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Related Concept Videos

Hindsight Biases01:12

Hindsight Biases

Hindsight bias leads you to believe that the event you just experienced was predictable, even though it really wasn’t. In other words, you knew all along that things would turn out the way they did. Can you relate this to the phrase "Hindsight is 20/20" now?
Cause and Effect01:53

Cause and Effect

While variables are sometimes correlated because one does cause the other, it could also be that some other factor, a confounding variable, is actually causing the systematic movement in our variables of interest. For instance, as sales in ice cream increase, so does the overall rate of crime. Is it possible that indulging in your favorite flavor of ice cream could send you on a crime spree? Or, after committing crime do you think you might decide to treat yourself to a cone?
Stereotype Threat and Self-fulfilling Prophecies02:09

Stereotype Threat and Self-fulfilling Prophecies

When we hold a stereotype about a person, we have expectations that he or she will fulfill that stereotype. A self-fulfilling prophecy is an expectation held by a person that alters his or her behavior in a way that tends to make it true. When we hold stereotypes about a person, we tend to treat the person according to our expectations. This treatment can influence the person to act according to our stereotypic expectations, thus confirming our stereotypic beliefs. Research by Rosenthal and...
Regression Toward the Mean01:52

Regression Toward the Mean

Regression toward the mean (“RTM”) is a phenomenon in which extremely high or low values—for example, and individual’s blood pressure at a particular moment—appear closer to a group’s average upon remeasuring. Although this statistical peculiarity is the result of random error and chance, it has been problematic across various medical, scientific, financial and psychological applications. In particular, RTM, if not taken into account, can interfere when researchers try to extrapolate results...
Reliability and Validity01:29

Reliability and Validity

Reliability and validity are two important considerations that must be made with any type of data collection. Reliability refers to the ability to consistently produce a given result. In the context of psychological research, this would mean that any instruments or tools used to collect data do so in consistent, reproducible ways.
Confirmation Biases01:31

Confirmation Biases

The confirmation bias is the tendency to focus on information that confirms our existing beliefs and ignore information that is inconsistent with our expectations. For example, if you think that your professor is not very nice, you notice all of the instances of rude behavior exhibited by the professor while ignoring the countless pleasant interactions he is involved in on a daily basis. Have you ever fallen prey to the confirmation bias, either as the source or target of such bias?

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 30, 2026

Using Eye Movements to Evaluate the Cognitive Processes Involved in Text Comprehension
06:49

Using Eye Movements to Evaluate the Cognitive Processes Involved in Text Comprehension

Published on: January 10, 2014

Matthew effects in reading comprehension: myth or reality?

Athanassios Protopapas1, Georgios D Sideridis, Angeliki Mouzaki

  • 1University of Athens, Athens, Greece.

Journal of Learning Disabilities
|August 23, 2011
PubMed
Summary

This study investigated the Matthew effect in student learning. Results showed no evidence of widening gaps; instead, some younger students demonstrated convergence in reading comprehension skills over time.

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Last Updated: May 30, 2026

Using Eye Movements to Evaluate the Cognitive Processes Involved in Text Comprehension
06:49

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Published on: January 10, 2014

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Published on: October 18, 2018

Area of Science:

  • Educational Psychology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Literacy Studies

Background:

  • The Matthew effect describes how initial advantages or disadvantages in learning can accumulate over time.
  • Previous research suggests a widening gap in academic skills, particularly in reading.
  • This study examines the Matthew effect in reading, spelling, and vocabulary among elementary students.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the presence and pattern of the Matthew effect in reading, spelling, and vocabulary skills.
  • To determine if reading comprehension gaps widen or narrow over time in elementary students.
  • To analyze growth trajectories for low and high-ability student groups.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sequential design followed 587 students from Grade 2 to 4 over two years and five measurement points.
  • Standardized assessments measured reading, spelling, and vocabulary skills.
  • Multilevel modeling analyzed growth in passage comprehension for low and high-ability groups.

Main Results:

  • The hypothesized fan-spread pattern indicative of the Matthew effect was not observed.
  • Low and high-ability groups had different initial skill levels but did not show increasing divergence in passage comprehension.
  • Some analyses, particularly with younger students, indicated convergence in reading comprehension.

Conclusions:

  • The study found no evidence that the Matthew effect widens reading comprehension gaps in elementary students.
  • While gaps did not widen, there was also no indication of them closing, suggesting a lack of significant progress for lower-ability students.
  • The findings challenge the notion of accumulating disadvantages, indicating a more complex developmental pattern in literacy skills.