Daniel, F., & Raney, G. E. (2007). Capturing the effect of a title on multiple levels of comprehension. Behavior Research Methods, 39(4), 892-900.

Daniel, F.; Raney, G.

2007

Daniel, F., & Raney, G. E. (2007). Capturing the effect of a title on multiple levels of comprehension. Behavior Research Methods, 39(4), 892-900.

studie 2

Researchers have manipulated text comprehension by creating texts that require a title to be understood, but the source of the comprehension deficit has not been fully examined. We created comprehension quizzes for these texts that measure the surface form, textbase, and situation model. In three experiments, participants read passages with or without a title and then answered quiz questions. Results showed that the absence of a title influenced the accuracy rate of answering situation model questions more than answering surface form or textbase questions. This suggests that the situation model is the primary source of difficulty for these texts. These passages and quizzes can be used in future research that requires controlled manipulation and measurement of situation level comprehension.

The pattern of results of experiment 2, matched that of experiment 1.There was no significant title effect for surface form questions, a small title effect for textbase questions and a small title effect for textbase questions. More importantly, there was a large title effect for situation model questions. Accuracy in experiment 2 improved for surface form and textbase questions, when participants were allowed to look back at the passages. However, the rate of answering situation model questions correctly were similar. This suggests that the difference in accuracy as a function of the presence/absence of a title does not result from limited cognitive resources or organizational cues. The difference results from the ability to develop a better situation model when the title is provided.

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