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INFORMATION-PROCESSING DIFFERENCES BETWEEN GOOD AND POOR AND FAST AND SLOW COLLEGE-AGE READERS
Abstract
The present study examined information processing differences between good and poor and fast and slow college-age readers. Four groups (high comprehension-high speed, high comprehension-low speed, low comprehension-high speed, and low comprehension-low speed) were selected on the basis of performance on the Nelson-Denny reading comprehension subtest and a timed reading sample. Performance among groups was compared on five information processing tasks, including word verification, sentence verification, letter reordering, word reordering, and reading span tasks. No significant differences were found among groups for raw scores in the verification tasks. Groups did differ significantly on time scores for the verification tasks and on performance on letter reordering, word reordering, and reading span tasks. Follow-up procedures revealed that high comprehenders with either fast or slow reading speed outperformed low comprehenders on verification of words, nonwords, and nonsense sentences, and on letter reordering, word reordering, and reading span tasks. High comprehenders outperformed low comprehenders in verifying real sentences only if they were low speed readers, while high speed readers outperformed low speed readers in verification of nonwords and nonsense sentences only when they were low comprehenders. High speed readers in both low and high comprehension categories outperformed low speed readers in letter reordering. Performance on tasks was discussed in light of speed and comprehension variables and type of information processing task (Palmer, MacLeod, Hunt, & Davidson, 1985), while the Just and Carpenter (1980) model of reading provided the framework for understanding results in relationship to the reading process. Differences in working memory were proposed as a major source of individual differences in reading performance.
Subject Area
Educational psychology|Literacy|Reading instruction
Recommended Citation
RANKIN, JOAN L, "INFORMATION-PROCESSING DIFFERENCES BETWEEN GOOD AND POOR AND FAST AND SLOW COLLEGE-AGE READERS" (1987). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI8804005.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI8804005