Specialized Journals.

Comments on an article by R. L. Venezky "Research in reading processes: A historical perspective" (see record 1978-00200-001). Venezky concluded that conditions for the communication of results in research are much less favorable today than 80 years ago. Although there were fewer journals to search then, now more specialized journals do exist. Perhaps it would be helpful to call attention to the following journals: (a) Reading Research Quarterly, (b) Journal of Reading, (c) The Reading Teacher, and (d) Journal of Reading Behavior. In fact, some of the problems presented in these journals may provide materials linking basic research with classroom practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The computer as a zone of proximal development: Internalizing reading-related metacognitions from a Reading Partner.

We hypothesized that computer tools that provide models, opportunity for higher level thinking, and metacognitivelike guidance (e.g., "Can I conjure up an image of the story?") can serve in a learner's zone of proximal development (L. S. Vygotsky, 1978); they can develop competencies through internalization. A computerized Reading Partner presented four reading principles and metacognitivelike questions during the reading of 11 texts over three reading sessions. It was compared with one version that presented the texts with factual and inferential questions and a control version that presented only the texts. Seventh graders using the Reading Partner (n?=?25) reported the expenditure of more mental effort in the process, showed far better metacognitive reconstruction, and improved significantly more in their later reading comprehension and in the quality of their written essays than did the subjects in the other groups. Improvements in reading and writing were statistically accounted for by subjects' ability for metacognitive reconstruction. The study reinforces previous findings pertaining to the role of metacognitions in reading and shows that well-designed computer tools can cultivate competence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Internal versus external locus of control and performance in controlled and motivated reading-rate improvement instruction.

Investigated the association of J. B. Rotter's (1966) Internal-External personality dimension and improvement in reading rate and comprehension in 4 reading instruction treatments and a 5th control condition with 50 college students. 2 approaches to reading-rate improvement instruction, the controlled and motivated approaches, were each conducted by 1 female and 1 male instructor. The motivated instruction was found to be more effective for increasing reading rate, without significantly affecting reading comprehension, than the controlled instruction. This result was consistent for controlled and motivated instruction, administered by different instructors, from the difference scores of the pre- and postadministration of Forms A and B of the Nelson-Denny Reading Tests and 2 history reading tests from the Robinson-Hall reading test series. Scores on Rotter's Internal-External Control Scale were significantly correlated with reading-rate improvement and reading-comprehension change only in the control group and involved only the results of the Nelson-Denny Reading Tests. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

How effective are one-to-one tutoring programs in reading for elementary students at risk for reading failure? A meta-analysis of the intervention research.

A meta-analysis of supplemental, adult-instructed one-to-one reading interventions for elementary students at risk for reading failure was conducted. Reading outcomes for 42 samples of students (N?=?1,539) investigated in 29 studies reported between 1975 and 1998 had a mean weighted effect size of 0.41 when compared with controls. Interventions that used trained volunteers or college students were highly effective. For Reading Recovery interventions, effects for students identified as discontinued were substantial, whereas effects for students identified as not discontinued were not significantly different from zero. Two studies comparing one-to-one with small-group supplemental instruction showed no advantage for the one-to-one programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Regulation of heat shock protein 27 expression of prostatic cells in response to heat treatment

BACKGROUND: Reading acuity as well as reading speed are good predictors of everyday visual function. As visual acuity tests are poor predictors of the real-world function, performance-based tests, e.g., reading speed measurements, can be used for the determination of visual function. Thus, a German reading chart was developed in order to evaluate reading acuity as well as reading speed. METHODS: Print size is defined as the height of a lower case x and progresses logarithmically from one phrase to another (factor: 1.25). Reading acuity is determined in LogRAD (Reading Acuity Determination). 32 short German phrases were created, comparable concerning grammatical difficulty as well as in number (n = 14), length and position of words. The reading speed parameters measured with a stop-watch in 160 persons (aged: Phi = 21a +/- 3.8a) were calculated in words per minute (w/min). Out of the 32 phrases the 24 most similar ones were selected statistically and used for the reading charts (Radner Reading Charts). With these reading charts a reading acuity score (LogRAD-score) can be calculated considering reading errors in words of different length. Reading speed can be determined at the same time. Reading acuity (LogRAD-Score) was measured in 32 normal eyes of 16 students and compared to the angular visual acuity (LogMAR). RESULTS: The mean reading speed of the test persons was 211.8 +/- 34.1 w/min. 24 phrases fulfilled the test item criteria for the reading chart: mean +/- 0.25 x SD. The reliability analyses yielded an overall Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.98! The mean visual acuity measured in 32 eyes was -0.115 +/- 0.097 LogMAR and the mean reading acuity score was +0.026 +/- 0.091 LogRAD. The mean difference was +0.104 +/- 0.066 and the correlation between LogMAR and LogRAD was good (r = 0.59). CONCLUSIONS: With these reading charts it is for the first time possible to simultaneously determine reading acuity as well as reading speed in German. The high reliability of the 24 phrases and the high correlation between LogMAR and LogRAD leads us to expect a good reproducibility of the reading acuity evaluations. For the "Radner Reading Charts" we have shown that print size is the main reason for changes of reading speed.     

