Pictures, titles, reading accuracy and reading comprehension: A research review (1973-95)

For which readers and texts are different types of Pictures and/or Titles 'worth a thousand words'? Pictures and Titles are extensively used in reading materials under the assumption that they enhance individuals' motivation for reading, and that they also facilitate reading. This paper presents findings from studies into the effects of Pictures and/or Titles on the reading and comprehension of continuous printed text. The transfer-appropriate processing hypothesis encourages the specification of conditions under which Pictures and/or Titles enhance or interfere with children's text-processing skills. Such studies contribute to an evolving theory of the cognitive conditions required for meaningful learning from materials comprising continuous text, Pictures and Titles. Four groups of researches are summarized. The first considers the effects of Pictures on Reading Comprehension (17 studies). The second summarizes work on effects of Pictures on both Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension (three studies). Turning to Titles, their effects on comprehension are presented (five studies). The fourth section summarizes studies into the effects of both Pictures and Titles on Reading Comprehension (four studies). Finally, one study that simultaneously examines the effects of both Pictures and Titles in relation to Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension is presented. Three main points emerge from the Picture and Title research reviewed. The first is that Pictures and Titles are not uniformly effective in all prose-reading situations. The second is that not all types of Pictures and Titles are equally effective for children with differing reading abilities. Both of these points are, in part, a consequence of methodological variations between researches, coupled with their respective limitations. Despite such limitations, an appreciation of such work suggests that teachers and textbook producers could increase slightly the likelihood of Pictures and Titles being effective in facilitating Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension for particular groups of readers. The third point raised by this survey is the challenge inherent in the first two. Can Pictures and/or Titles that systematically and differentially affect the accessibility of running text be constructed for children with different reading attainments and learning styles working with text of various genres?