Dr. LO Lap YanHo, Connie Suk-HanConnie Suk-HanHoWong, Yau-KaiYau-KaiWongChan, David Wai-ockDavid Wai-ockChanChung, Kevin Kien-hoaKevin Kien-hoaChung2018-07-182018-07-182016Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, Dec 2016, vol. 45(6), pp. 1287-1300.0090-6905http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11861/5276Understanding the microstructure and macrostructure of passages is important for reading comprehension. What cognitive-linguistic skills may contribute to understanding these two levels of structures has rarely been investigated. The present study examined whether some word-level and text-level cognitive-linguistic skills may contribute differently to the understanding of microstructure and macrostructure respectively. Seventy-nine Chinese elementary school children were tested on some cognitive-linguistic skills and literacy skills. It was found that word reading fluency and syntactic skills predicted significantly the understanding of microstructure of passages after controlling for age and IQ; while morphological awareness, syntactic skills, and discourse skills contributed significantly to understanding of macrostructure. These findings suggest that syntactic skills facilitate children's access of meaning from grammatical structures, which is a fundamental process in gaining text meaning at any level of reading comprehension. Discourse skills also allow readers to understand the cohesive interlinks within and between sentences and is important for a macro level of passage understanding.enDiscourse SkillsMacrostructureMicrostructureReading ComprehensionSyntactic SkillsPeer Reviewed Journal Article10.1007/s10936-015-9402-24561287