Nature of the reading–writing relation: An exploratory multivariate analysis.

Administered multiple reading measures (i.e., the Phonetic Analysis Test of the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Tests, the Reading Comprehension Test of the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Tests, and the Vocabulary tests of both of the above measures) and writing measures (i.e., analyses of vocabulary diversity, syntactic complexity, qualitative and quantitative measures of spelling and organization) to 256 2nd graders and 251 5th graders. An exploratory analysis of these variables was made using canonical correlational analysis. Separate analyses were performed for each grade level sample and for 2 additional cohorts, 69 beginning and 137 proficient readers, derived from the original samples. Results indicate that the word recognition factors drawn from the reading set were most related to the spelling variables of the writing set at both grade levels and at the beginning reader level. Substantial differences were found across reading level cohorts, however. For proficient readers, the ability to structure prose in complex ways and to use a variety of vocabulary in writing was related to a prose comprehension factor. In none of the analyses was reading or writing found to explain more than 45% of the variance in the opposite test set. (48 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A comparison of the academic aptitude of university extension degree students and campus students.

The scores of 68 extension students in business administration on the ACE Psychological Examination and the Coop Reading Comprehension Examination were compared with scores of 119 business administration freshmen. Slight, statistically significant differences in favor of the extension students were found for two of the reading subtests. "… it might be assumed that extension students… were capable of doing college level work and hence entitled to credit for that work." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-efficacy and outcome expectancy mechanisms in reading and writing achievement.

Examined the relation between self-efficacy and outcome expectancy beliefs and achievement in reading and writing. Most of the 153 subjects were White, middle-class undergraduate students. Efficacy for reading and writing tasks and component skills and outcome expectancies that reading and writing are important for realizing life goals were assessed. Reading achievement was measured by the Degrees of Reading Power test and writing achievement was measured by a holistically scored writing sample. Results from regression analysis indicated that self-efficacy and outcome expectancy beliefs jointly account for significant variance in reading achievement with self-efficacy being the stronger predictor and that self-efficacy, but not outcome expectancy, accounts for significant variance in writing achievement. Canonical correlation analysis identified a single underlying dimension linking beliefs and achievement for reading and writing, with reading beliefs and achievement contributing most strongly to the relation. Results are discussed as they relate to previous research and needed areas of future study. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Length of work periods in visual research.

"The present experiment was designed to investigate the use of relatively short work periods in one type of visual research. It appears that the length of work period that needs exploring ranges from 1? to 10 minutes." Using the Tinker Speed of Reading Test, relative efficiency of speed of perception was individually assessed for 180 college sophomores under 5, 25, and 200 foot-candles of light. The only significant difference in reading speed was a decrement under 200 foot-candles for both 5- and 10-minute work periods. Glare effect is suggested. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Passive immunization against tumor necrosis factor-alpha impairs host defense during pneumococcal pneumonia in mice

Reading span was assessed in three conditions aiming at varying the processing demands of a reading task. In a Sentence Reading Condition, the participants read aloud lists of sentences and memorize the final word of each sentence as in the original task of Daneman and Carpenter. In two other conditions, each sentence was replaced either by a series of unrelated words (Word Reading Condition) or by a series of meaningless syllables (Syllable Reading Condition); in these two conditions, however, each series ended with the same test words as in the Sentence Reading Condition. There was no significant effect of the condition on the scores for reading span. It is concluded that the typically low scores on reading span are not so much due to the processing demands of the task as to the disruptive effects of the articulatory suppression which characterizes the original task.     

Assessing students' metacognitive awareness of reading strategies.

This article describes the development and validation of a new self-report instrument, the Metacognitive Awareness of Reading Strategies Inventory, which is designed to assess adolescent and adult readers' metacognitive awareness and perceived use of reading strategies while reading academic or school-related materials. There were 3 strategy subscales or factors: Global Reading Strategies, Problem-Solving Strategies, and Support Reading Strategies. The reliability and factorial validity of the scale were demonstrated. After a brief review of the literature, the development and validation of the instrument are described, and its psychometric properties are discussed. In addition, directions for administering and scoring the instrument are provided, and suggestions for interpreting the results obtained are offered. Finally, the scales' implications for reading research and instruction are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Settings of a professional lifetime.

Behavior settings important to the author during his 50 yrs in psychology are identified and described, circumstances of his entrances into and departures from the settings are reported, and immediate and enduring consequences for him are set forth. The article is a microsection of the history of psychology, 1928–1978. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessing the reliability levels of self-report assertion inventories.

