Share (1995) hypothesized that readers can use phonological recoding as a mechanism to self-teach the acquisition of orthographic word knowledge. Support for his theory has come from studies conducted in young children, but it has yet to be tested in adults. Experiment 1 tested the ability of adults to acquire orthographic representations of novel word forms via self-teaching. English-speaking adults (N = 18) read 16 pseudowords embedded within a lexical decision task. Posttests revealed that adults could acquire item-specific orthographic knowledge of novel word forms through the use of self-teaching. Experiment 2 tested the degree to which limiting phonological recoding affects orthographic learning in adults. English-speaking adults (N = 19) performed a lexical decision task while concurrently articulating. Participants in Experiment 2 exhibited evidence of orthographic learning. However, participants in Experiment 1, who had full overt access to phonological recoding, exhibited stronger evidence of orthographic learning. Collectively, adult patterns of orthographic learning are comparable to patterns observed in children, as predicted by Share's item-based account of reading skill.
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