Readability and Comprehensibility of the “Exercise Lite” Brochure

Studies suggest that exercise literature tends to be very difficult to read and the writing not matched to the reading ability of the audience for which it was intended. Two studies aimed at describing the readability and comprehensibility of the recently developed U.S. Centers for Disease Control and American College of Sports Medicine “Exercise Lite” brochure were conducted. In Study 1, the brochure's readability was assessed using four different formulas. This study showed that the brochure was written at a level equivalent to that of a scientific journal article. In Study 2, 56 participants (two-thirds of whom were college graduates) were tested to assess whether they could comprehend the brochure's message. Results showed that, without supplemental instruction, the Exercise Lite brochure was incomprehensible for 69.6% ( n = 39) of the subjects.