Text Processing and Memory in EFL Reading: The Role of Relevance Instructions

Abstract

This study examined the effects of relevance instructions on English as a foreign language (EFL) readers’ text processing and memories. The participants were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: the experimental condition, where they read texts to identify a specific category of information, and the control condition, where they read texts just for general comprehension. They read two expository texts that differed in difficulty, and the sentence-by-sentence reading times were recorded. The results demonstrated that relevance instructions induced readers to pay additional attention to relevant information, leading to better text recall. However, it was suggested that the size of relevance effects in the easy text was larger than those in the difficult text. The study discussed why the impact of relevance instructions depends on text factors and demonstrated that certain effects of relevance instructions are specific to EFL readers.