This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 12 titles deal with the following topics: (1) conceptualization of main idea by special admission college freshmen; (2) the interactive effects of field dependence and adjunct questions on learning from prose; (3) an art based program for improving reading skills; (4) the effect of sentence faults on the reading behaviors of college freshman readers; (5) reading grade level attainment as a result of attending Navy academic remedial training; (6) the relation of preadmission achievement measures and participation in a reading treatment course on improving initial college academic achievement; (7) locus of control and reading achievement; (8) understanding visual illiteracy; (8) study strategies used by college students; (9) spelling strategies used by college students; (10) spelling as a correlate of reading ability in underprepared college freshmen; (11) the reading and televiewing habits and interests of the elderly; (12) and the effects of a summarizer, a form of systematic review, on comprehension.(EL)