E. Dhooge and R. J. Hartsuiker (2010) reported experiments showing that picture naming takes longer with low- than high-frequency distractor words, replicating M. Miozzo and A. Caramazza (2003). In addition, they showed that this distractor-frequency effect disappears when distractors are masked or preexposed. These findings were taken to refute…

Recent theories of morphological processing have been dominated by the notion that morphologically complex words are decomposed into their constituents on the basis of their semantic properties. In this article we argue that the weight of evidence now suggests that the recognition of morphologically complex words begins with a rapid morphemic…

In this critique of current reading research and practice, the author contends that the extreme ambiguity of English spelling-sound correspondence has confined reading science to an insular, Anglocentric research agenda addressing theoretical and applied issues with limited relevance for a universal science of reading. The unique problems posed by…

We argue that the reading of words and text is fundamentally conditioned by the splitting of the fovea and the hemispheric division of the brain, and, furthermore, that the equitable division of labour between the hemispheres is a characteristic of normal visual word recognition. We report analyses of a representative corpus of the eye fixations…

Evaluates the BIA model of bilingual word recognition in the light of recent empirical evidence. Points out problems with the model and proposes a new model, the BIA+. The new model extends the old one by adding phonological and semantic lexical representations to the available orthographic ones, and assigns a different role to the so-called…

Seven peer commentaries focus on an article that evaluated the BIA model of bilingual word recognition in the light of recent empirical evidence, pointed out problems with it, and proposed a new model, the BIA+. Raise several issues of concern. (Author/VWL)

Responds to comments written in response to an earlier article by that proposed a new model of bilingual word recognition. Clarifies aspects of the proposed model that have led to misunderstandings. (Author/VWL)

In reply to the commentary on the research by Anglin reported in this monograph, considers two issues: (1) implications for research on children's vocabulary knowledge that follow from adopting various definitions of what a word is; and (2) the distinction between learning words and constructing word meaning through a knowledge of morphological…

Introduces this issue of the journal, summarizing current issues in spoken word recognition. Argues a full understanding of the process of lexical access during speech comprehension will depend on resolving several issues: what is the form of the representations used for lexical access; how is phonological information coded in the mental lexicon;…

Discusses what children know--and don't know they know--about the linguistic concept of the word, with implications for teaching. (DD)

A recent study of neologisms has restated the prominent position of the lexicon from a linguistic point of view. From the perspective of language teachers, it is evident that an adequate vocabulary plays a crucial role in the ability to communicate in a foreign language. The fact that the lexicon is a major component of a language has caused the…

Points out that children must master a great deal of information about form classes, written conventions, and word referent relationships in order to understand what teachers mean when they use the term "word." (FL)

Notes the problems young readers often have in decoding words of three syllables or more that appear in their textbooks and offers three solutions to the problem. (JC)

Discusses the uses and advantages of pictorial schemata in teaching vocabulary to second language learners. The advantages are that the learner is encouraged not only to deal with lexical ordering but also to look for such ordering when learning the language outside the classroom. Describes how to design a schemata. (SED)

Reexamines two current, popularly held views about reading: the relative importance of word perception versus the reader's attention to the larger syntactic and semantic redundancies of the text. Some recent findings suggest the seriousness of the difficulty for those who cannot read high-frequency simple words. (Author/DB)