Individual Differences in Relations and Interrelations in Reading: Reconciling Issues of Definition, Dynamism, and Development

• In Event: Reconceptualizing Individual Differences in Reading

Abstract

Purpose and Perspective 

Research considering the influence of individual difference factors on the practice and development of reading has largely examined differences in relative isolation from one another. However, individual differences do not and cannot stand alone. Decoding and comprehending text occurs in a complex and ever-changing composition of facets relating to the reader, the text, and the context. Moreover, these facets interact and give rise to various, dynamic configurations across the developmental trajectory. This poster illuminates three issues for researchers to consider when assessing individual differences relations and interrelations: definition, dynamism, and development.
Mode of Inquiry and Data Sources
We drew upon the extant literature and historical conceptualizations of individual differences to frame a critical analysis of the more than 20 contributions to the forthcoming Handbook of Individual Differences in Reading.
Findings

There is significant variability in what is considered an individual difference. Our analysis revealed three tiers of factors attached to the definition, from seemingly “true” differences (i.e., relatively durable cognitive, dispositional, and conative factors impacting readers’ engagement with and learning from text) to those we considered group or cohort variability (e.g., classroom characteristics). We offer a conceptual model of primary and extended individual differences that positions definitional elements within a two-tiered, nested system, and argue that while there is some arguable benefit to broadening the traditional conception of individual difference, there is a concomitant burden to retain a clear understanding of the term.
Individual differences manifest in continuous and complicated orchestrations occurs across and within Tiers 1 and 2, and are differentially enacted within broader educational and sociological contexts. For instance, the attention that the reader allocates and to what, as well as the perceptions that are formed about the message (Tier 1), are influenced by what that reader already knows about the topic, the vocabulary the authors has chosen, as well as the reader’s beliefs about knowledge and knowing in the domain of reading (Tier 2). However, the dynamism of individual differences is poorly understood, particularly in relation to nonlinguistic, multi-sourced, and online reading contexts.
Just as reading develops in meaningful and predictable ways over the lifespan, there are changes that occur in the array of individual differences factors that help to fuel that development—changes that transpire as a result of the neurophysiological maturation or life events and experiences. Thus, even though we can speak about the relative stability of individual differences, we must do so with the acknowledgment that the “relative” disclaimer allows for the certain and essential variation and modulation evidenced over time.
Scholarly Significance
Given multidimensional, dynamic, and developmental nature of individual differences, analytic research is necessary but not sufficient to illuminate their role in reading comprehension. Rather, an equal and concerted effort must be made to consider patterns of differences in the contexts and developmental stages that make up the life of a reader. To this end, future research should employ a bounded-systems approach to studying individual differences relations and interrelations.

Authors

• Emily W. Fox, University of Maryland

• Liliane Maggioni, University of Maryland