Effects of Self-Monitoring on Out-Of-Class Reading Behavior

The effects of self-monitoring upon the ˜free time” reading behavior of twenty grade school students enrolled in a summer remedial reading course were examined. Two dependent variables were measured: the number of pages read and the difficulty level of the material. The experiment was divided into five stages, the first stage being a baseline obtained by the experimenter without the subjects’ awareness. The second stage was comprised of having the subjects monitor the number of pages read daily. The third stage consisted not only of having the subjects monitor the number of pages read per day, but having the results charted and displayed in the classroom. The fourth stage was a return to baseline, and the fifth and final stage a reinstatement of the self-monitoring plus public charting treatment. The number of pages read per day increased significantly as a function of both experimental treatments (self-monitoring and self-monitoring plus public charting). There was no significant difference between the experimental treatments. While the difficulty level of the material did vary from phase to phase, it did not appear to do so as a function of the experimental treatments