Investigates concreteness as a text feature that engaged undergraduate readers' comprehension, interest, and learning in four text types: persuasion, exposition, literary stories, and narratives. Results show that concrete texts were recalled better than abstract texts, although the magnitude of the advantage varied across text types. Concreteness…

Presents and tests a theoretically derived causal model of the recall of sentences. Notes that the causal model identifies familiarity and concreteness as causes of comprehensibility; familiarity, concreteness, and comprehensibility as causes of interestingness; and all the identified variables as causes of both immediate and delayed recall.…

Extends an earlier study by using different materials, ratings for familiarity, and more stringent experimental controls. Finds concreteness effects in two experiments using undergraduate students. Suggests that familiarity and concreteness contribute separately to recall. Supports a dual coding theory. Discusses implications for text design. (RS)

Examines recall of three feature articles by rating paragraphs according to degree of mental imagery evoked, affect evoked, and importance of the article as a whole. Finds that readers are more likely to remember content that is subjectively important than content viewed as objectively important. (KEH)

The comprehensibility, interestingness, familiarity, and memorability of concrete and abstract instructional texts were studied in 4 experiments involving 221 college students. Results indicate that concreteness (ease of imagery) is the variable overwhelmingly most related to comprehensibility and recall. Dual coding theory and schema theory are…

Examines the effect of prereading activities on the reading comprehension of three ethnic subgroups. Finds the prereading treatment group had significantly higher literal comprehension test scores than the control group and that there was no difference among the ethnic groups who engaged in the prereading activity. (RS)