What is it about?

This study examined how well adults understand stories and what factors make a difference. We tested over 1,400 people of different ages and education levels in Germany. They were asked to understand short stories presented in two ways: as written text or as pictures. We then tested whether they could figure out missing parts of the stories. We found that education, not age, was the key factor in how well people understood the stories. People with higher education levels did better, no matter how old. Surprisingly, older adults understood the stories just as well as younger adults. We also found that everyone—regardless of age or education—understood stories told through pictures better than text. These results show that using pictures may help people understand information more easily, especially those with lower education or reading skills. This could help make important information, like public health messages or instructions, more accessible to everyone.

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Why is it important?

This study is the first to show, in a large, representative sample, that education—not age—shapes how well adults understand stories. It also shows that pictures help everyone comprehend stories better. These findings are timely because they offer a simple way to improve access to information—using images—especially for people with lower literacy skills.

Perspectives

What excites me most about this study is how clearly it shows that age isn’t the barrier we often think it is when it comes to understanding stories. Instead, it’s about access to education—and that’s something we can work to improve. I also love that the results point to a simple, practical takeaway: pictures really do help people make sense of information. That has big implications for how we design communication that’s fair, clear, and inclusive for everyone.

Prof. Dr. Markus Huff
Eberhard Karls Universitat Tubingen

Read the Original

This page is a summary of: Education, not age, linked to narrative comprehension, Learning and Instruction, June 2025, Elsevier,
DOI: 10.1016/j.learninstruc.2025.102102.
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