Reading grade levels were obtained for 11 commonly employed self-report assertion inventories by use of R. F. Flesch's (1948) Reading Ease formula. Directions for the inventories ranged from the 7th to college-graduate reading grade level; inventory items were typically more readable, with scores ranging from the 7th to the 12th grade level. Results show the importance of considering reading difficulty when selecting assertion scales. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Varieties of developmental reading disorder: genetic and environmental influences

There is widespread support for the notion that subgroups of dyslexics can be identified who differ in their reading profiles: Developmental phonological dyslexia is characterized by poor nonword reading, while developmental surface dyslexia is distinguished by a particular difficulty in reading irregular words. However, there is much less agreement about how these subtypes, and particularly the surface dyslexic pattern, are to be accounted for within theoretical models of the reading system. To assist in addressing this issue, the heritability of reading deficits in dyslexic subtypes was examined using a twin sample. Subjects' scores on (a) an exception word reading task and (b) a nonword reading task were used to create a subtype dimension, and surface and phonological dyslexic subgroups were selected from the ends of this distribution. Reading deficits were found to be significantly heritable in both subgroups. However, the genetic contribution to the group reading deficit was much greater in the phonological dyslexics than in the surface dyslexics. The finding of differential genetic etiology across subtypes suggests that there is at least partial independence in the development of the cognitive processes involved in reading exception words and nonwords. Also, the results support accounts of surface dyslexia which emphasize a strong environmental contribution.     

Review of Reading research: Advances in theory and practice, volume 4.

Reviews the book, Reading research: Advances in theory and practice, volume 4 edited by G. E. MacKinnon and T. Gary Waller (1985). The stated purpose of this edited series on reading is "to provide an outlet for systematic and substantive reviews, both empirical and theoretical, and for extended integrative reports of programmatic research" (p. ix). The volume under review here consists of 262 pages and is comprised of six chapters that focus on a variety of reading skills and their implications for both theory and practice. Each chapter is accompanied by an informative outline, is very readable, and is well referenced. This fourth volume of Reading research: Advances in theory and practice remains true to the series editors' goals of providing substantive reviews and extended reports of programmatic research in reading. MacKinnon and Waller have edited a significant contribution to the knowledge base of reading. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reading in dementia of the Alzheimer type: A preserved ability?

Assessed 45 patients with a probable diagnosis of dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT), varying from minimal to moderate levels of dementia, on 3 tasks of reading aloud: (1) an extensive list of regular and exception words across a range of word frequencies, (2) the National Adult Reading Test (NART), and (3) a test of nonword reading. On the first test, the patients showed substantial effects of regularity, word frequency, and disease severity. Reading of less common words with atypical spelling-sound correspondences was significantly impaired in the moderately demented subgroup of patients and significantly correlated with measures of semantic memory for the patient group as a whole. This impaired exception word reading was attributed to the breakdown in semantic memory that occurs as the DAT disease process advances. A significant drop in performance on both the NART and nonword reading also accompanied increasing disease severity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reading and arithmetic in adolescents with autism spectrum disorders: Peaks and dips in attainment.

In describing academic attainment in autism spectrum disorders (ASD), results are typically reported at the group mean level. This may mask subgroups of individuals for whom academic achievement is incommensurate with intellectual ability. The authors tested the IQ, literacy, and mathematical abilities of a large group (N = 100) of adolescents (14–16 years old) with ASD. Seventy-three percent of the sample had at least one area of literacy or mathematical achievement that was highly discrepant (approximately 14 standard score points) from full-scale IQ (FSIQ). The authors focused on four subgroups with either word reading (“Reading Peak” and “Reading Dip”) or arithmetic (“Arithmetic Peak” and “Arithmetic Dip”) higher or lower than FSIQ. These subgroups were largely mutually exclusive and were characterized by distinct intellectual profiles. The largest was the “Arithmetic Peak” subgroup of participants, who presented with average intellectual ability alongside superior arithmetic skills and who were predominantly in a mainstream educational setting. Overall, the most pervasive profile was discrepantly poor reading comprehension, which associated with severity of social and communication difficulties. The high rate of uneven academic attainment in ASD has implications for educational practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Left and right tracks in reading.

Reviews the book, The Psychology of Reading by I. Taylor and M. M. Taylor (1983). The reviewer provides an overview of the authors' Bilateral Cooperative Model of Reading (BLC), which is an attempt to integrate the divergent perspectives of wholistic and analytic theory. The BLC model serves as a framework for the 16 chapters of the book. The reviewer commends the authors for their detailed discussion of orthographies, perceptual and cognitive processes in reading, higher-order language processing, and developmental dyslexia. While the reviewer warns that the authors need to clarify the relevance of data from studies not specifically concerned with hemispheric differences, he believes that the book is worth reading because it develops the perspectives on reading within the context of cognitive psychology--an important step in the construction of a comprehensive theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An analysis and comparison of theoretical models of the reading–writing relationship.

Evaluated 3 models of the reading–writing relationship. The reading dimensions of these models include word analysis, vocabulary, and sentence and passage comprehension. Writing dimensions include spelling, vocabulary, sentence structure, and story organization. The interactive model permits the use of reading knowledge in writing, as well as the reverse. The reading-to-writing (R–W) and writing-to-reading (W–R) models only allow knowledge to move in a single direction. These models were evaluated on their ability to account for the relationships found in data collected from 256 2nd graders and 251 5th graders by the present 1st author (see record 1984-27356-001). Measures included the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Tests and the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Test. The interactive model fit the data better than did the R–W model at the 2nd-grade level and the W–R model at both grade levels, and the R–W model was superior to the W–R model. Findings suggest that traditional curricula fail to take advantage of knowledge-sharing opportunities between reading and writing. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)