about 8 hours of Half-QWERTY practice.
“Subjects reached 50% of their two-handed typing speed after about 8 hours.” (Abstract)
- In extended testing of Half-QWERTY, subjects reached an average one-handed rate of 83 percent of their two-handed rate.
“In extended testing, subjects achieved average one-handed speeds as high as 60 wpm and 83% of their two-handed rate.” (Abstract)
- Half-QWERTY is a one-handed layout built from all the keys one hand uses on a standard QWERTY keyboard, with the other hand's keys unused or absent.
“A Half-QWERTY keyboard is comprised of all the keys used by one hand to type on a standard QWERTY keyboard, with the keys of the other hand unused or absent.” (The Half-QWERTY concept section)
- In a 1996 experiment with touch typists, one-handed typing speed passed their hunt-and-peck speed after 3 to 4 hours of practice.
“In an experiment using touch-typists, hunt-and-peck typing speeds were surpassed after 3-4 hours of practice.” (Abstract)
- When the space bar is pressed, Half-QWERTY maps the characters of the missing hand onto the remaining keys in a mirror image.
“the missing characters are mapped onto the remaining keys in a mirror image” (The Half-QWERTY concept section)
- In extended testing of Half-QWERTY, average one-handed speeds reached as high as 60 words per minute.
“In extended testing, subjects achieved average one-handed speeds as high as 60 wpm and 83% of their two-handed rate.” (Abstract)