UNDERNEWS: GREAT MOMENTS IN RESEARCH

GREAT MOMENTS IN RESEARCH

"Previous research has shown that preexisting inappropriate highlighting of text could impair reading comprehension."

IMPROBABLE RESEARCH: "Harmful Effects of Preexisting Inappropriate Highlighting on Reading Comprehension and Metacognitive Accuracy," Vicki Silvers Gier, David S. Kreiner and Amelia Natz-Gonzalez, Journal of General Psychology, vol. 136, no. 3, 2009, pp. 287–300. In this 2009 study: "Previous research has shown that preexisting inappropriate highlighting of text could impair reading comprehension. In addition to replicating this effect, the authors investigated the impact of preexisting highlighting on measures of metacognition. [The test subjects were] randomly assigned to read passages that varied by type of highlighting (none, appropriate, or inappropriate) and text difficulty (low vs. high). . . Inappropriate highlighting appeared to impair text comprehension and metacognitive accuracy.