Are users more likely to reach down to the later page results if infinite pagination is used as opposed to ordinary pagination

Question

I was just wondering if there is any research which shows that with Infinite pagination, users are more likely to scan through more results and see the content that would normally occur on a second or third page of results as opposed to when we are using pagination.

I would assume the fact that in infinite pagination since the content just keeps loading users would just keep on scrolling since they dont have to perform additional interactions to go to the next paged hence might see more of the content an but I would like to see any research on that.

Please note I did see this question Regular pagination vs. infinite scroll but it does not answer the question I just posted.

Answer 1

I'm not sure if it's an exact answer to your question, but: yes, there exist some research on that users are more likely to discover more content, especially when the users are engaged in "time-killing" activities, according to NNGroup (who base their content on user research):

Continuous scrolling is advantageous for content that streams constantly and has a relatively flat structure, where each unit of content belongs at the same level of hierarchy and has similar chances of being interesting to users.

Long, endless pages are good for time-killing activities because users are in the mindset for serendipitous exploration and discovery. The advantage of not having to acquire and click “next page” keeps audiences engaged with the content and less focused on the mechanics of navigating to the next page.

On the other hand, infinite scrolling comes with a certain set of drawbacks as well:

Infinite scrolling has advantages, but should be applied with caution. Take into account your site’s content and the user’s motivation. Endless scrolling is not recommended for goal-oriented finding tasks, such as those requiring people to locate specific content or compare options.

In addition, locating a previously found item on an extremely long page is inefficient, especially if that item is placed many scrolling segments down. It’s much easier for people to remember that the item is on page 3 than it is to gauge where the item is positioned on an extremely long page.

There are psychological consequences to endless scrolling that can hurt the user experience as well. For task-driven activities, infinite scrolling can feel like drowning in an information abyss with no end in sight. People who need specific types of information expect content to be grouped and layered according to relevance, by pages. Web users don’t mind clicking links (e.g., a link to the next page) if each click is meaningful and leads them closer to the desired goal.

Answer 2

There are many scenarios where a few advantages will deviate and converge as disadvantages. The infinite scrolling and lazy loading is technically a great combo and bonhomie idea. To continue further with stats and research findings, I 've linked a few articles

Endless scrolling saves people from having to attend to the mechanics of pagination in browsing tasks, but is not a good choice for websites that support goal-oriented finding tasks. check more here

An article over the same in smashing magazine

Unless you’re a social network giant, stay away

Check where it works (a few sites)

Infinite scrolling - a curse (google says so!)