DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY

Research Interests

Reading comprehension involves a dynamic, interactive set of processes including 1) the activation of prior knowledge, 2) the use of that activated information along with the current text, and 3) the potential updating or revision of memory. My program of research examines how these higher-order activities function both successfully and unsuccessfully during reading. I also focus on the mechanisms that underlie our general, everyday reading experiences - for instance, how our preferences for events and characters directly influence our reading processes. Some of my work attempts to generalize these findings from text to a variety of learning conditions, including our experiences exploring spatial environments with maps, our understanding of procedures delivered through multimedia presentations, and the acquisition of scientific knowledge from novel visualizations. All of this work requires the integration of theory and research from different disciplines in psychology (including cognitive and educational psychology). Such an interdisciplinary view is important for both examining the basic mechanisms necessary for comprehension, as well as for advancing applied work that attempts to remediate comprehension difficulties.

Selected Publications

Salovich, N.A., Mason, C.E., & Rapp, D.N.  (in press).  Evaluating tweets reduces the influence of inaccurate content, but does “liking” a tweet reflect evaluation? Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 12, 352-363.

Andrews, J.J., & Rapp, D.N.  (2024).  Adverse consequences of collaboration on spatial problem solving.  In K.M. Curtin & D.R. Montello (Eds.), Collective Spatial Cognition (pp. 127-145).  London, UK: Routledge.

McCrudden, M.T., & Rapp, D.N.  (2024).  Inquiry worldviews, approaches to research, and mixed methods in educational psychology.  In P. Schutz & K.R. Muis (Eds.), Handbook of Educational Psychology, 4th edition (pp. 48-70).  New York: Routledge.

Rapp, D.N., & Withall, M.M.  (2024).  Confidence as a metacognitive contributor to and consequence of misinformation experiences.  Current Opinion in Psychology, 55, 101735.

Salovich, N.A., Imundo, M.N., & Rapp, D.N.  (2023).  Story stimuli for instantiating true and false beliefs about the world.  Behavior Research Instruments, 55, 1907-1923.

Salovich, N.A., & Rapp, D.N.  (2023).  How susceptible are you? Using feedback and monitoring to reduce the influence of false information.  Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 12, 352-363.

Rich, P., Donovan, A.M, & Rapp, D.N.  (2023).  Cause typicality and the continued influence effect.  Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 29, 221-238.

Imundo, M.A., & Rapp, D.N.  (2022).  When fairness is flawed: Effects of false balance reporting and weight-of-evidence statements on beliefs and perceptions of climate change.  Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 11, 258-271.

Salovich, N.A., Kirsch, A.M., & Rapp, D.N.  (2022).  Evaluative mindsets can protect against the influence of false information.  Cognition, 225, 105121.

Spikes, M.A., & Rapp, D.N.  (2022).  Examining instructional practices in news media literacy: Shifts in instruction and co-construction.  Information and Learning Sciences, 123(1/2), 26-44.

Andrews-Todd, J.J., Salovich, N.A., & Rapp, D.N.  (2021).  Differential effects of pressure on social contagion of memory.  Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 27, 258-275.

Lea, R.B., Elfenbein, A., & Rapp, D.N.  (2021).  Rhyme as resonance in poetry comprehension: An expert-novice study.  Memory & Cognition, 49, 1285-1299.

Mensink, M.C., Kendeou, P., & Rapp, D.N.  (2021).  Do different kinds of introductions influence comprehension and memory for scientific explanations? Discourse Processes, 58, 491-512.

Salovich, N. A, Donovan, A. M., Hinze, S. R., & Rapp, D. N. (2021).  Can confidence help account for and redress the effects of reading inaccurate information?  Memory & Cognition, 49, 293-310.

Salovich, N.A., & Rapp, D.N.  (2021).  Misinformed and unaware: Metacognition and the influence of inaccurate information.  Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition, 47, 608-624.

Donovan, A.M., & Rapp, D.N.  (2020).  Look it up: Online search reduces the problematic effects of exposures to inaccuracies.  Memory & Cognition, 48, 1128-1145.

Rapp, D.N., Donovan, A.M., & Salovich, N.A.  (2020).  Assessing and modifying knowledge: Facts vs. constellations. In P. Van Meter, A. List, D. Lombardi, & P. Kendeou (Eds.), Handbook of Learning from Multiple Representations and Perspectives (pp. 443-460).  New York, NY: Routledge.

Schober, M.F., Rapp, D.N., & Britt, M.A., eds.  (2018).  The Routledge Handbook of Discourse Processes, second edition.  New York, NY: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

Rapp, D.N., & Braasch, J.L.G., eds.  (2014).  Processing Inaccurate Information: Theoretical and Applied Perspectives from Cognitive Science and the Educational Sciences.  Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.