Sadoski, M., Goetz, E. T., & Avila, E. (1995). Concreteness effects in text recall: Dual coding or context availability? Reading Research Quarterly, 30(2), 278-288.

Sadoski, M.; Goetz, E.; Avila, E.

1995

Sadoski, M., Goetz, E. T., & Avila, E. (1995). Concreteness effects in text recall: Dual coding or context availability? Reading Research Quarterly, 30(2), 278-288.

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This study investigated two alternative theoretical explanations for the effect of concreteness on text recall: dual coding and context availability. Studies by Marschark (1985) and Ransdell and Fischer (1989) have been cited as support for the context availability view but these studies produced mixed results regarding concreteness effects in the free recall of fictitious biographical paragraphs. The present study extended this research by using (a) different materials adapted from naturally occurring texts about actual historical figures, (b) ratings for familiarity, and (c) more stringent experimental controls. Subjects were undergraduate students: 40 in Experiment 1 (between-subjects design) and 24 in Experiment 2 (within-subject design). Results indicated concreteness effects in both experiments. An interaction of concreteness and paragraph, interpreted in the light of differences in familiarity ratings for the historical figures, suggested separate contributions of familiarity and concreteness to recall. Results are interpreted as favoring a dual coding theory explanation. Implications for text design are discussed.

A between-subjects main effect for concreteness favoring the recall of concrete paragraphs was found. This finding differs from the results of Marschark (1985) and Ransdell and Fischler (1989, experiment 2) using similar procedures. An interaction of concreteness and historical figure was also found in a between-subjects analysis, similar to that of Ransdell and Fischler. This interaction may be plausibly explained here by rated differences in the concreteness and familiarity of the paragraphs.

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