Revising Linkage between Field Dependence-Independence Cognitive Styles with Iranian EFL Learners’ Global-Local Reading Comprehension

Despite vast research, there has not been a comprehensive consensus over the impact of the Field-Dependence/Independence (FD/I) cognitive styles on learning of language skills (Ellis, 2015). The present study, therefore, aims to investigate the linkage between FD/I cognitive styles with EFL learners’ global and local reading comprehension. To this end, a total of 180 female and male intermediate EFL learners, aged from 16 to 20, at Iranian Language Institute in Khoram Abad, Iran were selected using stratified random sampling. After measuring the learners’ FD/FI degrees with use of the Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT), the participants were divided into two groups, namely FD and FI. Next, the participants took a reading comprehension test that included both local and global reading comprehension items. To analyze the collected data, Pearson Correlation test was run. The findings revealed that there is a statistically significant correlation between FD cognitive style and global reading comprehension performance. In addition, the results indicated that there exists a statistically significant linkage between FI cognitive style and local reading comprehension ability. The findings may suggest that EFL teachers should take test takers’ cognitive styles into consideration as a key source of systematic variance in reading performance