Are Adolescents with a Wider Vocabulary Faster at Inference Making During Reading? Evidence from Self-Paced Reading
This study investigates the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and inference-making during real-time reading comprehension in Spanish-speaking adolescents, addressing an important gap in the literature. A large sample of adolescents (<i>n</i> = 265) aged between 11 and 18 were ask...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2024-12-01
|
| Series: | Education Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/14/12/1368 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850041163040423936 |
|---|---|
| author | Ernesto Guerra Edmundo Kronmüller |
| author_facet | Ernesto Guerra Edmundo Kronmüller |
| author_sort | Ernesto Guerra |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This study investigates the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and inference-making during real-time reading comprehension in Spanish-speaking adolescents, addressing an important gap in the literature. A large sample of adolescents (<i>n</i> = 265) aged between 11 and 18 were asked to perform a self-paced reading task, which required integrating words across sentence boundaries. The study compared two conditions: repetition and inference. In the repetition condition, a critical word appeared in both context and target sentences, while in the inference condition, the context allowed the inference of the critical word. Vocabulary knowledge was assessed using a standardized receptive vocabulary test. The results showed that adolescents with larger vocabularies exhibited faster reading times across conditions, particularly in the inference condition, where a stronger vocabulary facilitated more efficient word-to-text integration. The interaction between vocabulary and reading condition indicated that a larger vocabulary mitigates the cognitive cost of inference-making, supporting more effective reading comprehension. These findings highlight the role of vocabulary knowledge in reducing the cognitive load associated with inference generation during reading, offering important implications for educational strategies aimed at improving adolescent literacy. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e01ced50212844718445900d045a0ecd |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2227-7102 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Education Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-e01ced50212844718445900d045a0ecd2025-08-20T02:55:52ZengMDPI AGEducation Sciences2227-71022024-12-011412136810.3390/educsci14121368Are Adolescents with a Wider Vocabulary Faster at Inference Making During Reading? Evidence from Self-Paced ReadingErnesto Guerra0Edmundo Kronmüller1Centro de Investigación Avanzada en Educación, Instituto de Educación, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 8330111, ChileEscuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8320165, ChileThis study investigates the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and inference-making during real-time reading comprehension in Spanish-speaking adolescents, addressing an important gap in the literature. A large sample of adolescents (<i>n</i> = 265) aged between 11 and 18 were asked to perform a self-paced reading task, which required integrating words across sentence boundaries. The study compared two conditions: repetition and inference. In the repetition condition, a critical word appeared in both context and target sentences, while in the inference condition, the context allowed the inference of the critical word. Vocabulary knowledge was assessed using a standardized receptive vocabulary test. The results showed that adolescents with larger vocabularies exhibited faster reading times across conditions, particularly in the inference condition, where a stronger vocabulary facilitated more efficient word-to-text integration. The interaction between vocabulary and reading condition indicated that a larger vocabulary mitigates the cognitive cost of inference-making, supporting more effective reading comprehension. These findings highlight the role of vocabulary knowledge in reducing the cognitive load associated with inference generation during reading, offering important implications for educational strategies aimed at improving adolescent literacy.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/14/12/1368adolescentsvocabulary knowledgereading comprehensioninference makingself-paced readingcognitive cost |
| spellingShingle | Ernesto Guerra Edmundo Kronmüller Are Adolescents with a Wider Vocabulary Faster at Inference Making During Reading? Evidence from Self-Paced Reading Education Sciences adolescents vocabulary knowledge reading comprehension inference making self-paced reading cognitive cost |
| title | Are Adolescents with a Wider Vocabulary Faster at Inference Making During Reading? Evidence from Self-Paced Reading |
| title_full | Are Adolescents with a Wider Vocabulary Faster at Inference Making During Reading? Evidence from Self-Paced Reading |
| title_fullStr | Are Adolescents with a Wider Vocabulary Faster at Inference Making During Reading? Evidence from Self-Paced Reading |
| title_full_unstemmed | Are Adolescents with a Wider Vocabulary Faster at Inference Making During Reading? Evidence from Self-Paced Reading |
| title_short | Are Adolescents with a Wider Vocabulary Faster at Inference Making During Reading? Evidence from Self-Paced Reading |
| title_sort | are adolescents with a wider vocabulary faster at inference making during reading evidence from self paced reading |
| topic | adolescents vocabulary knowledge reading comprehension inference making self-paced reading cognitive cost |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/14/12/1368 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ernestoguerra areadolescentswithawidervocabularyfasteratinferencemakingduringreadingevidencefromselfpacedreading AT edmundokronmuller areadolescentswithawidervocabularyfasteratinferencemakingduringreadingevidencefromselfpacedreading |